Rihanna has been having sleepless nights thinking about the Haitian orphans.

The pop star – who is from the Caribbean island of Barbados – has been left extremely distressed by the earthquakes which have hit Haiti leaving tens of thousands of people dead or injured.

Appearing on Oprah Winfrey's TV talk show, Rihanna said: 'Often in a tragedy like this, it's the children who suffer the most. They have no way to get food, they're helpless. The children are the future.'

The 21-year-old singer – who appeared on the programme with Wyclef Jean, who was born in Haiti – also stressed the help provided to the Caribbean island needs to be long-term.

She added: 'I want everybody to do what they can right now. But it's what's going to happen six months from now that's really going to count.'

During the show, Rihanna performed a cover version of Bob Marley's 'Redemption Song' and the track is now available to download from websites Oprah.com, iTunes, and her personal site with all proceeds going to Haiti.

Wyclef stressed the Haitian people are not getting the right help at present and don't need anymore people looking for a 'photo op'.

He said: 'We need logistics, we need people to go to the airport who can get stuff out of the airport and to the people.'

The musician will co-host the Hope for Haiti telethon with George Clooney on Friday (22.01.10) and is then flying out to Haiti on Saturday (23.01.10).