Rihanna Talks Chris Brown: ‘We Know Exactly What We Have Now’; Singer Doesn’t Believe Brown Will Be Violent Again

Rihanna is speaking candidly about her relationship with Chris Brown – and she’s ready for the backlash from disapproving fans.

“I decided it was more important for me to be happy,” the singer told Rolling Stone. “I wasn’t going to let anybody’s opinion get in the way of that. Even if it’s a mistake, it’s my mistake. After being tormented for so many years, being angry and dark, I’d rather just live my truth and take the backlash. I can handle it.”

In 2009, the couple’s private life was put on display after Brown assaulted Rihanna the night before the Grammys – but the 24-year-old singer stresses that their lives have changed.

“When you add up the pieces from the outside, it’s not the cutest puzzle in the world,” she explained. “You see us walking somewhere, driving somewhere, in the studio, in the club, and you think you know. But it’s different now. We don’t have those types of arguments anymore. We talk about s***. We value each other. We know exactly what we have now, and we don’t want to lose that.”

But does Rihanna think Brown could be violent with her again?

“He doesn’t have the luxury of f***ing up again,” she told mag. “That’s just not an option. I can’t say that nothing else will ever go wrong. But I’m pretty solid in the knowing that he’s disgusted by that. And I wouldn’t have gone this far if I ever thought that was a possibility.”

In related Brown news, the 23-year-old singer is under investigation for an alleged assault that involved fellow singer Frank Ocean. The incident took place in West Hollywood, Calif. on Monday allegedly over a parking spot.

— Jesse Spero