Brown, 25, was on the red carpet just hours after three people, including rap producer Marion 'Suge' Knight, were shot early on Sunday morning at a party he hosted on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California.
The singer was dressed in a black T-shirt, trousers and jacket as he walked the red carpet at the awards ceremony held at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
Close call: Chris Brown received a hug from Rita
Ora on Sunday at the MTV Video Music Awards after three people were
wounded by gunfire at a pre-party hosted by Brown
The singer had a large golden medallion hanging from a necklace and wore large sunglasses on the carpet.
Ora, 23, approached the singer in her flowing red gown and embraced him on the carpet. She later performed Black Widow with Iggy Azalea during the awards ceremony.
Hugging it out: Chris and Rita embraced on the red carpet
Party host: Brown hosted a pre-party on the Sunset Strip in which Suge Knight and two others were shot
Multiple shots were fired at the 1OAK nightclub on Sunset Boulevard at around 1:30am, sending club patrons scrambling.
Knight, 49, sustained gunshot wounds to his stomach and arm and was later taken by paramedics to a nearby hospital for treatment.
An unidentified 32-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman also were shot. No arrests have yet been made.
Shared disappointment: Chris shared his disappointment via Twitter on Sunday
On the carpet: Tyga caught up with Brown on the red carpet
Brown took to Twitter later on Sunday morning to denounce the violence.
'It's disappointing that we as a society can't have fun or enjoy ourselves without any altercations sometimes,' Brown tweeted to his more than 13 million followers on Twitter.
Knight also was shot at a pre-VMAs party on August 28, 2005 at Miami's Shore Club.
Catch the VMAs on MTV UK Monday 25th August at 9pm.
Reaching out: Rita reached out to Chris on the carpet before the awards ceremony
Singing stars: Brown posed for a picture with Jennifer Lopez at the VMAs
Catching up: J-Lo and Brown shared a moment together
