Rihanna has never been one to mince words—and when it comes to her career, she is always upfront about what she will and won’t do. One of the things she won’t be doing anytime soon is performing at the Super Bowl halftime show, and she explains exactly why in a new interview.
In a lengthy interview with iconic fashion publication @voguemagazine, superstar Rihanna opened up like never before about a plethora of topics, including her increasingly successful beauty and fashions brands, her love life and new music—but the topic that got her the most riled up was surrounding politics, specifically Trump, who she blatantly referred to as “the most mentally ill human being in America right now.” This of course surrounded a discussion about declining to perform for the upcoming Super Bowl halftime show.
Riri got right to the point and stated why she quickly turned down the opportunity:
“I couldn’t dare do that. For what? Who gains from that? Not my people. I just couldn’t be a sellout. I couldn’t be an enabler. There’s things within that organization that I do not agree with at all, and I was not about to go and be of service to them in any way.”
Rihanna has been very vocal regarding her support for Colin Kaepernick, and said in the interview that her solidarity to him and his cause is one of the main reasons why the Super Bowl is not on her radar.
However, things get even more intense when she lets #45 have it, ripping his policies, mental state and more:
“People are being murdered by war weapons that they legally purchase. This is just not normal. That should never, ever be normal. And the fact that it’s classified as something different because of the color of their skin? It’s a slap in the face. It’s completely racist. Put an Arab man with that same weapon in that same Walmart and there is no way that Trump would sit there and address it publicly as a mental health problem. The most mentally ill human being in America right now seems to be the president.”
She continues, adding:
“What do you say? What can you say? ‘It’s gonna get better?’ I almost feel sick to my stomach. I don’t even believe this is happening in real life. In front of my eyes. In front of the world. It’s not even hidden. This is blatant.”
However, Rihanna does feel a little hopeful even though things in America are at one of the darkest points in recent memory:
“I feel like the darkness has actually forced people to find this light within them where they want to do better. It’s easy when you think everything is going really well and perfect. When everything is flowers and butterflies and you’re in your own bubble and your own world. But to see it, to know it’s happening—it pushes you to want to be the light in the world.”
As for her devoted fanbase the Navy, she assures that her forthcoming album “R9” is almost finished and their prayers will be answered after years of waiting and anticipating.
Roommates, what are your thoughts on this?