FRESHLY BAKED GIST: RIHANNA TALKS ABOUT CHRIS BROWN, TALKS CASUAL SEX, & CALLS RACHEL DOLEZAL A

TEAM FBG
Oct 7, 2015
6 min read

RIRI jaw dropped us in her new VF cover and its epic, below are list of the places where the photos where shoot.

Rihanna takes a break in the Josie Alonso House, on Calzada Street, in Havana’s Vedado neighborhood.
Rihanna, parked at Bar la Rosa, on La Rosa Street in Havana, Cuba, with a 1956 Lincoln Continental Mark II (once owned by First Lady Marta Fernández de Batista).
Rihanna bares all in the bedroom of the Josie Alonso House
Rihanna in a contemplative moment, alongside a 1959 Chevrolet Impala, at the paladar La Guarida on Concordia Street.
BY ANNIE LEIBOVITZ; STYLED BY JESSICA DIEHL.

BELOW ARE THE EXCLUSIVE JUICEY INTERVIEW IN THE MAGAZINE.

The BBHMM singer talks about everything from Chris Brown to dating to casual sex to her painful past experiences and Rachel Dolezal of all people.

Grab your morning coffee and dive in for an epic read!

ON HER EXPERIENCE WITH DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: "Well, I just never understood that, like how the victim gets punished over and over. It's in the past, and I don't want to say ‘Get over it,' because it's a very serious thing that is still relevant; it's still real. A lot of women, a lot of young girls, are still going through it. A lot of young boys too. It's not a subject to sweep under the rug, so I can't just dismiss it like it wasn't anything, or I don't take it seriously. But, for me, and anyone who's been a victim of domestic abuse, nobody wants to even remember it. Nobody even wants to admit it. So to talk about it and say it once, much less 200 times, is like … I have to be punished for it? It didn't sit well with me."

ON GETTING BACK WITH CHRIS BROWN FOR THE SECOND TIME: "I was that girl, that girl who felt that as much pain as this relationship is, maybe some people are built stronger than others. Maybe I'm one of those people built to handle shit like this. Maybe I'm the person who's almost the guardian angel to this person, to be there when they're not strong enough, when they do not understand the world, when they just need someone to encourage them in a positive way and say the right thing."
ON THINKING SHE COULD CHANGE HIM: "I was very protective of him. I felt that people didn't understand him. Even after … But you know, you realize after a while that in that situation you're the enemy. You want the best for them, but if you remind them of their failures, or if you remind them of bad moments in their life, or even if you say I'm willing to put up with something, they think less of you—because they know you don't deserve what they're going to give. And if you put up with it, maybe you are agreeing that you [deserve] this, and that's when I finally had to say, ‘Uh-oh, I was stupid thinking I was built for this.' Sometimes you just have to walk away. I don't hate him. I will care about him until the day I die. We're not friends, but it's not like we're enemies. We don't have much of a relationship now."
On Rachel Dolezal: "I think she was a bit of a hero, because she kind of flipped on society a little bit. Is it such a horrible thing that she pretended to be black? Black is a great thing and I think she’s legit changed people's perspective a bit and woke people up."
ON SEX WITH NO STRINGS ATTACHED: "If I wanted to I would completely do that. I am going to do what makes me feel happy, what I feel like doing. But that would be empty for me; that to me is a hollow move. I would wake up the next day feeling like shit."
ON MEN NOT BEING GENTLEMEN: "I always see the best in people. I hope for the best, and I always look for that little bit of good, that potential, and I wait for it to blossom. You want them to feel good being a man, but now men are afraid to be men. They think being a real man is actually being a pussy, that if you take a chair out for a lady, or you're nice or even affectionate to your girl in front of your boys, you're less of a man. It's so sick. They won't be a gentleman because that makes them appear soft. That's what we're dealing with now, a hundred percent, and girls are settling for that, but I won't. I will wait forever if I have to … but that's O.K. You have to be screwed over enough times to know, but now I'm hoping for more than these guys can actually give."
ON WHY SHE WON'T HAVE CASUAL SEX: "That's why I haven't been having sex or even really seeing anybody because I don't want to wake up the next day feeling guilty. I mean I get horny, I'm human, I'm a woman, I want to have sex. But what am I going to do—just find the first random cute dude that I think is going to be a great ride for the night and then tomorrow I wake up feeling empty and hollow? He has a great story and I'm like … what am I doing? I can't do it to myself. I cannot. It has a little bit to do with fame and a lot to do with the woman that I am. And that saves me."
ON HER RELATIONSHIP WITH MATT KEMP: "We were still dating … we were just three months in and I liked his vibe, he was a good guy, and then paparazzi got us on vacation in Mexico. He handled it well; I didn't. I got so uncomfortable because now what? He's not even able to be seen with [another] girl, because I'm dragged back into headlines that say he's cheating on me, and I don't even [really] know this guy. Some guys … I don't even have their number. You would not even believe it. I'm serious, hand to God."
ON DEALING WITH LONELINESS: "It is lonely, but I have so much work to do that I get distracted. I don't have time to be lonely. And I get fearful of relationships because I feel guilty about wanting someone to be completely faithful and loyal, when I can't even give them 10 percent of the attention that they need. It's just the reality of my time, my life, my schedule."
On Eminem: "He's one of my favorite people. He's got so many layers and he's such a good person—focused, disciplined. I mean you can't tell me that you have to be in the club when Eminem is legit at home and being a good father and is still one of the most prestigious rappers of our generation. He's one of the most talented poets of our time. It was such a brilliant moment to have him ask me to be part of a record; I felt … anointed, because he thought I was cool enough to be on ["Love the Way You Lie"]. But also, the lyrics [about a dysfunctional relationship] were just so true to what I felt and couldn't say to the world at that time."
ON TAKING A BREAK FROM SEXY LOOKS: "[At the CFDA awards] I wanted to wear something that looked like it was floating on me. But after that, I thought, O.K., we can't do this again for a while. No nipples, no sexy shit, or it's going to be like a gimmick. That night [at the CFDA awards] was like a last hurrah; I decided to take a little break from that and wear clothes."
ON HER GREATEST FEAR: "[Fame] all looks very glittery and blinged out, but it's way too scary and unrealistic. There's a long way to fall when you pretend that you're so far away from the earth, far away from reality, floating in a bubble that's protected by fame or success. It's scary, and it's the thing I fear the most: to be swallowed up by that bubble. It can be poison to you, fame."
ON WANTING A NORMAL LIFE: "Dude! Oh my God—this is scary and sad all at the same time. I literally dream about buying my own groceries. Swear to God. Because it is something that is real and normal. Something that can keep you a little bit uncomfortable. Because life is not perfect, and the minute you feel it's perfect, it's not real. Artists sign a deal to make music; we didn't sign to be perfect, or to be role models. We're all flawed human beings who are learning and growing and evolving and going through the same bullshit as everybody else. The fact that people expect the day we sign we're supposed to be perfect does not make any fucking sense to me. Even tragedy, every trial in your life, is a test. It's like a class—you take an exam, and if you pass, you move on to the next. You still have to take another test and prove yourself again."
ON NOT DATING FOR NOW: "I'm fine being with myself. I don't want to really let anybody in. I've got too much on my plate, and I'm not even worried about it. A very extraordinary gentleman, with a lot of patience, will come along when I least expect it. And I don't want it right now. I can't really be everything for someone. This is my reality right now."