LOS ANGELES – Rihanna has been immortalized in wax.
The 'Loud' singer was honored with her own waxwork at London's Madame Tussauds museum where she took center stage at the attraction's interactive Music Zone alongside Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, Lady Gaga and the late Amy Winehouse.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — The wait is officially "ova" for Rihanna's new single.
On Tuesday, the 21-year-old singer debuted her new track "Russian Roulette" from her forthcoming album Rated R. The song was written and produced by Ne-Yo, whose long track record with the R&B star includes the No. 1 hit "Unfaithful" in 2006.
LOS ANGELES — Chris Brown pleaded guilty Monday to one count of felony assault after being arrested in February for beating his former girlfriend, fellow R&B star Rihanna.
The 20-year-old singer was sentenced to five years probation and 180 days of community labor. He must also complete a year of domestic violence classes, and pay fines. His attorney, Mark Geragos, said the "Kiss Kiss" singer plans to move to his home state of Virginia, where he'll complete his labor duties.
Brown was also ordered to stay at least 50 yards away from the 21-year-old Rihanna, except at industry functions where the minimum distance is 10 yards. He reached the plea deal just prior to a scheduled preliminary hearing, in which Rihanna had been subpoenaed to take the stand and testify.
Brown pleaded not guilty in April to the two felony charges against him — assault and making criminal threats. Shortly thereafter, his attorney was granted a delay in the case by L.A. Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg. Geragos used the time to look into a police photo that was leaked shortly after Brown's arrest. The graphic shot appeared to be of a bruised-up Rihanna and Geragos told E! News that he would seek to have the case dismissed if the leak came from within.
Brown was charged nearly a month after the couple got into a fight while driving in the early morning hours of Feb. 8. According to a detective's affidavit, the argument began after Rihanna found a text message from another woman on Brown's cell phone.
As the fight ensued, Brown pulled the car over and attempted to push Rihanna out of the vehicle, but she was wearing a seatbelt at the time. He then pushed the singer's head against the car window and punched her before continuing to drive and hit her. Brown also allegedly bit Rihanna on the ear, the affidavit said.
At one point, Rihanna made a fake phone call to her assistant, asking her to have the police waiting once she arrived. The phony message reportedly led to Brown making an alleged threat to kill Rihanna.
Brown turned himself into authorities later that evening. He was arrested and later released on $50,000 bail.
The incident took place on the day of the Grammy Awards, in which both stars were scheduled to perform. Both singers canceled their appearances.
LOS ANGELES — Rihanna is being sued by her Hollywood Hills neighbor, who alleges the R&B star is invading his privacy.
Christian Moeller filed the lawsuit Tuesday against Rihanna and Stephen Yacobian, the singer's landlord for the home she rents.
LOS ANGELES — Rihanna has been called to take the stand and will testify against her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, who is accused of beating her in the early morning hours prior to February's Grammy Awards.
"By prearrangement with the District Attorney, Rihanna was served Tuesday June 9, 2009, at my office with a subpoena to appear at the preliminary hearing, scheduled for June 22, 2009," her attorney, Donald Etra, tells Entertainment Tonight. "If that hearing does go forward, Rihanna will appear and will answer all questions posed to her by the District Attorney and Mark Geragos, Chris Brown's lawyer."
In April, the 20-year-old Brown pleaded not guilty to the two felony charges against him — assault and making criminal threats. Shortly thereafter, his attorney, Mark Geragos, was granted a delay in the case by L.A. Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg. Geragos has been using the time to look into the police photo that was leaked shortly after Brown's arrest. The graphic shot appeared to be of a bruised-up Rihanna and Geragos told E! News that he will seek to have the case dismissed if the leak came from within.
"The leaks can form the basis for a motion to dismiss the case in regards to outrageous governmental misconduct," said Geragos.
In other Rihanna news, the 21-year-old star hit the town Wednesday night with Fergie and the rest of the Black Eyed Peas for the group's official CD release party at The Griffin in New York City. Rihanna's was joined by her rumored new boyfriend, Canadian rapper Aubrey "Drake" Graham.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — It turns out Rihanna is not singing about Chris Brown after all.
A rep for the "Umbrella" singer has shot down claims that Rihanna is the voice behind a song posted on Kanye West's blog earlier this week.
The upbeat track, titled "Silly Boy," is about a man hoping to make amends with a woman after several past mistakes. Shortly after it was posted online, several outlets began speculating that it was Rihanna singing about Brown, who was arrested in February for allegedly assaulting her.
There were also claims that a second voice heard on the track belonged to Lady Gaga, but her rep denied any involvement.
"The song is a fake... It's not Lady Gaga," said a rep for the "Poker Face" singer.
Listen to the song.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Chris Brown has denied having any part in the alleged nude photos of Rihanna that have begun to emerge on the Internet.
Celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton posted the photos on his Web site Monday under the title, "Chris Brown must be responsible for this."
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — If Chris Brown's attorney gets his way, the R&B star's assault case will get tossed out of the court.
