Rihanna jetted home to Barbados to spend Christmas 2009 with her family. She might have seen them in November, but she still couldn’t wait to catch up with them and find out what she’d missed. On her official website, she thanked her fans for supporting her throughout 2009 by writing: ‘To all my fans, thank you for being amazingly supportive and loyal this year. Happy Holidays to you and your families.’
Rihanna spent Christmas Day on the beach with her family. She wore a stunning hot pink bikini, accessorised with a headband and large hoop earrings. The paparazzi will do anything to get photos of RiRi 24/7, even at Christmas. In the past they have even hidden in rocks in the middle of the ocean to get some shots of her; the first time Rihanna realised they had been there was when she saw the photos in an article. Seeing the images shocked her because she hadn’t noticed the press, and from the angle they were taken she knew they must have been hiding in the rocks, quite far out from the beach.
After relaxing with her family on the beach for a few hours she changed into a black dress and went to a party at Kensington Oval cricket ground.
Rihanna was working on New Year’s Eve and she flew to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. She did a two-hour set on the lawns of the Emirates Palace Hotel in front of 10,000 fans, who each paid £66 to see the New Year in with her. After singing her biggest hits and ending with a rendition of ‘Umbrella’, she did the big countdown and celebrated with the audience and her friend, baseball player Matt Kemp, who had come along to support her. He was to become her boyfriend in the weeks that followed. The party continued until the early hours in a huge tent.
The organiser of the event, John Lickrish, told the press: ‘Tonight was a huge success and a truly memorable way to end a great year for Flash [Entertainment] and Abu Dhabi. Rihanna’s performance left us all breathless and set a very high benchmark for next year.’
Rihanna must have been excited to see what 2010 would bring, after the troubles she had had in 2009. She set herself a huge list of New Year’s resolutions: she wanted to start getting up early, stop being late for things, cut down on her shopping trips, learn to play the drums and see more of her mum and family. Musically, she wanted to work with Depeche Mode. She chatted to Nova FM about her dream collaboration: ‘I wanna work with Depeche Mode or The Prodigy – I really love their style. I love the new Prodigy album, they really inspired me with their style. I really got into the dubstep and that whole underground sound, the grimy sound and aggressive lyrics; I was really glad to hear that.’
Sadly, she hasn’t had her wish to work with Depeche Mode or The Prodigy granted yet, but you never know. When Rihanna wants something, she generally gets it!