Rihanna defended the video for her song “Man Down” on Thursday night during a telephone interview on the BET program “106 & Park,” saying that she did not intend to cause controversy but wanted to create “art with a message.” The video, which has been shown on BET, depicts Rihanna shooting and killing a man who is revealed to have sexually assaulted her. It has been criticized by advocacy groups including the Parents Television Council, which have said that the video sends a dangerous message to assault victims and have called on BET to stop playing it. In her interview with the BET hosts Terrence and Rocsi, Rihanna said that “Man Down” was “a song about a girl who committed a murder that she regrets and is completely remorseful about it.” She added: “We needed to go back to why it happened, because 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.”
Rihanna, who in 2009 was attacked by her then-companion, Chris Brown, said that she had “been abused in the past, and you don’t see me running around killing people in my spare time.” She added: “I just really want girls to be careful. Have fun, be sassy, be innocent and sweet. Be everything that you are but just try not to be naive.”
BET said in a statement that it “has a comprehensive set of standards and guidelines that are applied to all of our content,” and the “Man Down” video “complied with these guidelines and was approved for air.”
