rihanna biography wikipedia

International popstar Rihanna released her first album in 2005 and is known for such No. 1 hits as "Umbrella," "SOS," "Diamonds," and "Work."

Who Is Rihanna?

Popstar Rihanna signed with Def Jam records at age 16 and in 2005 released her first album Music of the Sun , which sold more than two million copies worldwide. She went on to release more albums and an array of hit songs, including "Unfaithful," "Umbrella," "Disturbia," "Take a Bow," "Diamonds" and "We Found Love." A global pop star with an unrelentingly edgy image, Rihanna has also won multiple industry accolades, including Grammys and MTV awards.

Singer Robyn Rihanna Fenty was born on February 20, 1988, in St. Michael Parish on the Caribbean island of Barbados. She is the eldest of three children born to Monica Fenty, an accountant, and Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor. Rihanna's childhood was marred by her father's struggles with addictions to alcohol and crack cocaine and her parents' marital problems — they divorced when she was 14 years old.

Rihanna also struggled with crippling headaches for several years during her childhood, a condition she attempted to hide from her friends and classmates so that they would not think she was abnormal. "I never expressed how I felt," she remembered. "I always kept it in. I would go to school ... you would never know there was something wrong with me."

Move to the United States

As a teenager, Rihanna turned to singing as a release from her troubles at home. She formed a girl group with two classmates; when they were 15 years old, they scored an audition with music producer Evan Rodgers, who was visiting the island with his Barbadian wife. Rogers was awed by the precociously beautiful and talented Rihanna, to the unfortunate detriment of her two friends. "The minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist," he admitted.

Less than a year later, when Rihanna was only 16 years old, she left Barbados to move in with Rogers and his wife in Connecticut and work on recording a demo album. "When I left Barbados, I didn't look back," Rihanna recalled. "I wanted to do what I had to do, even if it meant moving to America."

"Pon de Replay," "Unfaithful" and "SOS"

Only eight months later, in August 2005, she released her first single, "Pon de Replay," a reggae-influenced club track that reached No. 2 on the Billboard singles chart and announced Rihanna as the next up-and-coming pop star. Her first album, Music of the Sun , released later that month, reached No. 10 on the Billboard albums chart and also featured the single "If It's Lovin' That You Want." Rihanna released her second album, A Girl Like Me , the next year, spawning two major hits in "Unfaithful" and "SOS," Rihanna's first No. 1 single.

"Umbrella"

In 2007, Rihanna effected a transformation from cute teen pop princess to superstar and sex symbol with her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad , fueled by its smash hit lead single "Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z. "It shows such growth for her as an artist," Jay-Z said about the track. "If you listen to the lyrics to that song, you know the depth and how far she's come."

"Don't Stop the Music," "Disturbia" and "Hate That I Love You"

"Umbrella" topped the Billboard singles chart and earned Rihanna her first Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. The album reached No. 2 on the charts and also featured the singles "Shut Up and Drive" and "Don't Stop the Music," the latter featuring a sample of Michael Jackson 's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'." Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded , released the following year, scored further hits in "Disturbia," "Take a Bow" and "Hate That I Love You."

"Only Girl (In the World)" and "S&M"

Continuing her onslaught of hit albums, Rihanna released Rated R in 2009 with the singles "Hard" and "Rude Boy." Her 2010 album, Loud , was once again a commercial success behind the songs "What's My Name," "Only Girl (In the World)" and "S&M."

Besides her own laundry list of hit songs, Rihanna collaborated on a host of popular songs by other artists from around this time, including Jay-Z's "Run this Town," Eminem 's "Love the Way You Lie," Maroon 5's "If I Never See Your Face Again" and Kanye West 's "All of the Lights."

"We Found Love"

In 2011, Rihanna released her sixth studio album: Talk That Talk . The album included "We Found Love," a track with DJ Calvin Harris that won the 2013 Grammy Award for best short-form music video.

"Diamonds" and "Stay"

On her Grammy-winning 2012 album Unapologetic , Rihanna turned out such hits as the No. 1 Sia Furler tune "Diamonds" and "Stay," featuring Mikky Ekko. (Interestingly, Unapologetic was the first Rihanna album to hit No. 1 on the pop charts.) She also worked with Coldplay on the track "Princess of China" and, the following year, reached No. 1 again with another Eminem collaboration, "The Monster."

Known for her sexually provocative imagery and wild style, Rihanna made headlines for the sheer dress she wore to the Council of Fashion Designers of America awards ceremony in June 2014. She was there to receive the CFDA's Fashion Icon Award and told the crowd that "Fashion has always been my defense mechanism," according to an Associated Press report. Rihanna acknowledged that there were some rules to fashion, but explained that "rules are meant to be broken." Around this time, the singer made a bold professional move as well: She switched from the Def Jam label to Jay-Z's Roc Nation.

"FourFiveSeconds"

In August 2015, NBC announced that Rihanna would be the key adviser on The Voice 's ninth season. That same year she contributed vocals to the single "FourFiveSeconds," a collaboration with West and famed Beatle Paul McCartney , as well as releasing "B**** Better Have My Money," a tune allegedly inspired by court wranglings with her former manager that also featured a highly controversial, violent music video. In 2015 Rihanna also became the first artist in history to have 100 million singles digitally downloaded and streamed.

"Work"

In late January 2016, Rihanna released the album Anti , allowing Jay-Z's online streaming site Tidal to exclusively feature the collection of tracks for a week. The gambit paid off for the struggling service, with one million trial subscribers joining Tidal in less than a day to partake in a download promotion for Anti . The album's lead single, "Work," featuring rapper Drake , earned two Grammy nominations. In 2017, Rihanna scored another No. 1 hit as a featured artist on DJ Khaled 's "Wild Thoughts."

Branching out to screen work, Rihanna co-starred in the sci-fi flick Battleship (2012) and later voiced the lead character in the animated blockbuster Home (2015).

In 2017, Rihanna made recurring appearances in season 5 of Bates Motel , and earned a prominent role in the science fiction flick Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets . That year, fans also got their first glimpse of the pop superstar alongside Sandra Bullock , Cate Blanchett and Anne Hathaway in trailers for Ocean's 8 , a female-led spinoff of the popular Ocean's Trilogy which hit theaters in June 2018.

The following spring, Rihanna co-starred with Donald Glover , aka Childish Gambino, in the Amazon musical Guava Island .

Philanthropy and Personal Life

In 2012, Rihanna launched the nonprofit Clara Lionel Foundation, named after her grandmother, which supports and funds education and early response programs around the world. For her philanthropic efforts, she was honored with the President's Award at the 2020 NAACP Image Awards.

Rihanna has also made headlines in her personal life, although often for circumstances beyond her control. She first made gossip column headlines in 2006 when rumors swirled that she was having an affair with her mentor, Jay-Z, though she and Jay-Z dismissed such allegations as ridiculous. Later, she was romantically linked to billionaire Saudi businessman Hassan Jameel, before their split was reported in early 2020.

In late 2020, Rihanna began dating rapper A$AP Rocky . In January 2022, it was revealed that the couple is expecting their first child.

Chris Brown

In 2009, Rihanna was the center of a media firestorm after a domestic violence incident in which her then-boyfriend Chris Brown assaulted her before an awards show. The incident sparked a huge public outpouring of support for Rihanna, and she became a spokesperson against domestic violence. "This happened to me," she said in an interview with Diane Sawyer. "It can happen to anyone."

