Fans of Grammy Award-winning star Bobby Brown are just days away from the premiere of the singer’s new A&E documentary, followed immediately by his new reality series “Bobby Brown: Every Little Step,” featuring his wife, Alicia Etheredge, and their three young children together.
Etheredge and Brown met in the late ’80s shortly after the entertainer had left his successful R&B group New Edition, and soon formed a platonic friendship. However, it was a challenging time for the then young star.
Through battles with addiction, the loss of his wife Whitney Houston, and two children, Bobbi Kristina and Bobby Brown Jr., Etheredge remained a close friend to Brown, even if that meant dealing with the legacy of the 53-year-old’s previous relationship with the “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” singer.
However, while talking to People ahead of the special’s release, the producer said she doesn’t focus on the “My Prerogative” artist’s past, telling the outlet, “Bobby and Whitney were their time.” she added, “I also came from a place. So knowing that he loved hard and came out the other end and somehow we were meant to be and found each other again, that’s what I focus on.”
The pair got engaged in Jacksonville in Florida in 2010, and later married in June 2012. They’ve since welcomed three children: a son, Cassius Brown, born May 30, 2009, and daughters; Bodhi Jameson Rein Brown, born July 9, 2015, and Hendrix Estelle Sheba Brown, born July 21, 2016.
Still, people on social media appeared to have mixed feelings about Etheredge’s statement. Many sympathized with the mother of three, with several people stating they understood how difficult it could be living in the shadows of someone else, including one person who wrote, “Man that’s gotta be hard, he’ll ALWAYS be tied to Whitney!!”
Another online user commented, “I can understand her feeling this way, but to verbalize it… uhmmmm yea….”
Meanwhile, some fans were struggling to move past the Bobby and Whitney era like one person who commented, “She saying we need to move on like Whitney is still alive, besides all we know is BOBBY and WHITNEY!” Another person added, “We’ll move on when we ready.”
Brown is no stranger to cameras following him after having starred in “Being Bobby Brown” in the early 2000s with Houston, which resulted in immense backlash. Many critics blamed the show for tarnishing the Grammy Award-winning singer’s public image, including by spotlighting their shared struggle with substance abuse.
However, this time around, the “Don’t Be Cruel” singer is proceeding with caution, telling the publication about the 12-episode reality series, “There’s certain times we can be filmed and certain times that you’ve got to cut the cameras off.”
