On February 12th, 2023, Rihanna performed at the first-ever Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show, after nearly seven years away from performing.

To build anticipation for the moment, we created a film inspired by her hit “Run This Town,” that felt true to both Rihanna and Apple Music as a brand. Her road to the Super Bowl started on the small street in Barbados where she grew up. So that’s where we started, too.

This film is a love letter to Rihanna’s journey - in which every element was selected to be true and authentic to her path to stardom. We travelled to Barbados to connect with the locals who lived on that very street including Rihanna’s childhood neighbor, Dawn. We placed Easter eggs through out the film to excite her fans. With the help of local children, we even created a new rendition of the song “Run This Town.“

In order to share Rihanna’s childhood story in the most authentic way, we travelled to Barbados to connect with the locals who lived on the very street she grew up on, soundtracked by her masterful hit, “Run This Town.”

It was the perfect way to celebrate Rihanna’s return to the world’s biggest stage through a global lens, while also inspiring a new wave of future “bad gals” to dream big.

And it played a major role in ultimately setting the stage for the 2nd most-watched event in U.S. history — The Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Barbados and its deep culture has shaped one of the world’s biggest musical icons - Rihanna. As we celebrated her return to the stage, it was only right that we celebrated the culture that molded her into the global star she is today. From the energy on the streets of Rihanna Drive to the kites flying in the cemetery, these are all moments that inspired the talent and vision that would be on full display at the Super Bowl.

Everyone we casted in the film was from the community—from Rihanna’s childhood neighbor, Dawn, to the young boys on the street performing tricks on their bikes, to the kids flying kites in the cemetery. The film was essentially a slice of Bridgetown life, allowing fans a genuine glimpse of the hometown of a beloved icon.

We also placed Easter eggs throughout the film designed to excite her biggest fans, featuring Rihanna’s primary school uniform and music video accessories like the helmets in her music video “Hard.”

To bring this film home, we brought the local children in the film together to sing a simple, yet emotional rendition of the song—reminding fans all over the world that everyone starts out as a kid with a dream. Even Rihanna.

* 9% bump in brand awareness for Apple Music across full US population

* 170M+ organic views

* 30M+ engagements

* 448M view overall

* Promotion culminated in the 2nd most-watched TV moment ever measured