"I put my guard up so hard," she said in a separate interview with Rolling Stone . "I didn't want people to see me cry. I didn't want people to feel bad for me. It was a very vulnerable time in my life, and I refused to let that be the image. I wanted them to see me as, 'I'm fine, I'm tough.' I put that up until it felt real."

In 2012, Rihanna appeared to be reconnecting with Brown. The pair worked together on the song "Birthday Cake" released that year. Rihanna also spoke very candidly with Oprah Winfrey about her relationship with Brown that August. She told Winfrey that Brown may have been the love of her life and she has developed "a very close friendship" with him. The two officially dated again for a time, with Rihanna maintaining in a Rolling Stone interview that Brown had changed and that any form of abuse would be unacceptable.

QUICK FACTS

• Birth date: February 20, 1988
• Birth Country: Barbados
• Best Known For: International popstar Rihanna released her first album in 2005 and is known for such No. 1 hits as "Umbrella," "SOS," "Diamonds," and "Work."
• Astrological Sign: Pisces
• Combermere School
• Nationalities
• Antiguan/Barbudan

Fact Check: We strive for accuracy and fairness. If you see something that doesn’t look right, contact us !

• When the whole worlds turning left, it's when I'm going right. I need someone to let me be just who I am inside.
• I believe in second chances, I just don't believe everyone deserves them.
• Love isn't complicated—people are.
• I'm rebellious through my music, through my fashion, tattoos and my hair.
• I have been conservative in my love life.
• Boys will be boys!!! 'Cause they can't be men!
• People think because we're young, we aren't complex but that's not true. We deal with life and love and broken hearts in the same way a woman a few years older might.
• I could never identify with that word, 'weak.' I couldn't have come out of this if I was weak. No way.
• After being tormented for so many years, being angry and dark, I'd rather just live my truth and take the backlash. I can handle it.
• I decided it was more important for me to be happy, and I wasn't going to let anyone's opinion get in the way of that. Even if it's a mistake, it's my mistake.
• You know, when I started to ... have my race be highlighted, it was mostly when I would do business deals. ... And, you know, that never ends, by the way. It’s still a thing. And it’s the thing that makes me want to prove people wrong. It almost excites me; I know what they’re expecting and I can’t wait to show them that I’m here to exceed those expectations.

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• Introduction

Music career: A Girl Like Me and Good Girl Gone Bad

Later works: rated r , talk that talk , and unapologetic, other activities: acting and fenty beauty, personal life.

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Rihanna (born February 20, 1988, St. Michael parish, Barbados) is a Barbadian pop and rhythm-and-blues (R&B) singer who became a worldwide star in the early 21st century. She is known for her distinctive and versatile voice and for her fashionable appearance. She is also known for her beauty and fashion lines.

Fenty grew up in Barbados with a Barbadian father and a Guyanese mother. As a child, she listened to Caribbean music , such as reggae , as well as American hip-hop and R&B. She especially enjoyed singing and won a high-school talent show with a rendition of a Mariah Carey song. About the same time, she started a girl group with two friends, and in 2004 she attracted the attention of Evan Rogers, an American record producer. He helped Fenty record a demo that led to an audition with the rapper Jay-Z , who at the time headed the Def Jam record label, and he soon signed the budding vocalist. For her professional career, she adopted her middle name, Rihanna.

With the effervescent dancehall -inflected single “Pon de Replay” (2005), Rihanna immediately captured an international audience. The song’s success buoyed sales for her debut full-length recording, Music of the Sun (2005), on which conventional R&B ballads shared space with Caribbean-flavored dance-pop that showcased her melodious Barbadian lilt. Rihanna soon followed with the album A Girl Like Me (2006), featuring the up-tempo club-oriented “S.O.S.” The song, which was built around a sample of Soft Cell ’s 1981 new-wave hit “Tainted Love,” became Rihanna’s first to top the Billboard singles chart.

For Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), Rihanna sought to transform her youthful image. With the assistance of such high-profile collaborators as Timbaland and Justin Timberlake , she abandoned the tropical rhythms that had adorned her first two albums and recorded a collection of sleek R&B that presented her as a fiercely independent and rebellious woman. (She also unveiled a spiky asymmetrical hairstyle.) The gambit paid off, as the album sold several million copies worldwide, and its anthemic lead single, “ Umbrella,” featuring an introductory rap from Jay-Z, became one of the year’s biggest hits and earned Rihanna a Grammy Award .

In early 2009 Rihanna was beaten by her boyfriend, fellow R&B star Chris Brown , in an incident that was widely covered by tabloid news and gossip blogs. Following their separation, he was convicted of assault. The album that followed later that year, Rated R , much of which she cowrote, was marked by icily stark production and brooding lyrics that touched on revenge. Although her sales declined somewhat, she scored another major hit with “Rude Boy.” Rihanna returned to less-portentous fare on the dance-friendly Loud (2010). In early 2011 the album’s sexually provocative single “S&M” became her 10th number one Billboard hit—which made her, at age 23, the youngest artist ever to reach that milestone. Included in the total were prominent collaborations with hip-hop artists T.I. and Eminem that appeared on albums of theirs; many felt her vocals on the latter’s “Love the Way You Lie” (2010) lent resonance to the song’s depiction of an abusive relationship.

Rihanna maintained a steely and seductive persona on the albums Talk That Talk (2011), which produced the infectious international hit “We Found Love,” and Unapologetic (2012), which was anchored by the starry-eyed “Diamonds.” The latter release also controversially featured a duet with Brown, with whom she rekindled her relationship for a brief time. Her eighth studio album, Anti , was released in 2016. Rihanna began working on a new record, but the project was delayed as she took a break from music. However, she later cowrote and performed “Lift Me Up” for the film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022). For her work on the single, Rihanna received her first Academy Award nomination, for best original song. In 2023 she returned to the stage for the first time in some four years, performing at the Super Bowl halftime show.

In addition to her musical career, Rihanna acted in the movies Battleship (2012) and This Is the End (2013). She also voiced one of the main characters in the animated adventure Home (2015). Rihanna later appeared as a hacker in Ocean’s 8 (2018), a female-driven reboot of the Ocean’s Eleven franchise from the early 2000s. In 2019 she starred with Donald Glover in the musical Guava Island ; it premiered at the Coachella Valley Festival before streaming on Amazon .

After collaborating on several cosmetics collections in the early 2010s, Rihanna launched her own line, Fenty Beauty, in 2017. The brand was enthusiastically embraced by fans and was praised for its inclusivity in offering 40 different shades of foundation. She later launched (2018) Savage X Fenty, a clothing line of lingerie and loungewear. In 2019 it was announced that Rihanna was partnering with LVMH Moët Hennessy—Louis Vuitton to create the fashion line Fenty. She thereby became the first woman of color to head a fashion house at LVMH, which was the largest luxury-products company in the world. Fenty’s first collection was released later that year. However, the line struggled, and in 2021 it was announced that Fenty was being paused “pending better conditions.”

