Rihanna won't stop seeing her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown just because other people want her to.

The 24-year-old star has attracted lots of criticism since she started meeting up with the 22-year-old singer again in recent months following his violent assault of her in February 2009 - for which he was convicted.

Rihanna even recorded the track "Birthday Cake" with Chris and although she doesn't expect her fans to understand her decision she is adamant it is hers to make.

"I respect what other people have to say. The bottom line is that everyone thinks differently. It's very hard for me to accept, but I get it. People end up wasting their time on the blogs or whatever, ranting away, and that's all right. I don't hate them for it. Because tomorrow I'm still going to be the same person. I'm still going to do what I want to do," she said in an interview with Elle.

Rihanna now believes the incident in 2009 - which left her bloodied and bruised - actually liberated her: "It (the assault) gave me guns. I was like, well, f**k. They know more about me than I want them to know. It's embarrassing. But that was my opening. That was my liberation, my moment of bring it. I wanted people to know who I am. Whatever they take that to be, good or bad, I just want them to know the truth. I have more freedom the more people know about me. It's like, one less skeleton in the closet, one less burden, one less secret; now you know that, so you can say what you want about it. I don't have anything to hide."