Singer Bobby Brown didn’t hold back when discussing Britney Spears‘ 2004 cover of his iconic 1988 hit “My Prerogative” during a recent appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s podcast “Club Shay Shay.”

The R&B legend expressed his true feelings about various artists sampling his work, specifically singling out Spears’ rendition as particularly disappointing.

The singer-songwriter revealed in the April 16 interview that he feels most artists haven’t done justice to his original music when sampling or covering his songs. When asked by Sharpe which artist he believed had best sampled one of his tracks, Brown’s response was blunt.

Bobby Brown says he hated Britney Spears’ version of his No. 1 hit “My Prerogative.” (Photo: Stephen J. Cohen/Getty Images)

“Actually, I don’t think they really did justice to any of the samples that they have done to my songs… like Britney Spears butchered ‘Prerogative.’ Teddy Riley produced it, but that was a butchering that, you know, I couldn’t take it,” Brown told Sharpe.

Brown explained that he originally wrote “My Prerogative” as a personal anthem reflecting his lifestyle and attitude.

“I wrote it for myself. OK, I wrote it as an anthem and as a theme to my lifestyle and what I was all about… and that’s basically the reason I think I’m still here 40-42 years later,” he told Sharpe, despite Aaron Hall and Timmy Gatling also being listed as songwriters on the hit.

The song, which spent a week at No. 1 in February 1989, became Brown’s signature hit and cemented his solo career after leaving the group New Edition, according to Stereogum.

During the interview, Brown credited producer Teddy Riley for creating the track’s distinctive sound, calling it “so beefy and so in your face.”

Despite his negative feelings about Spears’ cover, Brown admitted that he cleared the rights for her version because of her star power and his trust in producer Teddy Riley. When Sharpe suggested Brown thought “she gonna do it right,” the singer agreed but ultimately felt disappointed by the final product.

The clip of Brown’s candid assessment quickly went viral after being posted by The Art of Dialogue, prompting various reactions from fans online. The comments section filled with people sharing their own opinions about Spears’ interpretation of the R&B classic.

“Bobby cleared it because he wanted the [bag emoji],” one commentator wrote, suggesting financial gain as his motive.

Another supporter of Brown commented, “Facts please don’t let them mess up Roni or Rock Wit’Cha,” referencing other hit songs from Brown’s catalog they wouldn’t want to see covered.

“Britney Spears can’t sing or perform black records Pink would have nailed it LA Reid signed her,” offered another critic of the pop star’s version.

Not everyone agreed with Brown’s assessment, however, as one person defended Spears, “Are you kidding me, I love the Britney Spears version.”

Another commenter acknowledged how the cover introduced them to Brown’s music, “Without Britney’s version, I wouldn’t have known it was Bobby Brown.”

Spears released her cover as the lead single for her first greatest hits album, “Greatest Hits: My Prerogative,” in 2004.

Her version featured additional synthesizers, modern R&B elements, and altered pronouns to reflect a female perspective.

While commercially successful internationally, topping charts in Finland, Ireland, Italy, and Norway, it underperformed in the United States, becoming Spears’ first lead single to miss the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

An alleged music industry insider told People Brown’s recent comments were just to get attention.

“He’s looking for press, but that’s his prerogative,” the source said.

Brown’s original “My Prerogative” remains a cultural touchstone from the New Jack Swing era. During a legendary Madison Square Garden performance, the night before his 20th birthday in 1989, Brown performed the song with guest appearances from LL Cool J, Heavy D, and Run from Run-DMC.

The New York Times described the scene as representing “a generation that had rewritten the rules of pop entertainment.”

While Spears’ version has its defenders, Brown’s criticism highlights the personal connection many artists feel to their original work and the complex emotions that arise when those songs are covered or reinterpreted by others.

‘I Couldn’t Take It’: Bobby Brown Says Britney Spears ‘Butchered’ His Hit Song ‘My Prerogative’