There is a lot of anticipation among the Barbadian singer Rihanna’s loyal fans for her performance during the Super Bowl. According to reports, as part of the half-time show at Super Bowl LVII, she will perform in Arizona’s State Farm Stadium on February 12, 2023. Since Love On The Brain singer has not released an album since 2016, there has been speculation about what songs she will perform at Super Bowl.

Rihanna and Beyonce
Rihanna and Beyoncé

However, it seems that the Barbadian singer’s performance was already a big hit before she even began to perform, thanks to the commentator on ESPN’s First Take, Stephen A. Smith. During a talk show, the First Take host reportedly compared her to Beyoncé in a disgraceful manner which heated up a wave of anger among her fans.

Also Read: The production of this is going to be INSANE’: Fans are Literally Drooling as Rihanna Releases Super Bowl Halftime Performance Teaser

Stephen A. Smith Compares Rihanna To Beyoncé 

ESPN’s First Take host Stephen A. Smith recently appeared on The Sherri Shepard show, where they discussed the Barbadian singer Rihanna. The sports host is mainly known for his controversial opinions on sports, but commenting on the singer took him under fire this time.

Stephen A. Smith with Sherri on her talk show
Stephen A. Smith with Sherri on her talk show

During the interview with the First Take host, he was asked about Rihanna’s upcoming Super Bowl halftime show, and he replied by bringing up an age-old feud between the Barbadian singer and Beyoncé during the interview.

Smith said,

“I don’t wanna say I’m not excited. She’s fantastic. That’s not where I’m going with this. Ladies and gentlemen, she’s a lot of things. She’s spectacular, actually. And congratulations on new-momma-hood. There’s one thing she’s not. She ain’t Beyoncé.”

There have been ongoing battles between the two singers for years, but the host found himself in a difficult situation after he compared the two in a discussion. As a result of the public reaction, Smith publicly apologized for his comments. However, Queen Bey and the Only Girl singer have not yet commented on the matter.

Also Read: “Wow, how disappointing was that question”: Rihanna Nearly Ended Reporter’s Career After Question About Dating Mila Kunis’ Husband

Stephen A. Smith Publicly Apologized To Rihanna

Stephen A. Smith
Stephen A. Smith

The host Stephen A. Smith later apologized to Rihanna after realizing that what he said was disgraceful and highly disappointing as he had received heavy backlash. However, in response to remarks he made before the Barbadian singer’s Super Bowl half-time performance, he asserted he did not disrespect her. Later on today, he took Twitter, where he tweeted a series of tweets apologizing to the singer for his comments and clarifying what he meant by them.

He tweeted, by making a public apology along with a video of him,

“Apologies to Rihanna for my words, gotta be more careful!”

He later tweeted again, which reads,

“Horrific mistake. Something that was suppose to be a fun moment on the Sherri Shepard show has gotten out of hand. An overzealous member on my MGMT team — which has access to my account — posted something I would NEVER say about @rihanna, her fans or any other artist. The post…”

He tweeted another one, writing,

“Has been removed. My social management team will never make a mistake like this again. My apologies again to @Rihanna . And just to be clear, I’m a huge fan. Sherri and I were just having fun. That is all.”

He never expected that he would be asked to apologize for his fun comments about the singer; he was not prepared for the such backlash from fans.

Also Read: ‘They planned on getting married a while back: Rihanna Reportedly Finally Considering Marrying A$AP Rocky after a Decade of Courtship

Fans Slams Stephen A. Smith For His Comments On The Barbadian Singer And His Apology Act Too

Rihanna
Rihanna

A mix of reactions from Rihanna’s insanely loyal fans surfaced immediately after Smith’s remark. In no time at all, social media was flooded with the anger of the viewers towards the host, which caused him to turn to an immediate public apology. Additionally, fans did not spare him for his clarification tweets when he acquiesced to the fact that he deleted the post about the Barbadian singer because they felt that it was not about the post; instead, it was about how the host felt about the singer, and that was what was being discussed in the post.

People gave their opinions to the host as many believe that he did not say anything that needed apologizing. Many others believe Rihanna will understand his thoughts, which won’t bother her. Smith was eager to set the record straight with a series of tweets, but both the singer he compared each other, have stayed out of the drama.

Source: Sherri Shepard Show, Twitter

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