Rihanna has sparked debate about gender roles and femininity after revealing that she dresses up before her boyfriend, rapper A$AP Rocky, comes home.
"My lazy days consist of throwing my sh*t up in a scrunchie. I always find myself wearing a scrunchie on my wrist. I want [my hair] out of the way,” the Love on the Brain singer told Vogue about her comfortable at-home hairstyle.
Highlights
- Rihanna divided opinions by revealing she dresses up for A$AP Rocky at home.
- Many online users debated whether women feel more pressure than men to look presentable for their partners.
- In another interview, Rihanna mentioned feeling "bummy" next to Rocky, who prefers dressing in full designer suits.
“I don't want it to be on my kids when I lean forward. Just messy. But you still gotta keep it together, 'cause when Rocky comes home, I don't want to look busted, either," she added.
Image credits: Dave Benett / Getty
"There's the first half of the day, and then there's the 'dad's coming home' part of the day."
The clip of the interview was re-shared on X (formerly known as Twitter) by user @kingsissel, who interpreted Rihanna's comment as an expression of victimhood that she believes applies to all straight women.
"Part of being partnered with a male as a cis woman is losing so much of your autonomy to performance & objectification," the user wrote.
"Never have I ever heard a male say he needs to dress up well in his own house to impress his lady. Never.
She added: "I'm saying women should not feel the need to perform femininity in the comfort of their homes & still be adored, desired & revered."
The singer said she threw her hair up in a scrunchie during her "lazy days"
Image credits: voguemagazine
@kingsissel's post received over 7.5 million views and thousands of comments. Most users disagreed that the situation described by the singer reflects gendered expectations of how women should look around their partners.
"Whenever I leave the house for any extended period of time, my husband makes sure he's not only showered/groomed but also cleans some parts of the house, like mopping, dishes, etc.," a woman shared.
"Girl so what?! What's wrong with wanting to look presentable for your partner??" another wrote, while a separate user commented, "Or maybe she just wanted to look good for him because she enjoys it?"
"There's the first half of the day, and then there's the 'dad's coming home,''" Rihanna explained
Image credits: voguemagazine
Somebody else wrote that both men and women want to look attractive for their partners. "That's because men ACT ON IT instead of just talking about it like women do. But TONS of men go out of their way to look good for women all the time."
Another netizen shared an A$AP Rocky interview where he mentioned that he dresses nicely, gets manicures, and wears perfume "for women."
The interview sparked discussion online after a user interpreted Rihanna's words as a sign of women "losing their autonomy"
Another said, "Like clockwork, the women are defending it cos beauty is the one construct we can never let go of."
In April, Rihanna told Interview Magazine that she often feels like she's the unfashionable one in the relationship.
"I be feeling bummy as s**t next to this man," she said. "I look like his assistant. I'm getting on a plane. We should be in sweats. He wants to be in a full Bottega suit. I'm like, 'Why you got to do that to me?'"
Rihanna and A$AP Rocky have been dating since 2019 and share two sons: ZSA and Riot
Image credits: Stephane Cardinale - Corbis / Getty