Rihanna‘s latest music video shows an increasingly vulnerable side of the pop star. She promised an “emotional,” “personal,” and “powerful” video for “Stay,” and she gave just that — and more.
For the new video for the latest single off her album Unapologetic, Rihanna strips down. There are no fancy effects, no elaborate costumes or choreography; the video consists solely of Rihanna singing naked in a bathtub, sometimes joining her voice with a surprising duet partner, Nashville singer Mikky Ekko. Half voiceover, half out loud, Rihanna sings with emotions so strong she’s practically shaking.
Sometimes, Rihanna’s vocals switch from live to voiceover mid-sentence, and in doing so, Rihanna shows that she is afraid of what she’s feeling. The emotions are new, powerful, and maybe unwanted — and yet, she can’t stop feeling them. The video’s simple format of just one scene and two partners let’s the song speak for itself. No flash, no distractions needed here: just pure emotion and vulnerability.
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Watch the stripped-down Rihanna — figuratively and literally — below, and let us know what you think of her latest music video.
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[Photo Credit: Island Def Jam]