Nowadays, singer Rihanna and ex-boyfriend Chris Brown are either big victims of coincidence or have some less than tasteful promotion teams. It just so happens that both artists, who had (and are still having) the gritty details of a domestic abuse scandal aired out for the public, have strikingly similar material release schedules for their respective upcoming albums.
The latest round of tit-for-tat occurred on November 3rd, when Brown revealed the cover art for his “Graffiti” album on the same day Rihanna released the track list for her “Rated R” record. The singers also released the singles “Russian Roulette” (Rihanna) and “Crawl” (Chris Brown) within the same 24-hours last month. The two stay entwined through media coverage and it seems like one can’t be mentioned without mentioning the other.
For his part, Brown has been issuing a mea culpa for weeks now. Rihanna, on the other hand, is just beginning to speak publicly about the domestic dispute that had everyone talking. She will appear in her first interview since the assault in a special ABC interview that will air on “Good Morning America” on November 5th and “20/20” on November 6th. She also appears in the upcoming issue of Glamour magazine where she details her feelings about the “humiliating” incident.
“Domestic violence is a big secret. No kid goes around and lets people know their parents fight. Teenage girls can’t tell their parents that their boyfriend beat them up. You don’t dare let your neighbor know that you fight,” she tells Glamour. “It’s one of the things we (women) will hide, because it’s embarrassing.”
“The positive thing that has come out of my situation is that people can learn from that. I want to give as much insight as I can to young women, because I feel like I represent a voice that really isn’t heard. Now I can help speak for those women,” the singer said.
This has been a busy week for Rihanna, who also debuted the video for her second single “Wait Your Turn” on Tuesday, November 3rd. Her “Rated R” album is scheduled for a November 23rd release, while Brown’s “Graffiti” will drop three weeks later.
Written by Shaira Brereton
