Rihanna is a world-famous Barbadian singer and songwriter. (Photo : Instagram)
The audience at the 2016 Grammy Awards apparently suffered a setback when they found pop star Rihanna missing from the action. The singer was slated to sing "Kiss It Better," but reportedly pulled out at the last minute, much to the fans' confusion.
The 27-year-old reported to have arrived at Los Angeles' Staples Center on Feb. 15, Monday, for the rehearsal of her performance. However, she decided to pull at half hour before the show due to her doctor's insistence. She has been struggling with bronchitis and is on medicines from the past few days.
"Based on Rihanna's examination, after Grammy rehearsal today, Rihanna's doctor put her on vocal rest for 48 hours because she was at risk of haemorrhaging her vocal chords," Us Weekly quoted the singer's representative as saying.
The "Umbrella" hit maker was noticeably missing on the red carpet, where reporters awaited her arrival eagerly.
Rihanna, who released her eighth album "Anti" in January, was supposed to perform at the beginning of the ceremony. Her no-show at the eleventh hour reportedly created a chaos for the organisers who had to shift around so that the show could go on as planned.
Rihanna reportedly wanted to perform, but reluctantly decided otherwise as she had to listen to her doctors. Later, the singer took to Twitter to address her absence at the Grammys along with the Grammys and CBS for their support.
#NAVY so sorry I couldn't be there ..... Thanks Grammys and CBS for your support tonight.
— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 16, 2016
While illness sidelined Rihanna at Grammys this year, an apparent lack of communication kept Lauryn Hill away from the grand event. The 40-year-old was supposed to join Weeknd for his debut performance, but the singer was later found performing alone.
Hill's representative has claimed that Grammy announced her performance without prior approval and there was no way that she could have performed at the event.
"Ms. Hill had concerts all weekend, leaving no time to prepare, and was uncertain she would even be able to make it to LA in time to rehearse for the event," Hill's rep told Vox, before further adding that the singer's performance was never confirmed from their side.
Despite Hill's absence, Weeknd gave a spectacular performance on his medley, which included "I Can't Feel My Face" and "In the Night."
Meanwhile, listen to Rihanna's "Kiss It Better," which has so far reached No. 42 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, below:
