FUSE TV - Rihanna's 777 Tour Documentary Edits Out Mutiny at 30,000 Feet

To boost the press blitz behind Rihanna's album Unapologetic last November, someone inside the Barbadian pop singer's camp had what at the time must've seemed like a genius idea: Round up 250 journalists and contest winners onto a chartered Boeing 777 for a seven-day journey through seven countries for seven promotional concerts. They'd call it the Rihanna 777 Tour. What could possibly go wrong? 

The camera crews shooting video footage on-board those seven days—Mexico City to Toronto, then Stockholm, Paris, Berlin, London and finally New York—aired the final product, the Rihanna 777 documentary, Monday night on Fox. And, well, it's missing a important story line: that of the suffering journalists.

Sure, first world problems, right? How bad can a free whirlwind tour around the globe with a pop star be, right? Wrong.

According to Fuse's brave journalists onboard (and many others in the media biz), it was really bad: Limited bathroom access, 36 hours (or more) without sleep, long waits on runways and on buses, no internet service to file stories and zero access to Rihanna, who disappeared after pouring tequila shots before take off. There were even reports of limited food and water. 

The journalists aboard, who started calling themselves hostages, grew more and more angry/crazy/starved. Eventually, a mutiny resulted in demands and even an onboard streaker. This was not the paid vacation it was advertised to be. The blog buzz turned from excitement to disaster at 30,000 feet, and even Rihanna apologized (sort of) when the jet landed in NYC.