Rihanna’s personal life attracted intense media attention. Her tumultuous relationship with Brown, especially the 2009 domestic violence incident, was fodder for the tabloids. She later dated Canadian rapper Drake . In 2021 it was confirmed that Rihanna was in a relationship with rapper A$AP Rocky. The couple welcomed a baby boy the following year. In 2023 Rihanna revealed she was again pregnant by performing at the Super Bowl halftime show with a visible baby bump; her representatives subsequently confirmed that the singer was expecting her second child. In August that year Rihanna gave birth to her second son.

The fabulous life of Rihanna, from her Barbados roots to the Super Bowl, and Fenty Beauty's game-changing role in makeup

• Rihanna is one of the most influential artists of her generation.
• Among other achievements, she has 14 No. 1 songs and nine Grammy Awards.
• She has also made her mark as a humanitarian, entrepreneur, and makeup mogul.

At just 35 years old, Rihanna has already achieved icon status.

Over the course of her relatively short career, Rihanna has positioned herself as one of the most influential artists of her generation. She is the most successful artist in the history of Billboard's Pop Songs Chart — not to mention her already-lasting mark as a humanitarian, entrepreneur, and makeup mogul.

Here's a complete timeline of Rihanna's biggest achievements and most iconic moments.

As a child in Barbados, Rihanna reportedly used music to escape from "anxieties of a violent home life."

Rihanna — born Robyn Rihanna Fenty on February 20, 1988 — was raised in Barbados. She has said that growing up, her father was addicted to drugs and physically abusive towards her mother .

She has also joked that she " annoyed every one of [her] neighbors," and her mom referred to her voice as an "annoying little husky man voice."

Record producer Evan Rogers met Rihanna in 2003, while he was vacationing in Barbados with his wife . The 15-year-old singer told Rogers that being in the music business was "all I've ever wanted to do." She had no formal training in music or dance, but Rogers remembers her remarkable "presence."

"It was more likely a much more urgent need to escape from the anxieties of a violent home life into the illusion of security and boundless love that a life onstage seemed to offer," he told John Seabrook, as recounted in his book "The Song Machine."

"That desire, more than any inborn talent, is what fans will connect to, and that is what record men look for in a new artist. It's the one thing they can't manufacture."

Rihanna signed to Def Jam in 2005. She was taken under the wing of the label's then-president, Jay-Z.

In December 2004, Rihanna recorded the Caribbean jam "Pon de Replay" and sent the song off to several record labels .

In early 2005, a then-16-year-old Rihanna flew to New York City to audition for Def Jam's newly appointed president and CEO, Jay-Z . According to a 2007 interview with The Guardian , she sang a Whitney Houston cover ("For the Love of You") and two originals, one being "Pon de Replay."

"I was like, 'Oh God, he's right there, I can't look, I can't look, I can't look!'" she told The Guardian. "I remember being extremely quiet. I was very shy. I was cold the entire time. I had butterflies. I'm sitting across from Jay-Z. Like, Jay-Z. I was star-struck."

"The audition definitely went well," she continued. "Jay-Z said, 'There's only two ways out. Out the door after you sign this deal. Or through this window.' And we were on the 29th floor. Very flattering."

Rihanna's debut single "Pon de Replay" was an immediate hit.

The studio version of "Pon de Replay" was released in May 2005. The dance-pop, reggae-infused track hit No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 when Rihanna was just 17 years old.

One year later, in May 2006, she scored her first No. 1 single.

"S.O.S." was the debut single from Rihanna's sophomore album, "A Girl Like Me." It reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 three months after its release on Valentine's Day and maintained its reign for three consecutive weeks.

The game-changing track "Umbrella" was released on March 29, 2007.

As Billboard's Joe Lynch writes, when "Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)" dropped , "Rihanna already had two albums and four top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hits under her belt. But for a burgeoning pop icon, she was short just one thing: An instantly iconic pop smash that would prove she was in it for the long game."

"'Umbrella' was that ubiquitous smash," Lynch writes, "an inescapable hit that hit No. 1, soundtracked the summer of 2017 and introduced Bad Gal RiRi to your mom, dad, grandma, grandpa…basically, anyone with a set of ears."

She took home her first Grammy Award in 2008.

Rihanna earned four nominations for the 50th annual Grammy Awards , which was the first time she was recognized by the Recording Academy.

On February 10, 2008, Rihanna and Jay-Z took home the trophy for best rap/sung collaboration. Their smash hit "Umbrella" was also nominated for record of the year, but lost to "Rehab" by Amy Winehouse.

She collaborated with Drake for the first time in 2010.

Just months after they sparked reports of a romance , Rihanna and Drake debuted their first collaborative track, "What's My Name?"

The steamy track was released as the second single from Rihanna's fifth studio album on October 26, 2010. It peaked at No. 1 and even earned the duo a Grammy nomination for best rap/sung collaboration. (It lost, but to another Rihanna song: her 2010 collaboration with Kanye West , "All of the Lights").

"What's My Name?" is especially notable for marking the beginning of the duo's beloved creative relationship , which would later yield hit songs like "Take Care" and "Work."

Rihanna's fifth studio album "Loud" earned her first Grammy nomination for album of the year.

"Loud" was released on November 12, 2010, and spawned three No. 1 songs: "What's My Name?," "Only Girl," and "S&M."

"Loud" earned Rihanna her first and, to date, only Grammy nomination for album of the year , the show's most coveted award. It lost to Adele's "21."

She made her big screen debut with "Battleship" in May 2012.

The summer blockbuster "Battleship" was loosely based on the board game of the same name. It was critically panned , but praise-worthy for Rihanna's big screen debut — for which she was chosen specifically by the film's director, Peter Berg .

"Her videos are super hot and I'd watched them a lot. It clicked for me though after she got assaulted and she went on Diane Sawyer's show and talked very frankly about that night and what happened," Berg told GQ, referring to Rihanna's 2009 assault by then-boyfriend Chris Brown .

"She was so intelligent and articulate," he continued. "I remember thinking, 'Wow. There's much more to this woman than I'd thought.' I then saw her do this stupid little skit on 'Saturday Night Live' where she was in a classroom giving a hard time to these boys. She was funny as all hell! I knew in that moment that the girl could act. No question."

In November 2012, "Unapologetic" became Rihanna's first No. 1 album.

Rihanna's seventh studio album shot to the top of the Billboard 200, becoming Rihanna's first No. 1 album , and won the Grammy for best urban contemporary album on January 26, 2014.

The album's "stark, shadowy R&B," wrote Rolling Stone's Jon Dolan , "is confrontationally honest and sung within an inch of its life, whether she's turning a strip-club anthem into a declaration of independence ('Pour It Out') or pleading at the piano ('Stay')."

Rihanna was given the American Music Awards' first-ever Icon Award in 2013.

The 2013 American Music Awards hailed Rihanna as " the voice of our time" (Bill Maher's words) and the best-selling digital artist of all time (Nielsen's official title).

After performing the "Unapologetic" hit single "Diamonds," Rihanna was presented with the first-ever Icon Award by her mother, Monica Braithwaite.

"I know the journey and your career has not always been an easy one," Braithwaite said, according to Rolling Stone . "But tonight, I applaud and admire you for being so strong and so positive and so humble and so focused. I'm so blessed to be part of this historic moment."

She received the CFDA Fashion Icon award in 2014.

