Rihanna on Chris Brown reunion: "I'm going to do what I want"
She was heavily criticised when she reunited with her former lover Chris Brown on two new tracks almost three years to the day that he violently attacked her.
But while Rihanna admits that she understands why their renewed friendship has caused anger, the 24-year-old insists she will not cut the R&B star out of her life, saying, "I'm going to do what I want".
"I respect what other people have to say. The bottom line is that everyone thinks differently," she says in an interview with Elle magazine.
"It's very hard for me to accept, but I get it. People end up wasting their time on the blogs or whatever, ranting away, and that's all right. I don't hate them for it
"Because tomorrow I'm still going to be the same person. I'm still going to do what I want to do."
Rihanna and Chris, 22, dated for two years before the incident back in February 2009.
The R&B star was sentenced to 180 hours community service and five years probation for assaulting his girlfriend, but the former couple are now said to be close again.
Rihanna says that the publicity surrounding the attack actually helped to liberate her.
“It gave me guns. I was like, well, f***,” she said. “They [the public] know more about me than I want them to know. It’s embarrassing. But that was my opening. That was my liberation, my moment of bring it.”
The 'Take Care' singer channelled her pain and devastation into her 2010 album 'Rated R'.
"I was going through the hardest time of my life. I was angry, sad, confused, torn. I was still in love," she adds. "And I needed to talk about it. That was the only way I could get peace, because it was in my head, and I couldn't leave it there."
There has been much speculation about the reconciliation between Rihanna and Chris, with rumours suggesting that the former couple may be back together romantically.
The pair collaborated on two songs earlier this year, with Chris featuring on a remix of Rihanna’s song ‘Birthday Cake' and Rihanna singing on a remix of his dance track 'Turn Up The Music.
Chris, who is currently dating model Karrueche Tran, was also seen attending Rihanna's 24th birthday party in Los Angeles earlier this year.
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