Aisha Harris of '' Slate '' stated that the accompanying video for " Needed Me " was inspired by Korine 's film '' Spring Breakers '' , a sentiment also echoed by Jamieson Cox of '' The Verge '' , with Harris also noting that " it 's difficult to tell if this video is trying to say anything particularly meaningful or is just an example of empty exploitation . Maybe it 's a bit of both , but one thing is for sure : It 's impossible to look away from . " Adelle Platon of '' Billboard '' called it " a badass clip " , while Brittany Spanos of '' Rolling Stone '' noted it to be reminiscent of her " Bitch Better Have My Money " video and named it " violent " and " dark " . Patrick Ryan of USA Today placed the music video at number one on his list of " 6 music videos that prove Rihanna is a ' Video Vanguard ' " . Speaking on the video Ryan stated that " Rihanna creates indelible characters in each of her videos " , but praised the ones that came from the " ANTI era " which he described as being a " gun-toting , DGAF ice queen : half-naked , smoking a joint oceanside one minute , before sauntering into a strip club to mow you down the next . With Spring Breakers director Harmony Korine at the helm , Needed Me explores the hazy , sordid underbelly that this version of RiRi inhabits , with visuals so eye-poppingly WTF that you ca n’t look away from the carnage . " Rihanna included and performed " Needed Me " on the Anti World Tour . Josh Duboff of '' Vanity Fair '' praised the " Needed Me " performance , noting that it " came alive more in the live setting than it do es on the album , perhaps due to Rihanna 's evident passion in selling it . " On August 28 , 2016 , " Needed Me " was part of the third medley Rihanna performed at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards , along with " Pour It Up " and " Bitch Better Have My Money "
2016 MTV Video Music Awards
2016 MTV Video Music Awards
Needed Me