CBS permanently pulls Rihanna song out of NFL telecast

By The Associated Press
January 08 2025 10:07 PM

CP29912494 — FILE - This April 25, 2014 file photo shows singer Rihanna watching Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series between the Brooklyn Nets and the Toronto Raptors in New York. CBS said Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2014 it was permanently editing a song featuring Rihanna\'s voice out of its Thursday night NFL telecasts _ after the singer issued a profane tweet about it. A portion of Jay-Z\'s "Run This Town" featuring Rihanna was cut out of last Thursday\'s game because the network was covering the controversy over Rice\'s assault of his then-fiancee. CBS had planned to use the song Thursday and for the rest of the season, but Rihanna tweeted her objections. CBS issued a statement saying that it was "moving in a different direction" with different theme music. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File)

NEW YORK, N.Y. – CBS and Rihanna are splitting up after more fallout from the Ray Rice incident.

The network said Tuesday it was permanently editing a song featuring Rihanna’s voice out of its Thursday night NFL telecasts — after the singer issued a profane tweet about it.

A portion of Jay-Z’s “Run This Town” featuring Rihanna was cut from last Thursday’s game because CBS was covering the controversy over Rice’s assault of his then-fiancee. CBS planned to use the song Thursday and for the rest of the season, but Rihanna tweeted, “CBS you pulled my song last week, now you wanna slide it back in this Thursday? … Y’all are sad for penalizing me for this.”

CBS issued a statement saying that it was “moving in a different direction” with different theme music.

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