Chris Brown on Dating: Just Chillin' For Now

Chris Brown is ready to move on.

Following his assault on then-girlfriend Rihanna, he has been sentenced and has begun the community labor and counseling that are part of his probation.

He's withstood crazy fans berating him, made the media rounds, apologizing for his actions; and he's gearing up for the release of his album next month.

But when it comes to jumping back into the dating pool, the singer said that for a variety of reasons, that's pretty much on hold - at least for now.

"I've been just kinda chillin'," he tells MTV News. "I mean, I'm Chris Brown. I'm not saying it like that, but it's just, like, girls are gonna be around."

Well, if you don't say so yourself!

Chris Brown is just workin' on him. [Photos: PacificCoastNewsOnline.com]

"I love women. But I would say I've just been chillin'. I haven't really been trying to get into a relationship or trying to date anybody right now."

"I've just kinda been working on me. Just getting me straight."

After recent interviews in which Rihanna described the assault, Brown says he respects her right to speak out, but wishes she'd kept it private.

While the couple reunited briefly after the February incident, they have been ordered by the court to maintain their distance for five years.

As for his new "Crawl" video, it was inspired in part by Rihanna:

"So being able to express the feelings, it was like, probably one of the best [records I've done]," he said. "But it was more than me trying to do a record that meant crawl to love, crawl back to love - meaning from your negative situations."

Would you date Chris Brown?