BOSTON, US - A Massachusetts judge has issued an arrest warrant for Grammy Award-winning R&B singer Bobby Brown for failure to pay child support, local media reported on Friday.

Family court judge Christina Harms ordered Brown, 40, arrested next time he is in the state and brought to her court after he failed to appear at a court appointment, the reports said.

Brown helped pioneer the new jack swing music style in the 1980s and had a No. 1 hit with 'My Prerogative' in 1988. His marriage to singer Whitney Houston ended in divorce in 2007.

He has a history of legal troubles, having been arrested several times on charges that have included battery, drunken driving and parole violation.

This latest arrest warrant stems from a child support case for two children from a different relationship, the Boston Herald newspaper reported.

(Reporting by Matt Bigg; Editing by Xavier Briand)