Chris Brown is lecturing ex-girlfriend Karrueche Tran about gratitude, after she recently claimed the nature of their volatile relationship "affected her work."

"I used to date him, and now as I am growing into myself and maturing and getting my career together, I am starting to have my own name without having to be associated," Tran recently told BBC Newsbeat of the "Loyal" rapper, who was once convicted of physically assaulting Tran's fellow ex Rihanna.

Those close to Brown didn't take kindly to Tran's apparent put-down.

"Let's be clear about it, there would be no Karrueche Tran if she hadn't dated Chris Brown," s source close to Brown told Urban Islandz. "The world would not know who Karrueche Tran is if she didn't inject herself into Chris' life after the Rihanna incident."

Brown's supporters add they now find it totally shocking that Tran would even hint that her business troubles are a result of once being connected to Brown.

"She should be thanking [Brown] for making her famous and stop bashing him for her misfortune," a source added.

The two split earlier this year when it became public knowledge that Brown had fathered a child with another woman behind his ex's back. Brown now has joint custody of his daughter, and while those close to him admit he was bothered by some of what Tran said, they insist he's "trying to not let it get the better of him."

As for Tran, she added that she is no longer in contact with her ex and has moved beyond much of the "negative stuff" people once said about her.

"A lot of people think I am a weak individual because of past situations and when it comes to business sometimes people don't want to be involved with somebody like that," she said. "Which is understandable, but it sucks, because I'm not a weak person."