'He was flawed': James Brown’s daughters share father's dark side and reason behind forgiving him for abusing their mother

Yamma Brown said, 'I still go back to that place every now and then, not to belittle my dad, but flashing back over my own life'
PUBLISHED FEB 21, 2024
James Brown's daughter opened up about their childhood with their famous father (Getty Images)
James Brown's daughter opened up about their childhood with their famous father (Getty Images)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: The daughters of James Brown, whom he had with his second wife Deidre Jenkins, have opened up about their childhood with their famous father, who reportedly was not a good husband.

Yamma Brown told PEOPLE Magazine, “When you see a family member being hurt, you're not feeling the best about the person that's hurting them. I was flat-out upset, mad with my dad at that moment.”

American singer and songwriter James Brown (1933 - 2006, centre) arrives at Heathrow Airport in London from Paris, accompanied by his wife Deidre or Dee Dee, née Jenkins, UK, February 1973. (Photo by Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)
Yamma Brown shares the dark side of James Brown (Evening Standard/Getty Images)

Yamma Brown shares the dark side of James Brown

She continued, “I still go back to that place every now and then, not to belittle my dad, but flashing back over my own life and the domestic violence situation in my life, thinking how much of that shaped me.”

The 52-year-old singer also spoke about it in the new documentary, ‘James Brown: Say It Loud,’ where it has reportedly been shown that the 'People Get Up and Drive Your Funky Soul' singer himself was a victim of abuse during his growing years.

She shared, “I remember being 5 or 6 and thinking, 'I just can’t take it anymore.' And you hear about this, where people’s kids stand up to their parent’s abuser before the parent will.”

“What I remember as clear as day, my mom had on a blue and white robe and he literally was screaming and hollering and hitting her and she was crying. I just remember going over there and trying to pull him off of her,” she further explained.

American singer, songwriter and musician James Brown (1933-2006) with his wife, Adrienne Rodriguez, and daughter, Deanna Brown Thomas, in the 1992 American Music Awards press room, held at the Shrine Auditorium, in Los Angeles, California, 27th January 1992. James Brown received the American Music Award of Merit at the ceremony. (Photo by Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)
American singer, songwriter, and musician James Brown with his wife, Adrienne Rodriguez, and daughter, Deanna Brown Thomas (Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images)

Yamma added, “And the look that he gave me was like, ‘Who is this person?’ But it didn’t even matter to me because in that moment I was just trying to protect my mother.”

She told the publication, "I talk about it in the sense that it happened. It is an unfortunate time in anybody's situation, anybody's life. If they've ever had to go through domestic violence, they know what that's like."

"And it shows that he was human because he was flawed, but it also is a time to show grace," the actress stated.

Deanna Brown Thomas says their father did not hurt them

But her elder sister Deanna asserted that despite being violent, James was not abusive toward her and Yamma.

“There was a time when I didn't like my father. I didn't like him because of this type of behavior. I saw a lot growing up. I heard a lot growing up that could have damaged me for a lifetime,” the 55-year-old mentioned.

James Brown accepted his mistake

She also noted, “He never had any type of rage towards us because we were his children. That was a situation between a husband and a wife. There's different type of love, different type of circumstances.”

Besides, Yamma added, “My dad did apologize to my mom. Not to say that that was something that just erased everything, but also knowing that he had compassion in his heart and my mom was receptive to that.”

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