Rihanna walked the 2014 Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) red carpet in a sparkling, sheer gown and little else. But when asked about the daring fashion choice, she laughed it off in a classic Rihanna style: "Do my tits bother you? They're covered in Swarovksi crystals, girl!"

Rihanna was named the creative director of Puma in 2014.

As reported by Time , Rihanna was tapped to oversee a women's line of clothing for Puma, focusing on fitness and training clothes. 

"It really came from her," Adam Petrick, Puma's global brand and marketing director, told The New York Times . "Though we originally started talking about it in terms of advertising, she wanted to express herself in this way. They said to us, 'We can change the face of the brand from a product perspective.'" She did not just want to be a "face."

She was also named a "brand ambassador" for the company, alongside star athletes like Usain Bolt.

The role ultimately led to Rihanna's Fenty x Puma venture, which has yielded fashion moments like the award-winning suede Creepers, iconic fur sliders, and haute-couture athleisure.

Rihanna dropped her most celebrated album yet, "Anti," on January 28, 2016.

Rihanna's eighth studio album "Anti" was surprise-released after three years of anticipation. It was unlike anything the pop star had ever released . It went to No. 1 two weeks after its debut (stalled by a Tidal-exclusive release). It eventually became the first album by a Black female artist to spend 300 weeks on the Billboard 200.

Rolling Stone's Brittany Spanos called it "a sprawling masterpiece of psychedelic soul" and "a rich full-length statement."

"After more than a decade as a superstar of the singles chart, Rihanna has become an album artist," Spanos wrote. "After years as a singer largely defined by her production, it finally feels like Rihanna is in charge of her own sound, remaking pop on her own terms."

"Anti" was nominated for best urban contemporary album and best recording package at the 2017 Grammy Awards.

The album's biggest hit, "Work," was nominated for record of the year. Two of the album's sleeper hits, "Needed Me" and "Kiss It Better," were nominated for best R&B performance and best R&B song, respectively.

Rihanna's Grammy nominations that year also included album of the year for her work on Drake's "Views" and best rap/sung performance for her vocals on Kanye West's "Famous." She didn't leave the ceremony with any awards ( and fans will never forget ).

Rihanna accepted the Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 VMAs.

Before Rihanna accepted the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards — presented by Drake, who also casually confessed his love to her — she performed a medley of her greatest hits, including "Only Girl in the World," "Rude Boy," and "Bitch Better Have My Money."

Instead of putting on one career-spanning performance of hits, as per tradition for the award, the pop star gave four such performances over the course of the show .

Rihanna was Harvard's Humanitarian of the Year in 2017.

In March 2017, the Harvard University Foundation honored Rihanna as Humanitarian of the Year , in recognition of her dedication to promoting educational programs.

In 2012, Rihanna founded the Clara Lionel Foundation Global Scholarship Program, named after her grandparents, for students from Caribbean countries going to college in the United States.

She also supports the Global Partnership for Education and Global Citizen Project, which provides education access to tens of millions of young students around the world.

Rihanna launched Fenty Beauty in September 2017.

Rihanna made her foray into the world of beauty products on September 8, 2017 , when Fenty Beauty was officially made available online and at Sephora.

The makeup line's tour de force was its whopping 40 shades of foundation , which many hailed as the new standard of inclusivity for skin tones. The darkest shades appeared to sell out in record time .

Time magazine even listed Fenty Beauty among its best inventions of the year for 2017, in large part thanks to Rihanna's mission of representation.

"It was important that every woman felt included in this brand," Rihanna told  Time . "We are all so different, with our own unique skin tones, so we started with the 40 foundation shades out the gate."

"I never could have anticipated the emotional connection that women are having with the products and the brand as a whole. Some are finding their shade of foundation for the first time, getting emotional at the counter," Rihanna said. "That's something I will never get over."

She launched Savage x Fenty in May 2018.

Savage x Fenty launched on May 11, 2018. The size-inclusive lingerie line was immediately praised for including people of "all shapes, sizes, and colors," a reputation that it still boasts to this day .

Rihanna channeled the pope at the 2018 Met Gala, for which she was a co-chair.

In one of her more iconic fashion moments, Rihanna attended the 2018 Met Gala in a silver, bedazzled gown  and accompanying robe.

She completed her elaborate look with a Stephen Jones Millinery hat crafted in the style of the pope's tiara. This headdress is normally reserved for religious ceremonies — a nod to the night's theme, "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion & The Catholic Imagination."

The complete outfit took 250 hours to sew and 500 hours to hand-embroider .

Rihanna starred in the ensemble film "Ocean's 8," released on June 5, 2018.

Rihanna was cast as a hacker named Nine Ball in the heist comedy, which was conceived as an all-female spinoff of the popular "Ocean's 11" series.

While the film received mixed reviews , Rihanna was praised for adding "extra mischief and attitude to the octet," in the words of Film Journal International's Kevin Lally .

She welcomed her first child with A$AP Rocky in May 2022.

Rihanna began dating A$AP Rocky, her longtime friend and collaborator , in late 2020. Two years later, she gave birth to the couple's first child, a son named RZA Athelston Mayers.

Rihanna described motherhood as "legendary" in the family's cover story for British Vogue .

"It's everything. You really don't remember life before, that's the craziest thing ever," she said. "You literally try to remember it — and there are photos of my life before — but the feeling, the desires, the things that you enjoy, everything, you just don't identify with it because you don't even allow yourself mentally to get that far, because… Because it doesn't matter."

Rihanna headlined the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show, where she also revealed her second pregnancy.

Despite not releasing a new album in seven years , Rihanna was tapped to headline the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show, joining the ranks of legends like Beyoncé, Madonna, and Prince.

For her first live performance since 2019, Rihanna delivered a show-stopping medley of hits , from "We Found Love" to "Wild Thoughts," and broke the internet by revealing her growing baby bump .

She reportedly gave birth to her second child in August 2023.

Sources told People that Rihanna feels her family is "complete" after welcoming her second child with Rocky.

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Songbook: The Ultimate Guide To Rihanna's Reign, From Her Record-Breaking Hits To Unforgettable Collabs

As the world eagerly awaits Rihanna's musical comeback, GRAMMY.com takes a deep dive into the superstar's catalog and celebrates her evolution from teen idol to beloved icon.

A chance meeting changed Rihanna 's life.

The singer was just 15 years old when she met producer Evan Rogers, who was vacationing with his wife in Barbados. Rogers recognized Rihanna's potential, and invited her to an audition in his hotel suite. 

Shortly after her 16th birthday, Rihanna left her home country for the U.S. to record a demo, which included her breakthrough hit "Pon de Replay." The demo found its way into Jay-Z 's hands, and Hov signed the teen artist to Def Jam and the label expedited her 2005 debut album, aptly titled Music of the Sun .

"When I left Barbados, I didn't look back," Rihanna told Entertainment Weekly in 2007. "I wanted to do what I had to do [to succeed], even if it meant moving to America." 

Twenty years later, Rihanna is a renowned entertainer-turned-mogul. She has sold over 40 million albums worldwide, garnered over 12 billion Spotify streams, achieved 14 Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers, and won nine GRAMMY Awards. Even her business ventures have been a massive success, as her Fenty Beauty brand is worth $2.8 billion.

