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Rihanna's Twitter response to the current brouhaha over her "Man Down" video stopped me short.
Not the part about "the music industry isn't exactly Parents R Us! We have the freedom to make art, LET US! It's your job to make sure they don't turn out like US."
She is half-right there.
What got me was the opener: "I'm a 23-year-old rockstar."
'Cause back in 2005, when the Barbadian native came here during Caribana with Jay-Z (and Kanye West) for a promotional spin on the strength of her thin first single "Pon de Replay," I'd never have guessed that six years later she'd be kicking off consecutive sold-out shows at the Air Canada Centre.
Even in 2007, when she dropped into town just as "Umbrella" was blowing up, longevity wasn't apparent. I even wondered whether she'd be able to recreate her singles live.
Never saw it coming. Not the tons of hits off a total five albums which have sold over 12 million copies. Not the trendsetting style. Not the controversial "Man Down" video, which has scored over 10 million YouTube hits since its release last week.
With a limited, but memorable voice, distinct personal style and knack for finding the right songs for her range, Lil' Red Ri Ri has risen to arena-rocking heights. Monday's ACC show was the second stop on the North American tour for current album Loud which will hits seven more Canadian cities.
It had all the bells and whistles: pyrotechnics, smoke, disappearing stage, and a handful of skimpy costumes. Rihanna, who shares creative responsibility for the production, has culled bits and pieces from other performers - Justin Bieber's drum solo, Janet Jackson's lap dance (with a female audience member instead of the men Ms Jackson usually selects), and Madonna's old burlesque thing.
And, yes, she sings live, and well.
Rihanna has learned that shock works, though her scale is much tamer than say, Lady Gaga. She's into tattoos and bright hair and, latterly, eyebrow-raising videos such as Loud's "S&M," which was banned in several countries for its references to sex, whips and chains, and "Man Down," which depicts the singer assassinating a man in retaliation for apparently raping her. American watchdog groups and industry critics have called for the video to be pulled from BET.
Rihanna, who was famously assaulted by then boyfriend Chris Brown (who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to counselling and community service) in 2009 and references domestic violence in her 2010 duet with Eminem "Love the Way You Lie," has said the video's theme is female empowerment.
"Young girls/women all over the world. . . we are a lot of things!" she wrote on Twitter. "We're strong innocent fun flirtatious vulnerable, and sometimes our innocence can cause us to be naive! We always think it could NEVER be us, but in reality, it can happen to ANY of us! So ladies be careful."
Rihanna, who apparently finds cavorting half-naked around a stage empowering, hasn't yet learned that she has to take responsibility for her art; but at this rate, it looks like she'll have lots of time to figure that out.
The show, heavy with hits from her last two albums and collaborations with the likes of T.I. and Jay-Z, was rife with T. Dot content: Tanisha Scott is the show’s choreographer; Melanie Fiona joined high-energy opener B.O.B. for "Airplanes" ; and Drake caused pandemonium when took his seat in the raised VIP area just before Rihanna's set.
Rihanna delivered a steamy performance when kicking off her North American tour at 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore over the weekend. She invited a lucky female fan to the stage and made her lying on a platform before straddling her while seductively moving her own body.
The Bajan songstress is seen wearing a white bondage gear, similar to the one she wore during her controversial "S&M" performance at Billboard Music Awards. She gave the fan a lap dance while singing "Skin", one of the songs from her latest studio album "Loud".
After rocking Baltimore, Rihanna is going to head to Toronto for a live concert at Air Canada Centre. Once the North American leg is completed, she's going to fly to Brazil for two gigs before visiting Europe. She is expected to stay on the road until December this year.
Rihanna is speaking out against critics who have blasted her for the controversial video to her latest single "Man Down." The pop singer took to Twitter earlier today to respond to the backlash she's been dealing with since the video premiered on 106 & Park this week. The video is about a young woman who seeks revenge against a man who raped her. It ends with a murder scene.
"I'm a 23 year old rockstar with NO KIDS! What's up with everybody wantin me to be a parent? I’m just a girl, I can only be your/our voice! Cuz we all know how difficult/embarrassing it is to communicate touchy subject matters to anyone especially our parents! And this is why! Cuz we turn the other cheek! U can’t hide your kids from society, or they'll never learn how to adapt! This is the REAL WORLD!," she wrote in a series of Tweets.
Rihanna continued her tirade, defending her right to artistic freedom of expression and advising parents to take full responsibility for raising their children. "The music industry isn't exactly Parents R Us. We have the freedom to make art, LET US! It's your job to make sure they don't turn out like US."
