Chris Brown has launched his UK tour in Manchester, just weeks after he was arrested in the city.
The show took place at the Co-Op Live arena last night (June 15) as the first of a run of huge shows planned for the UK and Europe later this summer.
It was held following the ‘Loyal’ rapper being arrested in the city last month for allegedly attacking a music producer in a London bar two years ago.
He was tracked down at The Lowry Hotel by the Metropolitan Police and arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm just hours after arriving in the city on a private jet, leaving his upcoming tour in jeopardy. Shortly afterwards, he was freed on a £5million bail and permitted to travel internationally for his tour dates.
He is set to appear in court in London for a hearing later this week, and has not been asked to enter a plea yet.
“Thank you for coming and supporting me,” he told fans while on stage last night (via BBC). “And thank you to the jail…It was really nice.”
not Chris Brown thanking Manchester for the jail 😭😭 pic.twitter.com/Y9pCRgc7fq
— 𝖍𝖊𝖑𝖔 (@hwloiza) June 15, 2025
The performance also saw Brown take a trip back through his discography, opening with his breakthrough hit ‘Run It’, which he shared when he was 16, and playing his biggest tracks including ‘Turn Up The Music’, ‘Freaky Friday’, ‘With You’ and ‘Don’t Wake Me Up’.
He also marked 20 years in the music industry by showing a video montage of the highest and lowest moments of his career, and included a brief clip of news footage from outside a court in Manchester, following his recent arrest.
As outlined by BBC, Brown agreed to pay the £5million security fee to the court after being held in custody for nearly one week. This was done to ensure he returns to the court, and he may be made to forfeit the amount if he breaches bail conditions.
His court appearance on Friday (June 20) will see him attend alongside co-defendant Omololu Akinlolu – a 38-year-old who performs under the name HoodyBaby – who has also been charged with grievous bodily harm with intent for the February 2023 attack.
After the hearing, Brown is set to play two shows at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this weekend (June 21 and 22), before more shows in Birmingham, Glasgow and Manchester are set to take place. Other dates include shows in Ireland, France and Portugal, before he heads on a North American leg of the tour at the end of July.
English (US) · 