Celebs pay emotional tribute to Michael Jackson at BET Awards

London: R&B star Chris Brown broke down while performing a tribute to his idol, the late `King of Pop` Michael Jackson at the Black Entertainment Awards. The 22-year-old, who was at the receiving end of scathing criticism after being charged with assaulting ex-girlfriend Rihanna, was singing `Man In The Mirror` when he started tearing up, reported a news daily.

At the close of the tribute, which saw Brown dance to `Remember the Time`, `Smooth Criminal` and `Billie Jean`, Brown attempted to sing `Man In The Mirror`. However, he could hardly utter a word as he choked back tears and pranced around on stage, raising his fist to the emotional number before collapsing to his knees, still attempting to get the words of the song out of his mouth. The audience managed to fill in the gaps as Brown struggled with the song, their help seeming to inspire him to rise and sing the words along with Jackson`s voice, while gesturing along with the mic as tears rolled down his face. Jermain Jackson consoled Brown following his emotional tribute to brother Michael, who passed away last June. Later in the show he admitted he`d disappointed himself at losing control of his emotions during the routine. Collecting the AOL Fandemonium award (voted for by online fans) he said, "I let ya`ll down before, but I won`t do it again. I promise." PTI