Rihanna guns down a man in a dark, and emotional music video for her latest single "Man Down". In this clip, the Bajan songstress is originally a carefree island girl who is full of love, spirit and joy, but then an unthinkable moment happens and changes her entire life. She gets raped by a man she met at a party, and turns into a cold-blooded killer to seek revenge on him.
The music video was directed by Anthony Mandler. "Very strong underlying message 4 girls like me! #listentoyomama," RiRi once tweeted about the premise of the gritty visuals. Anthony, meanwhile, said the video has all elements that will capture viewers right from the beginning, saying "[It's] dramatic and shocking and intense and emotional and uplifting and enlightening."
RiRi filmed the clip in Jamaica. "I've always wanted to do a video here. 'Man Down' is just a song that you can't do anywhere else. We need to be authentic. You can't get any realer than Jamaica," she gushed. "It was amazing. It was intense, but we did it, of course. We're the dream team, and I'm really glad we came to Jamaica to make it work."
"Man Down" is lifted from Rihanna's studio album "Loud". The song was chosen as a single based on an online poll she had to determine her next offering.
After flirting with Drake ("What's My Name?") and spicing up the bedroom ("S&M"), Rihanna is getting serious with her latest video for "Man Down."
The clip for the reggae-infused song, co-written by fellow Bajan Shontelle, contains a compelling message for women. "Very strong underlying message 4 girls like me! #listentoyomama," explained RiRi.
The Barbados beauty flew to Jamaica last month to shoot the visuals with director Anthony Mandler ("Only Girl"), filming scenes on the beach and in Portland, a parish on the island's northeast coast.
The video for "Man Down," the fifth release from last year's Loud, is set to premiere Tuesday on BET's "106 & Park."
Not too long after a rather racy performance of her hit single "S&M," singer Rihanna has stepped up to take on the criticism that her and fellow performer Britney Spears have received, especially from a kiss the two shared at the end. The Parents Television Council issued a statement, declaring the performance and the kiss oversexualized and not an accident, and that ABC and their sponsers "knew EXACTLY what they were getting." The organization has also called for a boycott of the networks sponsers, which indclude Old Navy, McDonalds, and Chevrolet.
Rihanna later appeared on the Today show and defended the performance, stating "There are people who are going to think it's too sexy, but you're always going to find that. People are going to always talk whether you're doing bad or good."
As for the kiss, Rihanna pointed out that "Nothing popped out. We didn't make out."
Rihanna kicked of Today's Toyota Concert Series this morning and instead of just sticking to the stage she performed all throughout Rockefeller Center in NYC. One fan, however, got a little too excited when Rihanna walked by, and grabbed her! Luckily, Rihanna's back-up dancers helped pull her away!
Rihanna started her show on Today by performing her hit song "S&M" from her new album Loud.
While the singer was making her way to the stage, it looks like one fan aggressively pulled her into him for a hug! Rihanna's back-up dancers helped pulled her away from him, and somehow through all the chaos, Rihanna managed to keep on singing!
But the rest of Rihanna's concert seemed to go off without a hitch.
She hasn't visited Today since June 2008, and the now 23-year-old says she changed a lot since then.
"I'm 2- times busier. I definitely am a very busy woman, but I love it," she said. "There are a lot of life experiences and a lot of great things that has happened since I was 20 years old."
A newspaper in the U.K. is claiming that R&B superstar Rihanna and former boyfriend Chris Brown are secretly getting back together.
'Ri-Ri' took a lot of flack recently from her fans when it was noted that she is now following him with her twitter account.
One fan tweeted Rihanna "I never thought you would go back to him! You better not, its your life but you do have ppl that look up to you."
Which of course prompted a heated response from the singer "its f#ckin twitter, not the alter! calm down". Rihanna later apologized to the fan for her tweet.
U.K.'s Now Magazine claims;
The restraining order she'd taken out was lifted in February in time for the Grammys and our sources say Ri-Ri, 23, has met up with Chris twice since then.
'Ri-Ri's always loved Chris - that never changed,’ reveals a source. 'They've texted and Skyped each other a lot recently and met up at a mutual friend's house in Los Angeles after the restraining order expired.'
Sources close to the couple tell Now they want to give things another shot.
'Ri-Ri wants to be with Chris but is worried about her career and fans,' says our insider.
'She's trying to find a way to take him back publicly without letting down her supporters, her management and her friends or setting a bad example.
'Chris has said he'll be as patient as she needs him to be but after being slammed on Twitter for just following him, she's begun to worry that they may never get to be together in public.'
The two former lovers have yet to be photographed together publicly, so right now this is simply rumor.
