Rihanna has revealed that her pregnancy announcement during this year’s Super Bowl wasn’t initially planned.
The 35-year-old singer spoke candidly about the revelation, three months after welcoming her second baby with partner A$AP Rocky, during a recent interview with Access Hollywood. Back in February, Rihanna took the stage at the Super Bowl Halftime Show in an unzipped red jumpsuit and matching bodysuit underneath, which resulted in her displaying her baby bump.
During her conversation with Access Hollywood, where she spoke about her partnership with Puma, Rihanna was also asked if she felt nervous during the 2023 pregnancy reveal. However, according to the Fenty Beauty founder, she didn’t initially intend on announcing her pregnancy, since the news came as her outfit for the halftime show didn’t fully fit her.
“Here’s the thing. I did what I had to do, right? My jumper couldn’t zip up,” she said. “No one knew I was pregnant. I just told my stylist, ‘Make sure it’s stretchy.’”
She went on to describe how she couldn’t zip the jumpsuit up at the time, which is what led to the pregnancy reveal.
“So the undergarment was stretchy and this was baggy, but you know, the zip. It just stopped right there,” the “Umbrella” singer said. “So it had to be what it had to be.”
She then continued to reflect on her performance at the 2023 Super Bowl and how meaningful it was, adding: “It was like an out-of-body experience. I feel like I’ve heard that before, [but] I felt it for the first time at the Super Bowl. I feel like every rehearsal was the Super Bowl, and then the Super Bowl it was like, ‘What’s happening?’”
During her show in February, Rihanna was also seen rubbing her stomach, prompting many fans to suggest that she was pregnant. Following the performance, a representative for Rihanna confirmed the pregnancy speculation in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.
In August 2023, TMZ was the first to report that Rihanna and Rocky had “secretly” welcomed another baby boy, Riot Rose. The news marked their second time becoming parents, as they welcomed their first son, RZA Athelaston Meyers, in May 2022.
In September 2023, photographer Miles Diggs took to Instagram to share the first photos of Rihanna and Rocky with their two sons. In one photo, Rihanna is seen holding Riot while Rocky holds RZA on his shoulders. Meanwhile, another image showed her holding her youngest son on her own while leaning up against a car. However, the billionaire beauty mogul still hasn’t publicly commented on the arrival of her second child.
While she’s kept her children out of the spotlight, Rihanna previously gave fans a view of her son RZA on TikTok in December 2022, when he was only seven months old. However, during an interview with British Vogue in February, which featured RZA on the cover, Rihanna revealed the TikTok video was only shared after paparazzi had allegedly taken photos of RZA without her consent.
“I just went straight into protective mode. Like there wasn’t even time for rage,” she told the publication at the time. “As parents it just feels so icky, like a violation.”
The “Diamonds” singer then recalled how she and Rocky discussed the next steps, if the photos of their son were potentially being leaked to the press. “As we were speaking, we knew they were making calls and deals.” She then decided to join TikTok, where she posted the now-viral video of her baby boy gurgling, smiling, and playing with his mother’s phone.
“It’s the thing you never want to happen,” Rihanna added, as she reflected on the possibility that the world could see photos of her son without her permission. “We get to decide as parents when and how we do that. End of story.”