The 19-year-old Brown, who was arrested in February for allegedly assaulting his girlfriend, fellow singer Rihanna, pleaded not guilty earlier this month to the two felony charges against him — assault and making criminal threats. On Wednesday, his attorney, Mark Geragos, was granted a delay in the case by L.A. Superior Court Judge Patricia Schnegg. Geragos will use the time to continue looking into the police photo that was leaked shortly after Brown's arrest. The graphic shot appeared to be of a bruised-up Rihanna and Geragos told E! News that he will seek to have the case dismissed if the leak came from within.
"The leaks can form the basis for a motion to dismiss the case in regards to outrageous governmental misconduct," said Geragos.
Brown's attorney will have a fair amount of time to continue his investigation, as Schnegg set a preliminary hearing date for May 28. At that time, the prosecution will present their case so that the court can determine if there's enough evidence for a trial. It still remains unclear whether Rihanna will take the stand against her boyfriend at the preliminary hearing.
"The D.A. has not informed us whether or not Rihanna will be called to testify," her attorney, Donald Etra, told E!
Neither Brown nor Rihanna attended attended today's hearing, in which Schnegg also agreed to release the nearly $1.4 million worth of jewels that the "Umbrella" singer was wearing on the night of the incident. The items, which were on loan to Rihanna to wear at Clive Davis' pre-Grammy party, had been taken into police custody. They will soon be returned to their rightful owners.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Rihanna is sporting some new ink, thanks to a visit from BangBang.
The 21-year-old singer recently flew the New York-based body artist out to Los Angeles, where he inked a gun tattoo under her right arm.
On his MySpace page, BangBang explained that Rihanna originally wanted a handgun at the top of each arm, but decided against it because of her lucrative modeling contract with Cover Girl.
LOS ANGELES — Diddy says he was simply helping his friends when he offered up his Star Island home to Rihanna and Chris Brown, just weeks after the couple got into a fight that led to Brown's arrest.
"It's a dark time for them and I was there more as a supporter," the 39-year-old Diddy told Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show Tuesday.
The music mogul went on the defense when DeGeneres questioned his decision to allow the pair into his home, with Brown currently facing two felony charges for his alleged assault of Rihanna on Feb. 8.
"I know both of them," said Diddy, "and I'm allowed to give my house to whoever I want to give my house to."
"I don't cast a stone or cast a judgment on anybody," he continued. "If a friend or friends ask me for a favor, then I'm going to be there for a favor as long as I know that the energy of the favor is positive for two people to sit down and talk about a situation that they're in."
Diddy said he stayed away from "getting involved" in the couple's situation, saying he was simply trying to "be there as a friend during hard times."
After listening to the reasoning behind Diddy's decision, DeGeneres said she feared a message being sent to girls that it's ok to take back someone who has hit them.
"I don't think that's it's right for anybody to hit anybody," responded Diddy, who then said that "we all have to be honest with ourselves as adults and people that have been in relationships."
"We know sometimes those relationships get ugly and sometimes it doesn't come out into the forefront the way that this one has," he reasoned.
Diddy also said it's important for the public to show their support while refraining from jumping to conclusions.
"There's a lot of stones being thrown and we don't know exactly what's going on," he told DeGeneres. "These are two young individuals. We need to pray for them and we need to do things to support them."
LOS ANGELES — With Chris Brown facing felony charges stemming from last month's alleged assault of his girlfriend, fellow R&B star Rihanna, many legal experts are weighing in on the case moving forward. Most agree that the prosecutions case will depend on Rihanna's willingness to cooperate.
"So much of [the trial] hinges on the testimony of the victim or her willingness to testify and it'll be interesting to see whether she cooperates with the prosecution or not," Loyola law school professor Stan Goldman told Radar Online. "If she refuses to testify they're probably not going to be able to get in whatever statements she's already made to the police and then they have no case probably."
During a short session Thursday afternoon at Los Angeles Superior Court, the 19-year-old Brown did not enter a plea to the two felony charges against him — assault and making criminal threats. Instead his attorney, Mark Geragos, was granted a continuace until April 6.
If convicted, Brown faces anywhere from probation to a maximum four years and eight months in state prison, prosecutors say.
"The DAs are facing an uphill battle now if Rihanna isn't cooperating," Steve Sitkoff, a Los Angeles defense lawyer and former prosecutor told People. "At this point, her cooperation can make or break the case. But the DAs may not need her if Brown is willing to strike a plea deal."
While prosecutors would likely subpoena the 21-year-old Rihanna in the case, it remains to be seen whether she would agree to testify against Brown. The couple reportedly reconciled in the last week, having spent time together last weekend at the Star Island mansion of Sean "Diddy" Combs.
"The prosecution is very familiar with continuing to prosecute domestic violence cases when the complaining witness changes her mind and doesn't want to testify — they have often in past years sent people to jail or been willing to send people to jail if they refuse to testify," Goldman explained to Radar. "It's just the way the law is constructed. Now there's a real question as to whether they can do that to her."
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