Russell Simmons Defends Chris Brown: "Give This Man a Break"

Chris Brown has apologized for his violent outburst on Good Morning America, and is working hard to put the past behind him by focusing on his music career and the release of his new album F.A.M.E. And hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons wants everyone to leave the 22-year-old singer alone and let him move forward.

"Chris is suffering from the same thing as almost every young star has gone through, including the Disney kids," Russell wrote on his site GlobalGrind.com, via Huffington Post. "And, having lost control, some of these young artists, sometimes, do an unspeakable thing at a moment of time. And they pay the price. But, as I and my team have said repeatedly on my site GlobalGrind.com, what's not fair is artists paying the price of the sins in their young lives for the rest of their lives. Again, and again, and again."

It seems like Russell indirectly made a reference to Miley Cyrus who endured media scrutiny for her now infamous salvia bong scandal.

"I'm just saying, give this man a break. I spoke to him last night for a long time and I know how good of a young man he is," Russell continues. "He's having the same type of struggles that all those other Disney kids have and all the other people who have instant fame... And because of that one regretful incident, no one will give him a break."

Do you think Chris deserves to be left alone for brutalizing Rihanna, or has he already gotten off easy? Share your thoughts in the comments.