Rihanna 'found peace' recording new album

The singer recorded 'Rated R' a few months after being assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown in February and has revealed the recording studio became a haven for her as she tried to get over the violent attack.

She said: "I hid out for a while, but that just drove me crazy. I got cabin fever. I was ready to make music again. It was a hard time, but I found peace in the studio."

The 'Russian Roulette' singer deliberately chose to collaborate with people she had worked with before, including Justin Timberlake and Ne-Yo, to help her get over the ordeal.

She explained to the USA Today newspaper: "I wanted something grimy. It was important to have familiar people in the studio, for there to be a comfort level, because of what I wanted to say."

Despite the demise of her relationship with 'Run It' star Chris, Rihanna insists her ex isn't the inspiration for every song on the LP.

She added: "I didn't want to talk about relationships. At least, I didn't want to do just love songs. Love wasn't what I wanted to talk about.

"Not all the songs are angry and sad. There are songs about having fun and having sex, and cocky, bragging songs like 'Hard' and 'Wait Your Turn'."