Interview Magazine, Kanye West interviewed Rihanna. Next to an in-depth bio of the successful singer, Kanye West digs deep into the world of Rihanna in the interview.
Kanye West: Whuzup?
Rihanna: Hey. How are you?
Kanye West: I’m good. I’m just out here in this retarded-ass studio- Peter Gabriel’s studio.
Rihanna: Where? In London?
Kanye West: Yeah. Like two hours out.
Rihanna: That’s dope. You-all working on the new album?
Kanye West: Yeah. Well, it’s a me and Jay album. Right now, I’m sit ting here going through some Lex Luger beats. This whole album, Watch The Throne, is going to be very dark and sexy- like very couture hip-hop. Because since me and Jay have already had big records and over-the-top joints, we’re just going to make some real dirty, fucked-up, hardcore stuff. But it’s also luxe and definitely high-class. So let’s start with my favorite thing. Rihanna, what’s your take on fashion? How has it evolved since the start of your career?
Rihanna: Well, I would say that in the beginning of my career, I didn’t have a lot of input in what I wore and stuff, but it was a very, innocent, girly look. Then after we put out Good Girl Gone Bad, it kind of became a darker, edgier look, and then it got even edgier on the last album [Rated R]. And now it’s just . . . I’m over the whole structured clothing, overly shoulder-padded shit. I like stuff that’s easy without trying too hard. I don’t like stuff that’s too contrived.
Kanye West: So what’s your next look? Where do you see yourself a year from now?
Rihanna: I probably see a lot of menswear, or something extremely, extremely feminine. But I like to play with both. It would have to be so extreme that it’s a look, because I don’t usu ally like typical ladylike, girly-girly stuff. It would be a look if I were to do it. I always like something that’s a little off, so it’s just not typical or expected.
Kanye West:When you make songs, do you think about what you’re going to wear when you’re performing them? Does it directly relate to the music in that way?
Rihanna: I think not so much about what I’m going to wear yet, but when I make songs or make music, I do always think about the video. The video always plays in my head while I’m lis tening to the song.
Kanye West: So why did you call your new album Loud?
Rihanna: Because I feel like it was a really fun, expressive album, and loud was the perfect word to symbolize that. It’s aggressive at times, but in a really fun way-just the overall energy of it. Even the energy when we were making the album was really expressive and rebellious, but fun. We had fun the whole time. And you hear it when you listen to the songs. They feel really good.
Kanye West: Do you have a vulnerable side? Because in a lot of the sin gles that come out, you’re like, “What’s my name, muthafucka?” or “I’m a murderer.”
Rihanna: Yes, I do have a vulnerable side. I think a lot of peo ple have a misperception of me. They only see the tough, defen sive, aggressive side. But every woman is vulnerable. They have vulnerability. So of course I’m going to have that side. It’s not a major part of who I am, but it’s definitely there. I just don’t like people to see me cry-I don’t like to let them know when I’m bothered. You know? I just prefer it to be all about business, and then whatever I’m dealing with, let me deal with that alone, because I don’t want it to affect anything in my professional life.
Kanye West: So a year from now, Rihanna could have a little shorty with little high-tops? [Rihanna laughs] What will Rihanna’s kids be like?
Rihanna: If I had a girl, she’d probably be really rebellious. She would be like a bundle of karma.
Photos By: Mikael Jansson
