Rihanna used to blend in

Rihanna says she “blended in” when she started out in the music biz.

The singer says she had little control over her image early in her career, but that all changed with her Good Girl Gone Bad album.

“I had a ridiculous schedule. It was kind of unfair. But I kept going. I was focusing on getting people to respect me as an artist, making my stamp in the industry,” she said.

“I wasn’t 100 per cent or even 75 per cent in control of my image or my sound. I said, ‘If you guys keep this perfect image of me, people will never notice me.’”

“I kind of blended in. It was safe, the blonde, curly hair. It was a formula. I didn’t want to be like all the other artists. I wanted to stand out.”

“And the only way I could do that was by taking charge of my image and sound. And it worked. ‘Good Girl Gone Bad’ was a big turning point for me.”