Though it's been close to a decade since Rihanna's last studio album, 2016's ANTI , she reminded the world of her reign with her 2023 Super Bowl halftime show — which also marked her first time taking the stage in five years. Performing hit after hit while unveiling a baby bump, her 13-minute set became one of the most-watched halftime shows of all time with over 121 million viewers. 

In honor of Rihanna's 36th birthday on Feb. 20, GRAMMY.com is revisiting the monstrous hits, ambitious projects, brow-raising visuals, and iconic collabs that propelled her to international stardom — and why it's all put her in a league of her own.

A New Island Girl In Town

True to her Carribean heritage, Rihanna's dancehall-inspired debut single "Pon de Replay" earned the then 17-year-old Barbados native her first entry on the Hot 100 at an impressive No. 2. Her official introduction to the world also hit No. 1 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart; she boasts 33 on the tally, second behind only the Queen of Pop herself, Madonna .

Follow-up single "If It's Lovin' That You Want" stalled at No. 36 on the Hot 100, but still whetted fans' appetite — as did her debut album, Music of the Sun , which is mostly comprised of dance-pop and dancehall tracks with hints of R&B (like "Willing to Wait"). Plus, her reimagining of Dawn Penn's 1994 reggae classic "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" is still so fun to listen to after all these years.

A mere eight months later, Rihanna's sophomore effort, 2006's A Girl Like Me , arrived to an eager audience. Defying the sophomore slump, she celebrated her first No. 1 with the ubiquitous lead single "SOS," which famously samples Soft Cell's 1981 hit, "Tainted Love." While A Girl Like Me is filled with high-energy, danceable tracks (including the nostalgic "Break It Off" with Sean Paul ), Rihanna's second single was the melodramatic ballad "Unfaithful." 

Penned by then-labelmate Ne-Yo , "Unfaithful" peaked at No. 6 on the Hot 100. More importantly, it showed a different side to Rihanna, proving that she could channel deep emotion when the performance calls for it. It also marked Rihanna's first time veering away from her "girl next door" image, as the song's subject matter deals with infidelity.

A Girl Like Me contains many fan favorites, from the laid-back "We Ride" to standouts "Dem Haters" and "Kisses Don't Lie." The latter is a reggae-rock hybrid that sounds like a catalyst for some of Rihanna's edgier tunes like "Breakin' Dishes" from 2007's Good Girl Gone Bad era. Touching ballads"Final Goodbye" and "A Million Miles Away" showcase her voice beautifully, foreshadowing later big-vocal numbers like "Love on the Brain."

An Icon In The Making

Rihanna was a familiar face by 2007, but with the arrival of her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad , she graduated from cookie-cutter pop star to bonafide icon.

Produced by Tricky Stewart , the LP's juggernaut lead single "Umbrella" featuring Jay-Z skyrocketed to No. 1 in 17 countries. Between striking images of Rihanna's silver-painted silhouette in the accompanying video and the now-iconic "ella-ella, eh, eh, eh" hook, "Umbrella" thrust the then 19-year-old into another stratosphere. Her confident delivery also commanded attention in a way fans and critics hadn't heard before.

The transformative era also birthed the gritty "Shut Up and Drive," on which Rihanna channels her inner rock star. The next two singles cracked the top 10: an affectionate duet with Ne-Yo,  "Hate That I Love You," which showed off Rihanna's softer side, and the party-starting, Michael Jackson -sampling "Don't Stop the Music," which cemented her place in the digital era. 

The melancholy "Rehab" is a clever metaphor for lost love, co-written by Timbaland and Justin Timberlake . Despite being Good Girl Gone Bad 's lowest-charting single, Timberlake heralded the song as "the bridge for her to be accepted as an adult in the music industry."

Good Girl Gone Bad remains Rihanna's best-selling album and marks her greatest reinvention as she adopted a more rebellious sound. She also won her first GRAMMY in 2008 (Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Umbrella") and scored four other nominations, including Record Of The Year. The album's reissue spawned two more No. 1s: "Take a Bow" and "Disturbia," the latter of which acts like a prelude to Rated R , which saw Rihanna exploring darker themes.

Nine months before the release of 2009's Rated R , Rihanna was assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown . On the deeply personal album, she translated her pain into art. Through lead single "Russian Roulette" and bitingly catchy anthems "Stupid in Love," "Fire Bomb," "Photographs," "Cold Case Love," and "The Last Song," Rihanna explored her angst and confusion.

But to focus solely on the domestic violence incident undermines Rihanna's artistic vision. 

Following three multi-platinum albums in a three-year span, Rihanna's rebranding as a rebel at heart reached its apex. The singer had grown in leaps and bounds while taking musical risks, even penning nine of Rated R 's 13 tracks (she had no writing credits on Good Girl Gone Bad ).

The road to Rihanna's most badass anthems — including "Bitch Better Have My Money" — can be traced back to Rated R . Case in point: Her bravado is loud and clear on "Hard," "Wait Your Turn," and "G4L." On "Rockstar 101," which features legendary rocker Slash , Rihanna declares her power: "Six inch walker/ Big sh— talker/ I never play the victim/ I'd rather be a stalker."

Badgal RiRi returned to her dancehall roots on her fifth No. 1 "Rude Boy," which offsets the album's harrowing motif. Final single "Te Amo" didn't chart, but garnered a great deal of attention as the Latin-infused Stargate production depicts Rihanna being enticed by a female love interest. 

Rated R showcased Rihanna's undeniable star power, and allowed her to shed her good-girl image once and for all.

A Partygoer's Dream

Following the career-pivoting Rated R , 2010's Loud offered a welcome return to the West Indian artist's earlier sound. The album feels like one big celebration of life, as evidenced by Rihanna's fire-engine red hair and No. 1 singles "Only Girl (In the World)" and "What's My Name?" (the latter of which was Rih's first collaboration with Drake ).

Best described as "Don't Stop the Music" 2.0, the effervescent "Only Girl" marked her eminent return to the dance floor and took home a GRAMMY for Best Dance Recording in 2011. While "What's My Name?" may not outshine Rih and Drizzy's other collabs — including 2011's "Take Care" or 2016's "Work" — the second she sings, "Hey, boy, I really wanna see if you can go downtown with a girl like me," it's impossible not to whine your waist to the riddim.

Easily one of Rihanna's most overlooked hits, "Cheers (Drink to That)" is built around an unexpected sample of Avril Lavigne 's 2002 hit "I'm With You," but it works surprisingly well as a party anthem. That same carefree spirit can be heard in the feminist track "Raining Men," which features Nicki Minaj — their first of two collabs, as they joined forces again for "Fly," the final single off the rapper's iconic Pink Friday album. 

A playful ode to sadomasochism and bondage, "S&M" contains some of Rihanna's most provocative lyrics: "Sticks and stones may break my bones/ But chains and whips excite me," she declares on the chorus. 

Banned in 11 countries upon its release, the accompanying video features Rihanna tied up in pink rope, dancing with a blowup doll, and donning a Playboy bunny-esque costume as damning newsreels about herself flash across the screen. But Rihanna's love of kink made her an even bigger star: "S&M" produced a remix with Britney Spears and earned Rihanna her 10th No. 1 single. With this feat, she became the youngest artist to attain the most chart-toppers in a five-year span.

