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rihanna man down videoRihanna called in to 106 & Park to voice her response to some of the negative reactions to her “Man Down” video. The video which depicts Rihanna as a rape victim who seeks the ultimate revenge on her attacker has stirred up much controversy.

‘Man Down’ is a song about a girl who has committed a murder that she regrets, and is completely remorseful about. You hear her crying to her mama, saying why she did it, [that it] could’ve been somebody’s son, she didn’t mean to hurt him. Making that into a mini-movie or video, we needed to go back to why it happened. Obviously she’s not a cold-blooded killer. It had to be something so offensive, and we decided to hone in on a very serious matter that people are afraid to address. Especially if you’ve been victimized in this scenario. Rape…unfortunately it’s happening all over the world and right in our own homes. We continue to cover it up and pretend like it doesn’t happen. Girls and boys feel compelled to be embarrassed about it and hide it from everyone, including their teachers, their parents, and their friends. That only continues to empower the abusers.’

“I don’t like to make videos, I love to make an experience, and this is art with a message. This time around I wanted to explore and experiment a little bit with my acting even more than I have ever before. And I knew that only Anthony Mandler would be able to master this particular project for me. We work together on almost all of my videos and there’s a certain level of trust that goes into making a video like this one, like a mini-movie. Never play it safe, not here, ever. [laughs] We always push each other further and further out of the box. It’s gotta be deeper, it’s gotta be clever, it’s gotta be more twisted.”