Rihanna felt "concerned" for Chris Brown in the aftermath of his assault on her.

The 'We Found Love' hitmaker admits the time following the incident in February 2009 was "confusing" because she felt her then-boyfriend - who she split from after his attack on her - needed help and people could only see him as a "monster".

She said: "I felt like the only person they hate right now is him. It was a weird, confusing space to be in.

"Because as angry as I was - as angry and hurt and betrayed - I just felt like he made that mistake because he needed help. 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."

Rihanna admitted the incident - for which Chris was subsequently convicted of battery and sentenced to 80 hours of community labour, five years probation and required to attend a 12-month domestic violence counseling programme - turned her world upside down because she "lost everything" that was familiar.

In an interview with Oprah Winfrey's OWN show 'Oprah's Next Chapter', she said: "I lost my best friend... everything I knew switched -- switched in a night. And I couldn't control that. It's not easy to interpret on camera, not with the world watching."

The full interview airs on August 19.