Rihanna's explosive video for "Rock Star 101" features a bevy of excellent costumes, some striking references to a handful of other videos and a killer scene where Rihanna cross-dresses as guitar god Slash (who provided the six string action on the track). It also gave Rihanna the opportunity to wear the latest accessory that all the pop superstars seem to be breaking out in videos and in live settings: A guitar.
Though she isn't actually playing the instrument (and by all accounts doesn't play), she still looks super-cool with it strapped around her body. A sweet-looking guitar lands some immediate rock star cool to whoever is holding it, even if there's no sound coming out. It isn't just that the instruments themselves look pretty sweet (though they certainly do). It's the association you get with true badasses who have wielded them in the past. Ultra-cool dudes and ladies like Jimmy Page, Joan Jett, Elvis Presley, Eddie Van Halen, Kurt Cobain and, yes, Slash himself. It makes playing the thing beside the point (though Madonna certainly gave it a go during her "Sticky & Sweet" world tour — and even wore a top hat to add another Slash association).
Some pop stars who borrow the image are legitimate players (Miley Cyrus can play and writes most of her material on an acoustic guitar, while Justin Bieber plays when he unplugs during his live shows), but just as many simply use it as borrowed cool. Even Jay-Z — by all accounts the coolest dude on the planet — recognized the power of the ax when he strapped one on during his headlining set at the Glastonbury Festival in 2009. (In perhaps the coolest aspect of the above photo, it was also meant as a shot against former Oasis mastermind Noel Gallagher, who had criticized Jigga's role as the headliner of England's biggest festival.)
