Bobby Brown Ready To Make First Public Appearance Since Bobbi Kristina's Hospitalization

Bobby Brown was in "great spirits" Friday as he prepared to make his first public appearance since the start of daughter Bobbi Kristina's coma crisis three months ago, his wife told the Daily News.

The New Edition singer, who's been keeping a vigil at Bobbi Kristina's bedside in Georgia, flew to Los Angeles to sing on stage Saturday night after giving a cooking demonstration in a vendor booth at the Kinfolks Soul Food Festival, sources confirmed.

"We'll be there. We're excited. He's good. He's in great spirits," wife Alicia Etheredge said when reached by phone Friday.

Etheredge confirmed the situation with Bobbi Kristina was stable enough to allow for the travel.

"Yes," she said when asked if Bobbi Kristina was hanging in there as she continues to fight for her life.

Brown, 46, has been in relative seclusion since his only daughter with ex-wife Whitney Houston was found facedown and unresponsive in a bathtub on Jan. 31.

Bobbi Kristina, 22, was treated at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta before her family moved her to an undisclosed rehabilitation center for continued monitoring of her medically induced coma.

"She's the same," grandmother Cissy Houston told WBLS-FM in New York on March 25. "We've moved her now to a place for rehabilitation. But you know, there's still not a great deal of hope. We're praying."

A source for the Kinfolks Soul Food Festival said Brown had a longstanding relationship with the event and was honoring his commitment.

"He's a professional and he's coming through, and we should give him respect for that," event spokeswoman Kimi Rhochelle told The News.

"He still has to make a living. It's like any of us going to work when he have difficulties in our lives. You still have to put on a brave face and do what you do. He'll be getting in front of people, but he'll still be feeling what he's feeling."

She said Brown was expected to give a cooking demonstration with his personal line of Bobby Brown BBQ seasonings and sauces in the early evening Saturday.

His musical performance was set for around 10 p.m., Rhochelle said, adding that the lineup also included Ed DeBarge, Salt 'N' Pepa and Stephanie Mills.

A video promoting the event was posted on YouTube.com earlier this week and included a recorded message from Brown — though it was unclear when he taped it.

"I'm real excited to be at the Soul Food Festival Saturday. Y'all know where it is," he says in the generic voiceover animated with photos of the festival and his products. "I will be performing, and I will be displaying some of my talented skills as far as on the grill and all my seasonings and BBQs. So come on out. I got a special gift for you."

The R&B star asked for privacy shortly after his daughter's medical emergency, but his spokesman issued a statement that was critical of Bobbi Kristina's live-in boyfriend Nick Gordon.

Gordon was at the couple's Georgia home when Bobbi Kristina lost consciousness, but it was another friend who found her and called 911.

Local police have said they are investigating the matter for possible criminal behavior.

Gordon was banished from the hospital and entered a downward spiral fueled by alcohol and Xanax that landed him in an intervention with his mom and TV's Dr. Phil.

Gordon entered rehab in early March and now is about a third of the way through his intensive 90-day program, a source close to Gordon told The News on Friday.

"Nick is great. He's doing absolutely fabulous. He was a little hesitant about his treatment at first, but now he's all about his wellbeing. He's in a really great place," the source said.

The source previously told The News that Gordon was in a "life or death situation" when his worried mom called for the intervention.

"It's my prayer that once he's pulled himself back together and gets out, there can be a conversation with Bobby Brown about seeing Bobbi Kristina. At that point, there should be nothing stopping that," the source said.

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