A First Look at Chris Brown's New Role on ABC's 'Black-Ish'

Chris Brown is the latest 'Black-ish' guest star, joining Anthony Anderson and the rest of the cast for next week's new episode.

March 24, 2017

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Chris Brown will appear on next week's new episode of the hit ABC sitcom Black-ish. Entertainment Weeklyreported this week that Brown will guest star as a "popular rapper" named Rich Youngsta, who lands an advertising campaign with Dre (Anthony Anderson). Here's an early peek from the set:

Though initially excited about the campaign's potential, Dre is later conflicted when Bow (Tracee Ellis Ross) and Ruby (Jenifer Lewis) tell him the ad plays on negative stereotypes. In a simultaneous storyline unrelated to Brown's character, Bow tries to cut back on the family's take-out food diet. However, she later learns the family may be too set in their ways to change it up.

Black-ish has previously enlisted guest stars such as Amber Rose and Daveed Diggs (Hamilton), and it was recently reported that Rashida Jones (Parks and Recreation) is set to portray Bow's sister in an upcoming episode this April. Brown, whose 2017 headlines so far have included claims of a "downward spiral" and a restraining order from Karrueche Tran after he allegedly threatened to kill her, has prior acting credits including The O.C. and Battle of the Year.

In January, Black-ish gave Dre one of the series' most powerful moments in its three years on the air. Dre, caught in a work debate about the 2016 presidential election, delivered a moving monologue on the pain of loving a country that doesn't always reciprocate that love:

"I love this country, even though at times it doesn't love me back," Dre told his co-workers in the critically acclaimed episode. "For my whole life, my parents, my grandparents, me, for most black people, this system has never worked for us. But we still played ball. Tried to do my best to live by the rules, even though we knew they would never work out in our favor."