This is an odd move!
Rihanna and Kanye West were all set to perform Jay Z‘s Run This Town at Thursday night’s NFL game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens, but CBS pulled the plug on it.
After the Ravens released Ray Rice earlier this week, the TV network didn’t want to feature RiRi “due to her being a victim of a high-profile domestic violence incident,” according to one report.
This is of course in reference to the incident with Chris Brown back in 2009.
Rihanna wasn’t the only one who got the axe though. NFL officials said that there was also supposed to be a comedic element and “high energy” aspects of the performance, and overall they didn’t feel it was appropriate.
To back this up, CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus reiterated that the singer’s involvement in a similar case was NOT the deciding factor that made them decide to change things up.
It sucks that RiRi would have to deal with the fallout from Ray and Janay Rice‘s choices, but there’s no doubt that there are similarities between the two cases.
But it definitely seems like CBS just wanted to make this a more somber occasion than a celebration.
Thoughts???
[Image via Bauer Griffin Online.]