Rihanna announces first NZ show in five years

Rihanna during her 2008 performance at Vector Arena. Photo/Glenn Jeffrey

Rihanna, the reigning Queen of pop, is heading to New Zealand as part of her Diamonds World Tour which kicked off with a few hiccups in America this week.

Last here in 2008, when she played two nights at Vector Arena with soon-to-be boyfriend Chris Brown, Rihanna plays Sunday, October 6 at the same venue in support of latest album Unapologetic.

See photos of Rihanna's 2008 shows at Vector Arena.

Apart from the on-going tabloid scandal surrounding her relationship with Brown, who was charged with assault after an altercation with the singer in early 2009, she is best known for hits Umbrella, We Found Love, and most recently, the ballad Diamonds.

The current tour, which opened in Buffalo last Friday, has got off to a rocky start with Rihanna cancelling her next two shows in Boston and Maryland because of laryngitis. She is expected to be back to play her Philadelphia show tomorrow night (Friday NZ time).

The Barbados-born, Los Angeles-based singer released debut album, Music of the Sun, in 2005 after being signed to iconic label Def Jam by then president Jay-Z.

Since then she has released an album every year, including 2007 classic Good Girl Gone Bad, which included Umbrella and the Justin Timberlake-penned Rehab.

The Visa pre-sale for the New Zealand shows starts 9am, March 15 at visaentertainment.co.nz and for further ticket information go to livenation.com.au.

For full details and the life and times of Rihanna see TimeOut tomorrow.