At precisely 10:30 p.m. here in London — two and a half hours before the start of Friday night’s (January 22) “Hope for Haiti Now” telethon — Rihanna was finally in the same room as Jay-Z, Bono and The Edge, her three collaborators on “Stranded (Haiti Mon Amour),” the song they had recorded just three days earlier in studios all around the world.

The four, backed by Jay’s cracking live band and a full gospel choir, were about to perform the song together for the first time, in front of a studio of television producers and, really, the entire world. But not a single one of them was nervous. Rather, they saw it as a tremendous opportunity — not just to help the victims of last week’s devastating earthquake, but to remind them that they will never be left stranded, not even after the TV cameras leave and the focus of the globe shifts elsewhere.

“I got the call three days ago to be a part of this. Bono and Jay-Z called me up, they wanted me to be a part of it, and, of course, anything that can help Haiti, I want to be a part of,” Rihanna told MTV News on Friday night. “This song is really important. Lyrically, Jay-Z gets really, really deep in his verses, more than I’ve ever heard him get. He gets really real. I know a couple of people he’s singing about. We have mutual friends that suffered loss, they lost their family, they lost friends, and it really hits home. So this is really a song for Haiti, letting them know we are not going to leave you stranded; we are going to do every last thing to help you. You are not alone.”

Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke — just more proof of how deeply this tragedy has affected her. Like she said earlier in the week on “Oprah,” where she performed a haunting version of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song,” she’s from the Caribbean nation of Barbados. It’s not a stretch to say the footage coming out of Haiti hit her close to home.

“When I first heard about it, I was at home, and I kind of didn’t believe it. I was in such shock. An earthquake in Haiti was shocking to begin with. And [one of] that extent; a 7.0, that’s huge, that’s unheard of,” she said. “And being from the Caribbean, I was in shock for a long time. And when I started looking at the pictures, at the footage, seeing that little boy get beaten up for food, seeing people trapped under the rubble, kids not knowing where their parents are, bodies just getting dropped outside of the hospitals, that just made it really real.

“It made me want to do something about it, I wanted to help, because we all have to help,” she continued. “And now my role is to encourage more people to help, to join with me to help.”

Learn more about what you can do to help with earthquake-relief efforts in Haiti, and for more information, see Think MTV. Visit HopeForHaitiNow.org or call (877) 99-HAITI to make a donation now.

Rihanna sent temperatures soaring after posing topless for the new issue of American magazine W.The R&B singer showed off her body art, including a series of stars on the nape of her neck, a gun under her armpit and a tribal pattern on her right hand, as she dropped her layers for the camera.

The Umbrella hitmaker further bared her heartache while recording her new album Rated R after she was assaulted by former beau Chris Brown.

“When I was making this album, every day I was in a different mood. Sometimes I was p**sed off, sometimes I was miserable, and every song brings out a different story,” the Daily Telegraph quoted her as telling the magazine.

“It’s still hard to listen to certain songs. Certain ones I couldn’t even record – I’d keep pushing them back.

“When the label finally said we had 12 hours to turn in the album, I was like, Okay, I have to do it (record The Last Song). I just drank some red wine, dimmed the lights, got in the booth and sang it,” she added.

Oh what I would have given to be at this photoshoot. I posted footage of the shoot recently and it is haaaawt! Check out the video HERE

Rihanna will perform her hit singles Russian Roulette, The Wait is Ova and Hard from her last album Rated R.

I can’t wait to see this. Make sure you check it out too! February 4th!

The 21-year-old singer was assaulted by her now ex-boyfriend Chris on the way to a pre-Grammys party last February.

He punched, bit and choked her in his car, and was eventually sentenced to five years probation and six months’ community service, and banned from contacting her.

Brown has since apologised for the incident, and insisted he was never violent before. However, in a new interview Rihanna has admitted there were problems in the relationship.

“There were control issues, insecurity. When people are insecure they become very controlling and they can get very aggressive and in turn abusive. It doesn’t have to be physical. Like they would say bad stuff to you to make you feel lesser than them just so they would have control in the relationship. It takes a big toll on your emotions and on your everyday life. It changes you,” she told W magazine.

After the incident, Rihanna shut herself away to recover. She did not talk about it until much later in the year, and took months away from the limelight to deal with what had happened.

She has said she sought refuge in her music, finding it helped to write about the attack.

“I started to go crazy after about a month in the house, so I went back to work, and the mic was my therapist,” she explained.

“With the mic, there were no negative comments, no negative energy. At first I completely shut down. But now I feel like this happened to me so I could be a voice for young girls who are going through what I went through and don’t know how to talk about it. It’s not about Chris, about hurting him or sabotaging his career. I don’t care about that part of it.”

The star added she is pleased she made the decision not to immediately discuss what had happened. Taking time away helped her understand what had happened, and come to terms with it.

Part of the reason she decided to keep to herself was she didn’t want her friends and family to pity her. She was scared talking about the attack might make them upset, when she was struggling not to break down herself.

“It’s like they are too close to you. When you have to talk about something so painful, they are going to get too emotional. And that wasn’t helping me, because I already felt the same way and I’m looking to not feel like this. I felt like, If I’m going to tell you something and you’re going to have pity for me, then I’m not going to talk to you,” she said.

Does Rihanna shares the blame then if she saw signs early on?

I just watched it and it gave me chills. She looks SO DAMN HAAAAWT!

And the rumors are she did the photoshoot topless!

Enjoy…