Anyone who watched Rihanna’s halftime show at the Superbowl this year is well aware by now that she’s pregnant with her second child, but what I find interesting is the way the world reacted to the news. I know I’m guilty of it myself, but when she came on my T.V. The first thought I had was, “Didn’t she already give birth?” not even five minutes later my sister texted me telling me that her friend believed Rihanna was pregnant again, but my sister thought her figure was due to being postpartum. Even as she performed, people were rushing to TikTok and talking about it. I saw about 10 videos only minutes after she was done, saying the same thing, “Is it just me, or is she pregnant again?” “Is she pregnant or am I judging her postpartum body?” It’s interesting how many people said they didn’t want to judge her if she wasn’t pregnant. 

It’s refreshing to see that we’ve grown as a society enough to acknowledge that its simply wrong to judge women’s bodies after they give birth but that’s not the case for everyone who goes through postpartum, women still have passive-aggressive comments made about their bodies and have unrealistic expectations put on them after they give birth. If you don’t immediately “bounce back” there’s something wrong with you. If you aren’t a well-loved celebrity, you’re more prone to being judged by the internet, and even if you are there’s always those few people who have negative things to say about women’s bodies.

The news was everywhere on social media. The sheer amount of people talking about her pregnancy was astounding. And while many congratulated her on the news there were many whose reactions weren’t as congratulatory. Many took to social media to express how disappointed they were because of the realization that Rihanna may not be releasing music any time soon. I understand the frustration, it’s been seven years since she last released an album but seeing as she’s been working on Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty in the last few years, it’s fair to say she’s been busy and add giving birth last May, it would be safe to say writing music was the last thing on her mind, especially with the new baby on the way.

Not only did people have a lot to say about her pregnancy, but people also had lots to say about her performance as well. Some people loved it and some thought it could’ve been better. I’ve had a few friends say she should’ve done more and that she was upstaged by her background dancers. It’s important to remember that she’s 5-6 months pregnant and marking the dance moves she was doing could’ve been a way for her to ensure she’d still have the energy to give an amazing vocal performance.