Rihanna has spoken to Oprah Winfrey about the 2009 incident that saw her assaulted by Chris Brown.

The singer has talked about the incident before, but rarely: on an interview with Good Morning America, she discussed the assault, but focused on how it made her feel and warning other women in similar situations – which, it goes without saying in a case like this, is the priority. Interestingly, in this new interview, she talks about Brown’s personality, claiming that the singer needs help:

“I felt like the only person they hate right now is him. It was a weird, confusing space to be in”, Rihanna tells Oprah. “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.”

The full interview will air on Oprah this Sunday, August 19. You can watch a preview below.