If there's anyone who can relate to the Ray Rice scandal, it's Chris Brown.
The former Baltimore Ravens running back and the combustible R&B singer are two of the most high-profile domestic abuse perpetrators around.
This was clear last night when CBS nixed Rihanna from performing during its big Thursday Night Football pregame show in order to cover the Rice scandal.
A video leaked showing Ray knocking out Janay Palmer, his fiancee at the time and currently his wife, learning to his indefinite suspension from the NFL.
In the days since the footage leaked, debate has reached a fever pitch and the National Domestic Violence Hotline has seen an 84 percent increase in volume.
Women (and one ill-advised DiGiorno Tweet) have been weighing in around the clock with stories using the Twitter hashtags #WhyIStayed and #WhyILeft.
So what does Brown, who was convicted of felony assault on then-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009, and whose image never fully recovered, think about Rice?
Surprisingly measured, introspective and somewhat intelligent things.
"I think it's all about the choices you make," Chris told MTV News' Sway Calloway. "With me, I still deal with a lot of anger issues from my past."
"Not knowing how to express myself verbally and at the same time not knowing how to cope with some of my emotions and deal with them and understand them."
"So I think help is great," he added. "I still talk to my therapist twice a week, and it helps me, if I'm frustrated and I'm dealing with something, to vent and say what I'm going through."
That way, Brown says, "I can hear from an actual clinical person, 'this is how you should react,' or 'it's good to feel this way because feelings, emotions, and energy come and go."
"It's not supposed to stay there, you're not supposed to keep it inside, because it'll bottle up and you'll become a monster," he says, adding that he's not judging Rice.
"For me, dealing with my anger issues is about understanding myself and the life I've been through, where I'm headed and where I want to be," Chris said.
"For anybody who's going through that situation ... it's all about the choices. Every situation is different but it's all about the choices you make and how you control your anger."
"To Ray, or anybody else - I'm not better than the next man - I can just say I've been down that road. I deal with situations and I've made my mistakes too."
"But it's all about how you push forward and how you control yourself."
Hopefully Chris can continue to follow his own advice - which hasn't always been easy for him, but he seems to acknowledge that - and Ray takes it to heart.
Ray Rice and Janay Palmer on Instagram. All smiles on this night.
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