Rihanna just can’t outrun the rumour mill. Since making her debut with 2005’s Music of the Sun, the singer’s love life has been at the centre of conversation, almost more than her impressive discography and her incredible fashion sense. This week, a new rumour about Rihanna surfaced, and it’s nothing new — but it could speak to a larger issue.
A news report set social media timelines abuzz when it alleged that Rihanna was no longer a single girl after her recently ending her three-year relationship with billionaire Hassan Jameel. The outlet claimed that the singer was dating friend and rapper A$AP Rocky, reporting that a source close to Rihanna had shared that the stars were keeping their romance low-key because of the recency of her split with Jameel.
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However, a different source told E! News that they had the story all wrong. "Rihanna is single," the source clarified emphatically. "She wants to be single and isn't going to jump into something."
But, to be clear, Rih is cool with A$AP Rocky, and they do kick it from time to time. "She's hanging out with ASAP Rocky, but she is not dating him," E!'s source said. "They have a long history and she's just having fun."
Well, then. It looks like Rihanna is living her life post-breakup, just like anyone else in her position would. So why do we keep jumping at the chance to link her to any and every man that is blessed with the opportunity to come within 50 feet of her?
The Fenty Beauty CEO's love life has been under a microscope for ages, and I get it — who doesn't want to know who Rihanna is involved with? She's been tied, unofficially, to people like Drake, Shia LaBeouf, Travis Scott, and even Oscar-winner Leonardo DiCaprio. Yet Rihanna has only publicly claimed one man so far, and that was Chris Brown.
My personal opinion on why we keep obsessing over her dating situation? There's currently a void in the world created by the lack of new Rihanna music, and we're desperately trying to fill that hole with make-believe love lines.
Hear me out. Rihanna's last album, ANTI, has been hailed as one of the singer's most well-rounded projects since her debut. Her eighth studio album, ANTI included a colourful array of sounds; its songs infused with elements taken from reggae, pop, neo-soul, doo-wop, trap, and more. It somehow didn't win a Grammy in 2017 (possible proof that the Recording Academy might actually be corrupt after all), but it was yet another reminder that Rihanna makes music that the culture needs.
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After ANTI, Rihanna pivoted away from music and towards entrepreneurship, focusing her energy on total world domination. She launched Fenty Beauty, Savage X Fenty, and Fenty all within the last three years, singlehandedly taking over the beauty and fashion industries in one fell swoop.
But no music.
Rihanna has remained a major player in the music industry, gracing us with features every now and then (her appearance on N.E.R.D.'s "Lemon" remains one of her best), but we need new music. And she knows it; it's the main reason she keeps trolling her loyal fandom, the Navy. As 2018 wound down, the singer promised that the highly-anticipated R9 would be released in 2019. Yet here we are, nearing the end of the first month of a new decade without new music from Rihanna.
If you're reading this, Rih, please, please help us. We know you're tired of having people create fan fiction about you and every man in Hollywood, no matter how rich and handsome. But it's only because we need you. We need your music!
Yes, the makeup is everything! Fenty's matte foundation has saved my life in New York City's humid summers on more than one occasion. Yes, the clothes are fire! The Savage X Fenty bras might be some of the best on the market, and they're for damn sure beating out the competition.
But we need the music, babes. We know you said that it's coming, but we need it. And fast. xoxo, the Navy.
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