In the interview, Rihanna describes Chris as her, quote, "first big love" . . . and says, quote, "This happened to me. It can happen to anyone." (--ABC will undoubtedly let a few more quotes trickle out in the coming days to hype the interview.)

She probably decided to end her silence now . . . so that she can get it out of the way and begin promoting her next album, "Rated R", which hits stores on November 23rd.

(--Here's a promo for the interview, which promises that Rihanna will, quote, "tell her story" . . .)


(Chris, of course, has spoken publicly about the "incident" several times now. He has apologized for what happened . . . and says it's something that will never happen again. He's currently serving a sentence of 180 DAYS of community service.)

Meanwhile, Rihanna has released a track-list for "Rated R" . . . and it includes a song called "Rockstar 101", which features SLASH on guitar. WILL.I.AMand YOUNG JEEZY will also make appearances on the album.