On "Man Down," Rihanna's patois is in full effect as she takes listeners through a gripping tale about murdering her abuser. "What started out as a simple altercation/ Turned into a real sticky situation," she laments in the opening verse, amplified by siren noises in the background. There's something so satisfying about Rihanna's Bajan accent as she unfurls "Rum-pum-pum-pum" repeatedly over an intensifying reggae beat that would make Sister Nancy and Bob Marley proud.

Nominated for Album Of The Year at the 2021 GRAMMYs, Loud is Rihanna's second most commercially successful LP — and for good reason. It was especially refreshing to see Rihanna emerge from one of the darkest periods of her life as exuberant as ever.

An Unapologetic Queen

Sonically and thematically, Talk That Talk doesn't break new ground, but Rih's DGAF attitude is front and center with plenty of sexual innuendos: Songs like "S&M" and "Rude Boy" seem pretty tame next to "Cockiness (Love It)," which features longtime friend-turned-boyfriend A$AP Rocky on its remix. "Suck my cockiness/ Lick my persuasion/ Eat my poison/ And swallow your pride down, down," she commands in the tantalizing chorus.

At just over a minute long, "Birthday Cake" leaves nothing to the imagination ("It's not even my birthday, but he wanna lick the icing off"). Rihanna controversially released a full-length version in the form of a remix with Chris Brown.

On an album that mostly sees Rihanna singing about her sexual fantasies, "We All Want Love" pulls back the curtain as it reveals her desire for true love: "And some say love ain't worth the buck/ But I'll give my last dime/ To have what I've only been dreaming about." 

Her longing continues in "Where Have You Been," which flaunts Rihanna's versatility, flipping Geoff Mack's 1959 country song "I've Been Everywhere" into an infectious EDM banger. Lead single "We Found Love" is undeniably the biggest hit to stem from the Talk That Talk era, spending 10 consecutive weeks atop the Hot 100. 

Boosting Calvin Harris ' career, "We Found Love" presents one juxtaposition after the other: dark yet gleaming, euphoric yet sobering, fraught yet hopeful. Rihanna relies on more than just evocative lyrics to tell her story; accompanying synthesizers and alarm bells help to paint a picture as well. Met with controversy, its intense visuals portraying a drug-fueled, toxic relationship — and featuringwhat many speculated was a Chris Brown look-alike — earned RiRi a GRAMMY for Best Long Form Music Video in 2013.

Seven years into an already extraordinary career, 2012's Unapologetic became Rihanna's first album to debut at No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart. Its lead single "Diamonds" resonated in an equally major way, giving Rih her 12th No. 1 on the Hot 100.

Written by Sia , the power ballad kicked off another exciting era for the Barbadian singer, who unleashes an impassioned vocal performance. One of Rihanna's most precious offerings to date, "Diamonds" emerged as a self-love mantra due to its uplifting "Shine bright like a diamond" chant.

Vocally, Rihanna's strength lies in her ability to evoke raw emotion à la "Stay." Featuring Mikky Ekko , the stripped-down, slow-burning piano ballad narrowly missed the top spot on the Hot 100 but gave Rihanna her 24th top 10 hit, surpassing Whitney Houston 's record of 23 in 2013.

Her swagger is boisterous in "Phresh Out the Runway," "Jump," and strip club anthem "Pour It Up," but "Nobody's Business" really drives home the album's theme of being unbothered. Her decision to join forces with Chris Brown yet again perplexed fans and critics alike, though the track itself is an irresistible production that features a genius interpolation of Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel."

Further down the track list, "Love Without Tragedy / Mother Mary" is as autobiographical as it gets, and further taps into Rihanna's emotionally vulnerable side. "Mr. Jesus, I'd love to be a queen/ But I'm from the left side of an island/ Never thought this many people would even know my name," she pleads in the seven-minute two-parter.

Unapologetic spawned fewer hit singles compared to Rihanna's previous efforts. Its win for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 2014 GRAMMYs, however, proved that Rihanna's reign wasn't letting up anytime soon.

While recording her then-forthcoming album, ANTI , Rihanna delivered what is arguably the single most unapologetic moment of her career: "Bitch Better Have My Money." The backstory is almost inconceivable given Rihanna's awe-inspiring billionaire status, but in 2009, Rihanna faced bankruptcy due to her accountants mishandling her funds — and thus "Bitch" was born six years later in 2015.

With lyrics like "Your wife in the backseat of my brand new foreign car" over a cryptic-sounding trap beat and an accompanying video depicting kidnapping and torturing her debtors, "Bitch" is not for the faint-hearted. The one-off single is so quintessentially Rihanna that it notably kicked off her Super Bowl halftime show.

An In-Demand Collaborator

While bestowing hit after hit on her own, Rihanna generously lent her distinct voice to some of her biggest peers. 2008 marks one of the earliest instances of her Midas touch: She flirts with funk in Maroon 5 's underappreciated "If I Never See Your Face Again" before hopping on T.I .'s "Live Your Life," which shot straight to No. 1 on the Hot 100.

In 2009, Rihanna joined Jay-Z and Kanye West for the militant "Run This Town," sounding defiant as ever in the intro. She was called upon again for West's horn-laden "All of the Lights," flying solo on the hook followed by a star-studded choir that included Alicia Keys , John Legend , Fergie , and Elton John . Both larger-than-life productions won GRAMMYs for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration in 2010 and 2012, respectively.

In between joining forces with Hov and Ye, Rihanna assisted Eminem in "Love the Way You Lie," which struck a nerve with many for its gut-wrenching lyrics shedding a light on abusive relationships. (Rih recorded an equally moving sequel for her Loud album.) Three years later, the two confronted their inner demons in "The Monster," and their musical chemistry scored a GRAMMY in 2015 for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration.

Amid smash collabs, Rihanna and Coldplay 's intricate "Princess of China" number gets lost in the shuffle, but it speaks to her charm as it's the band's first album (2011's Mylo Xyloto ) to feature another artist. Another overlooked jam, her sultry "Can't Remember to Forget You" duet with Shakira sees both stars trade lines about struggling to let go of an undeserving lover.

On paper, a collaboration between Rihanna, Kanye West, and Sir Paul McCartney may seem strange, but the unlikely trio is further proof that opposites attract. Their "FourFiveSeconds" is a pop-folk hybrid with a universal message about carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. It's yet another example of Rihanna's willingness to push past her comfort zone to create something unique.

A year later, Rihanna got listeners on their feet by way of the Taylor Swift -penned "This Is What You Came For" with Calvin Harris. Understated compared to the duo's previous megahits ("We Found Love" and "Where Have You Been"), Harris' signature DJing style and Rih's ethereal vocals are a perfect match.

In 2017, Rih, DJ Khaled and Bryson Tiller dropped the song of the summer with "Wild Thoughts," which heavily borrows from Carlos Santana 's 1999 GRAMMY-winning "Maria Maria." It may be DJ Khaled's song, but RiRi owns it from the very moment she utters, "I don't know if you could take it/ Know you wanna see me nakey, nakey, naked." The bop reached No. 2 on the Hot 100.

She spits bars in Kendrick Lamar 's "Loyalty" and "Lemon" with N.E.R.D. , the latter of which comes close to rivaling your favorite rappers' verses: "You can catch me, Rih, in the new La Ferrar'/ And the truck behind me got arms/ Yeah, longer than LeBron/ Just waitin' for my thumb like The Fonz."

