Rihanna appeared on the British X Factor last night (during which she did an impersonation of Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct and then proceeded to lip-sync), and later on gave an exclusive interview to British Tabloid The Sun during which she of course tried again to bring out Sexy/Liberated Rihanna…which meant talking about getting naked and getting other women naked to, we’re guessing liberate them and make them stronger (and since they won’t have a record to sell, at least they’ll be left with the warm feelings that pervs are jerking off to their pictures).
Here are some excerpts:
“Every woman should have naked pictures taken. In five years my body might not look like this!
“I’ve always been borderline raunchy and a little sexy. But sexy at 19 and sexy at 21 is two different things. I’m just having fun.”
“When naked pictures I’d sent to a boyfriend were leaked this year I was so nervous and embarrassed that my mom was going to see them.
“But she reacted in the most surprising way.
“She just sent me a text saying, ‘You’re an adult now’. Basically saying, ‘Welcome to the real world’.
“She says I’m a woman now so I have to handle things like an adult.”
“I said a while ago that size matters but it’s also about the skill! If the right person comes along then I’ll act accordingly… ”
There was no trace of youthful nerves as Rihanna strutted her stuff on last night’s X Factor.
She is impressed by this year’s crop of contestants, saying: “It’s scary for them – especially knowing how many people are watching. It’s the biggest show here and that’s a lot of pressure for someone who just came from their little home.”
But she says she would have willingly put herself through the reality TV mill to succeed as a star.
Her early family life with a crack addict father made her determined to carve out a better life.
She said: “I would have done anything to get here, any way that I had to. If I had to go on a TV show then I would have done that.”
But there’s one thing about The X Factor she doesn’t find such an attractive prospect.
Despite a fancy for British men and their “cute” accents, one person who has not turned her head is Simon Cowell who she says is a “great judge” but “a little too old for me”.
Another reality show came back to haunt her yesterday as Britain’s Got Talent favourite Susan Boyle trounced her in the album charts.
SuBo’s I Dreamed A Dream claimed the top spot while Rihanna’s Rated R languished at 16.
She said of the Scottish singer: “I think it’s really terrific that someone’s dream can come true just when you think it can’t.
“She’s a middle-aged woman who doesn’t look like a star yet she has the most angelic voice.
“I couldn’t be more excited for her. I can’t even put myself in her position, what that would feel like. She so deserves it.”
Rihanna’s single Russian Roulette is making a stronger showing though, charting at No6 last night.
Rihanna says her new music is her way of turning the tables on Chris Brown.
And she reveals she has poured her heart into personal songs about the attack as her way of dealing with the pain.
The singer, who has sold 12million albums worldwide, says: “I’ve always been a very guarded person in terms of letting people in, but I went through something that made me open up. And that was my way of healing from that experience.”
When we talk about Leona Lewis being punched in the face by a crazed fan earlier this year, Rihanna admits the incident brought back memories.
She says: “I got so mad. I got mad like it was me. I couldn’t believe it happened to her, of all people. It’s so disappointing when people behave like that. Why?
“She’s so sweet. She is just a beautiful, beautiful spirit. You don’t want any bad things to happen to her.”
Although she is still coming to terms with what happened to her on that February night, this is no shamed and cowed victim.
Her lyrics to several of her new songs are also defiant and make it very clear Chris was in the wrong – a message she feels is important to get across to other victims.
Cold Case Love contains the words: “What you did to me was a crime, and I let you reach me one more time but that’s enough.”
The most heart-wrenching, Stupid In Love, goes: “Don’t understand it, blood on your hands, and still you insist on repeatedly trying to tell me lies. Don’t talk to me like I’m stupid.
“I still love you but I just can’t do this. I may be dumb but I’m not stupid.”
Rihanna admits she found recording the album therapeutic but also painful.
She says: “I opened up and got a little vulnerable and let my emotions out on it.
“I’m able to listen back to it now but in the beginning it was really weird.
“It was too deep for me. I kept having to leave the studio.
“But this was a great display of my recovery process.”
Rihanna’s only remaining sadness is that her father Ronald Fenty – now clear of drugs – with whom she was recently reconciled, has not been in touch since the pair had a bust-up over him being drunk at her concert 18 months ago.
She credits him on her album sleeve but says she doesn’t expect a response despite him saying he has been trying to make contact.
She says: “He has too much pride. It’s almost like we play opposite roles – I’m the adult and he’s the stubborn teenage boy.
“Luckily my mom raised me with enough qualities to take on something like that. She is the least judgmental person.
“My whole life, she has always been there guiding me but she was never too hands-on. She was just there by my side making sure I didn’t make the wrong decision.”
Jessica Simpson and her sonorous breasts looked to be extremely upbeat as they made their way out of her Manhattan apartment yesterday, and we can only guess Billy Corgan’s Rolling Stone interview did its magic and aroused them with his kindness and sensitivity.
