Rihanna and Chris Brown to perform together at the VMAs?

Entertainment industry insider blog Media Takeout.com is reporting that Rihanna has insisted she wants to incorporate Brown into her act at the event on September 6.

Brown received five years of probation, community labour and one year of domestic-violence counselling after he was charged with violently attacking the 24-year-old in 2009.

"[The producers] like the ratings that [a Chris-Rihanna duet] would bring, but there could be some backlash too. . . There isn't much choice since Rihanna is insisting that he perform with her," the insider told the website.

The move is bound to upset many, particularly anti-violence against women campaigners who say Rihanna has set a bad example by appearing to still be involved with Brown despite the brutal beating.

In a candid interview with Oprah Winfrey recently, Rihanna controversially admitted she felt "protective" of her ex-boyfriend in the days after the 2009 incident.

"Because as angry as I was — as angry and hurt and betrayed — I just felt like he made that mistake because he needed help," she continued. "And who's going to help him?

"Nobody's going to say he needs help, everybody's going to say he's a monster, without looking at the source. And I was more concerned about him."

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