No matter what genre Rihanna touches or what artist she links up with, she brings her full self to each session whilst completely immersing herself into the music — taking on different personas to make the collab well worth it.

An Artist Fully Realized

With 13 No. 1s and twice as many top 10 hits under her belt, Rihanna set out to create timeless music instead of chasing a radio-friendly formula with her 2016 magnum opus, ANTI .

But that shift began with 2015's criminally underrated "American Oxygen." Her most political statement at the time, the goosebump-inducing lyrics detail Rihanna's journey as an immigrant, foreshadowing her then soon-to-be massive Fenty Beauty success. "We sweat for a nickel and a dime/ Turn it into an empire," she sings in the chorus.

Released four years after Unapologetic — her longest gap between albums at the time — ANTI illustrated Rihanna's greater desire for quality over quantity. "I needed the music to match my growth," she told Vogue in 2016 about the making of ANTI . "I didn't want to get caught up with anything the world liked, anything the radio liked, anything that I liked, that I've already heard. I just wanted it to be me."

The black-and-white, red paint-splattered album cover signals a rebirth, featuring a real-life image of Rihanna as a child. ANTI lives up to its name in its first 40 seconds, via opening track "Consideration." The minute she declares, "I got to do things my own way, darling," it's apparent that ANTI is not your average Rihanna album.

Lead single "Work" is the closest to pre- ANTI Rihanna on an album that defies expectations. But the dancehall masterpiece is one of a kind for Rih's refusal to water down the Jamaican patois (different from her native language of Bajan Creole) — proving that she is fully aware of her impact as one of the biggest Caribbean-born artists to make it in the U.S.

Many non-understanding listeners described it as "gibberish" at the time. Yet, the general public didn't seem to mind: About a month after its release, "Work" became Rihanna's 14th and longest-running chart-topper on the Hot 100. Weeks later, ANTI became her second LP to top the Billboard 200 chart. Subsequently, Rihanna held the No. 1 spots on the Billboard 200 and Hot 100 simultaneously, her second time achieving such an impressive feat.

Read More: How Rihanna's "Work" Reinvigorated Dancehall

ANTI is full of pleasant surprises that show off her artistry. Rihanna comes out of left field with the Prince -inspired "Kiss It Better," the album's second single, which sees the superstar falling back on addictive sex that "feels like crack" to justify a destructive relationship. "Same Ol' Mistakes" is a cover of psychedelic rock band Tame Impala 's "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" — her first time remaking another artist's song for her own album since "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" on Music of the Sun . The Western-themed "Desperado" lends itself particularly well to covers by country artists, while the Dido -sampling "Never Ending" conveys the uncertainty she feels about entering a new relationship.

Elsewhere on ANTI , Rihanna drunk dials an ex ("Higher"), compares smoking weed to her lover ("James Joint"), and chastises a guy for getting emotionally attached after their fling ("Needed Me"). The latter song contains one of Rihanna's most empowering lyrics: "Didn't they tell you that I was a savage?/ F— ya white horse and ya carriage," she asserts in the pre-chorus.

Her voice sounds stronger than ever on "Love on the Brain," a doo-wop ballad resembling Etta James . But Rihanna makes it her own thanks to the bluntness of lines like "It beats me black and blue but it f— me so good."

The deep cuts on ANTI aren't merely fillers, and even rival some of the album's biggest hits. For instance, "Sex with Me" is featured on the deluxe edition as a bonus track, but managed to crack the Hot 100 at No. 83 and reach No. 8 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. Furthermore, the deluxe edition consists of 16 tracks, half of which topped the Dance Club Songs chart — smashing the record (previously held by Katy Perry 's Teenage Dream ) for the most No. 1s from a single album.

Accolades aside, ANTI is proof that magic happens when an artist of Rihanna's caliber follows their own instincts in pursuit of creating a body of work — one that can outlast them and continue to inspire generations to come.

Ever since ANTI , Rihanna's devoted fanbase has been begging for a new album, with Rih playfully trolling them with responses like "I lost it" and Instagram captions that read, "Me listening to R9 by myself and refusing to release it."

Her much-awaited return to music came at the tail end of 2022. The hitmaker twice contributed to the GRAMMY-nominated Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack: "Born Again" and "Lift Me Up," the latter of which helped Rihanna score her first Oscar and Golden Globe nominations in 2022 and 2023, respectively. With the glorious "Lift Me Up," she found herself in the top 10 for the first time since 2017's "Wild Thoughts."

While the world is still anticipating her ninth studio album, Rihanna — now a mom of two boys — continues to make her own rules and move at her own pace. But as she's proven time and time again, it's always worth the wait.

The Rihanna Essentials: 15 Singles To Celebrate The Singer's Endless Pop Reign

Credit: Paul Natkin/Getty Images

Celebrate 40 Years Of Def Jam With 15 Albums That Show Its Influence & Legacy

From the Beastie Boys' seminal 'License To Ill' and Jay-Z's 'Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life,' celebrate Def Jam with 15 of the label's essential albums.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Def Jam Recordings, the New York label that made history in hip-hop, R&B, pop, and even thrash metal since its founding, and continues to do so today.

A label that began out of an NYU dorm room in 1984 quickly became an artistic (and business) powerhouse. Early acts like LL Cool J , the Beastie Boys , and Public Enemy were raw, adventurous, and risk-taking. Def Jam's roster opened new pathways in a still-young genre, seemingly every few months. 

After that initial explosion, the label experienced a brief lull in the early 1990s when one label founder departed and the other expanded into fashion and comedy . Def Jam came roaring back beginning in 1994, and by 1998 the label was home to some of the most popular and influential artists in the game — including burgeoning megastars DMX and Jay-Z . To this day, Def Jam maintains a roster of both commercially successful and critically beloved artists in hip-hop, R&B, and pop.

To commemorate the anniversary of the label that gave us, well, pretty much everyone, here’s a list of 15 of Def Jam’s essential releases. While Def Jam brought audiences plenty of singles, EPs and remixes, this list primarily focuses on albums. Each project has a mix of artistic merit, popularity, influence and longevity, originality, and played a key role in the story of Def Jam as a whole. Think of it as a chronological run through the key albums that built one of the most lasting labels in modern music. 

And finally: it must be said that in recent years, a dark shadow has begun to loom over Def Jam’s legacy. Label co-founder Russell Simmons been accused over the past seven years of numerous instances of sexual assault, dating back decades. In spite of these accusations, the label (in which Simmons hasn’t been involved for a quarter-century) remains on top, safeguarding its valuable archive while looking forward to another four decade run as fruitful as the first one.

T La Rock & Jazzy Jay - "It’s Yours" (1984)

The one single on this list is also the first piece of music ever released with the now-famous Def Jam logo. "It’s Yours" was a single produced by Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin — his very first hip-hop production . Instrumentally, it was perhaps only comparable to Larry Smith and Def Jam co-founder Russell Simmons’ contemporaneous work with Run-D.M.C. Both "It’s Yours" and D.M.C.’s early work were severely stripped-down, consisting of a few drum sounds, an instrumental stab, and some scratches. 

