Yesterday on BET, and today on VEVO, Rihanna premiered the video for other new single "Man Down".
Never one to miss the chance for nice, old-fashioned scolding, the Parents Television Council has taken pop star Rihanna to task for it, according to TMZ.
The group, which was made famous by a Gossip Girl ad repeating their criticisms, is accusing her of advocating the "cold, calculated execution of murder" in her video. Following the song to a tee, the music video tells the story of a young girl (Rihanna) who shoots a man from her window near a train station. The man she shot was the same man who accosted her in an alley the night before and raped her.
The non-profit organization brought Chris Brown into the argument as well, claiming that "if Chris Brown shot a woman in his new video and BET premiered it, the world would stop. Rihanna should not get a pass..."
As inappropriate and irrelevant as it was to bring Chris Brown into the discussion of this video, I would have to agree on that point. If Chris did a video like this, even I would catch a case about it. It would obliterate his career, no doubt.
However, I think that artistic license should be applied in Rihanna's case. Obviously, Rihanna is not saying to people that murder is a just response to something as traumatic as rape. It is a understandable reaction, though, to harm the person to harmed you back. Despite the wishes of the PTC, life is not a High School Musical-esque fantasy, where the worst curse word you'll hear is crap. People have darker sides, born especially from trauma and pain. Rihanna is simply exploring that, which she is allowed to as an artist. It's called artistic expression.
While I commend them for their efforts to protect children, I think they really should be advising parents on how to properly monitor their kid's programming, instead of attacking the producers of that programming.
I also happen to think this is one of her best videos to date. The ending was shocking, raw, and considering her past, very brave of her.
Do you think Rihanna went too far with her video? Check the video out and let me know:
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