Chris Brown says he was 'under the weather' during 'White Hot Holidays' performance

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- Fans took to social media recently to criticize Chris Brown following a disappointing performance during Fox's Taraji and Terrence's White Hot Holidays special.

The Empire-infused program, hosted by stars Taraji P. Henson and Terrence Howard, featured Christmas-themed sketches and performances from Patti LaBelle, John Legend, Jamie Foxx and Mary J. Blige.

Brown took the stage towards the end of the show Tuesday to perform a melody of his single "Back to Sleep" and "This Christmas" where vocally, he sounded off. As the singer struggled to keep control of his voice, R&B star Tank was invited onstage to turn the performance into a duet.

Viewers took notice of Brown's lackluster singing and proceeded to slam the 26-year-old on social media, wondering if he was possibly sick or even high on drugs. "Chris Brown was AWFUL! #RIP - His Voice," wrote Twitter user Taraji Xone. "Was @chrisbrown performance for real, he looked like a hot mess," said viewer Tinaharkey.

In a now-deleted tweet, Brown defended himself and gave a reason for the quality of the performance writing, "Grind season been in full effect. Been under the weather." Later he referenced how even basketball great Michael Jordan sometimes had an off day. "MJ didn't score 50 every night. I'm just glad I was given the opportunity. #HappyHolidays."

Henson also came to Brown's defense, tweeting, "Y'all know what @chrisbrown is capable of vocally. HE SHOWED UP W/LOVE IN HIS HEART PERIOD Happy #WhiteHotHolidays."

Brown last made headlines earlier this month when he cancelled concerts in Australia, New Zealand and an appearance on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah for unspecified reasons. Brown's latest album Royalty hits stores Dec. 18.