"WHAT’S the longest period of time you’ve waited for someone? Twenty minutes? An hour? I start to get cranky around the five-minute mark, so imagine how grumpy I am after waiting four hours on a Sunday afternoon for the subject of today’s photoshoot to arrive.

For much of the afternoon, I’ve been steadily receiving text messages letting me know that the singer won’t be long (“definitely within the hour”) until, finally, when the crew are weak with starvation, we’re startled into action by a flurry of voices. Striding at the front of the 10-strong pack is the surprisingly tall star, immaculately groomed in a simple white shift dress and giant sunnies (even though it’s 7pm). She takes the time to greet each of us with, “Hi, I’m Rihanna.”

Considering she’s only in town for a 72-hour promo tour, she has one hell of an entourage. They busy themselves taking over the entire studio space, while Rihanna squeaks with excitement at the designer pieces she’ll be wearing."