This morning (Nov. 15), Rihanna dropped the music video for the bombastic mid-tempo piano ballad "What Now." If her previous clip for "Pour It Up" was all party and strippers, this video is all stripped down and dark. Yes, Rihanna gets highly dramatic as a tortured soul in the latest video from her seventh studio album Unapologetic.
Seemingly inspired by psychological thrillers, the dark clip features Rihanna in an all-white room that seems to be in a psychiatric ward. Similarly dressed in an all-white gown, a gothic-inspired ponytail and a big black cross necklace, Rihanna jerks around, rolls on the floor and throws herself up against the wall in the blank room.
Cuts are made to a similar scene, where an all-black wearing Rihanna hugs a black wall and belts her heart out. Meanwhile, it's clear that she's being observed in some manner, as grainy TV footage of Rihanna in the white room is also cut into the mix.
To add to the psychological thriller vibes (besides all those terrifying jerky body movements), classic scary scenes flash onto the screen in quick bursts. There are millipedes and lightning bolts and fast highway footage. The vibe isn't so much spooky as it is crazy. The relationship that Rihanna is singing about in "What Now" has driven her to complete madness.
Check out the music video for "What Now" below.
"What Now" is the sixth single from Rihanna's most recent album, Unapologetic. It was preceded by "Right Now," "Loveeeeeee Song," "Pour It Up," "Stay" and "Diamonds."