Lyrically, though, "It’s Yours" is worlds apart from "Sucker M.C.’s" — or pretty much anything else going on in hip-hop at the time. T La Rock, the brother of Treacherous Three member Special K, came from a family of educators , and he put every ounce of his erudition into the track. It begins, "Commentating, illustrating/ Description giving, adjective expert" and goes from there.

LL Cool J - 'Radio' (1985)

In the early 1980s, the state of the hip-hop album was very grim. Only a few existed, and they almost exclusively consisted of a few singles mixed with often-confusing filler . Two things changed that. First, Run-D.M.C.’s 1984 self-titled debut, which GRAMMY.com examined in depth a few months ago . Second was LL Cool J’s debut album Radio , the very first full-length album Def Jam ever released.

In many ways, Radio kicked off hip-hop’s Golden Age. The record shows LL, then still in his teens, as a versatile artist who can be boastful, funny, aggressive, lyrical. The album shows many different sides of his personality, and helped set the template for what a rap album could be.

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Beastie Boys - 'Licensed to Ill ' (1986)

The Beasties would release more complex and enlightened albums than Licensed to Ill , and one of the members would eventually apologize for some of its lyrics . But there’s no denying that it was a smash hit. It was the first rap album to ever top the Billboard 200, got the group onstage with Madonna , and would eventually sell over 10 million copies . 

Was some of that success due to their race? Sure. They were a credible group, signed to a hot rap label, at a time when it was still novel for white people to be performers in hip-hop. And yet, that’s not the whole story.

Licensed to Ill is a catchy, unique, energetic album, and the group members show undeniable chemistry. To this day, shout-filled, guitar-heavy anthems like "No Sleep till Brooklyn" and the ubiquitous "Fight for Your Right" can still get the party started.

Read more: The Beastie Boys Provide A License To Party

Public Enemy - ' It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ' (1988)

There’s not too much you can say about this album that hasn’t already been said in the years of books , conferences , academic papers , and deluxe re-issues . It has ended up at or near the top of many all-time best lists. Its abrasive, collage-like approach to composition was never equalled (and, in light of current laws and practices around sampling, can never even be approached). The comic stylings of Flavor Flav bring just the right amount of levity to balance Chuck D ’s takes on life-and-death issues. 

Decades after its release, the album still sounds urgent. And sadly, in an America still roiled with tensions over race , incarceration , drugs , and the media , its concerns remain as relevant as ever.

Read more: 5 Things We Learned At "An Evening With Chuck D" At The GRAMMY Museum

Slick Rick - 'The Great Adventures of Slick Rick' (1988)

S lick Rick is the ultimate rap storyteller, and his debut album is the best example of his artistry. "I wrote them like an essay," Rick once said of creating the batch of songs that make up Great Adventures . He also compared it to doing stand-up. So you have exactly what those two reference points imply: stories that are well-constructed, and also frequently riotously funny.

Rick is the master of the telling detail (remember "Dave, the dope fiend shooting dope/ Who don’t know the meaning of water nor soap" from "Children’s Story"?), the humorous twist, the morality tale, the bedtime story, the character voice. His influence lives on in perhaps his most devoted protege , Ghostface Killah , as well as in any rapper who has tried to craft a song with a beginning, middle, and end.

Learn more: Essential Hip-Hop Releases From The 1980s: Slick Rick, RUN-D.M.C., De La Soul & More

Warren G - 'Regulate… G Funk Era'(1994)

A bit of an edge case here, as technically the record was put out by Violator Records and Rush Associated Labels, the latter of which was a sort of umbrella organization Def Jam ran in the mid-1990s. Many albums that could have made this list, including projects by Redman, Onyx, Domino, and Nice & Smooth, were released under the RAL banner. But Warren G ’s debut, a giant hit in an era where Def Jam really needed it, became inextricably associated with the label, to the point where an article about the album on Universal Music’s website mentions Def Jam five times in the first two paragraphs .

Regulate is a pop-savvy take on the G-funk sound that was then ascendant. It was a huge success in a year that saw the introduction of tons of amazing rappers into the game . And Warren G being associated with Def Jam meant that the East Coast-centric label had expanded its geographic footprint. 

Read more: Warren G Revisits 'Regulate: The G-Funk Era': How The 1994 Album Paved The Way For West Coast Hip-Hop's Dominance

Foxy Brown - ' Ill Na Na ' (1996)

Def Jam wasn’t always a friendly place for female artists (despite many of the most important employees being women, including one-time president Nana Ashhurst ). In fact, the label didn’t release a rap album by a woman until Nikki D’s Daddy’s Little Girl in 1991. So Foxy Brown ’s impact — on Def Jam and on the rap world as a whole — cannot be overstated. Ill Na Na was an album that changed everything for female rappers. It had songs for the clubs, the block, and the radio. Foxy’s sexuality, versatility, and first-class rhyming would have an influence on countless rappers, most famously her number one fan Nicki Minaj , who has been effusively praising Foxy for more than a decade .

Read more: Ladies First: 10 Essential Albums By Female Rappers

DMX - 'It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot' (1998)

No less an authority than Nas referred to 1998 as "The year DMX took over the world." It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot is how he did it. The album set fire to Bad Boy’s so-called "shiny suit era" by embodying its polar opposite: a dark, grimy vision full of gothic synths; raspy, full-throated lyrics; and, sometimes, actual barks. Without DMX, there’s no NYC street rap return: no G-Unit mixtape run, no Diplomats.

The record is consistent and captivating from start to finish, and its thematic centerpiece comes, appropriately, about halfway through with "Damien," which reminds all of us that the most difficult battles we fight are the ones with ourselves.

Jay-Z - 'Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life' (1998)

Jay-Z has made more critically beloved albums than Vol. 2 ( Reasonable Doubt and The Blueprint both fall in that category). He has made albums with bigger hits ( The Blueprint 3 had a No. 1 hit with "Empire State of Mind"). But he has never made a more important LP.

Vol. 2 was the album that made Jay a superstar. Its Annie -sampling title track (produced by the late 45 King) sent him to the stratosphere — a process he actually documented on his follow-up album . But the record wasn’t just a commercial novelty. It showed Jay at the absolute top of his game: cocky, funny, and brilliant. Case in point: his novel approach to storytelling in "Coming of Age (Da Sequel)," where all the important action takes place in just a few seconds, inside the characters’ heads.

Read more: Songbook: How Jay-Z Created The 'Blueprint' For Rap's Greatest Of All Time

Ludacris - 'Word of Mouf' (2001)

Around the turn of the millennium, Def Jam had its sights set on conquering new territory. Specifically, the South. So they set up Def Jam South and hired Scarface to head it up . The entity’s biggest success came from an Atlanta DJ who went by Chris Luva Luva on the air, but began rapping as Ludacris .

Word of Mouf was Luda’s second album, but it was the one that really cemented his stardom with songs like "Rollout (My Business)," "Area Codes," and the immortal "Move Bitch" (the last of which has had an artist-approved second life as a protest chant ). The album proved that the South was here to stay, and that Def Jam would have a role in determining its hip-hop future.

Learn more: A Guide To Southern Hip-Hop: Definitive Releases, Artists & Subgenres From The Dirty South

Scarface - 'The Fix' (2002)

Speaking of Scarface and Def Jam South, Face had no intention of dropping music while running the label. But, in his telling, Def Jam exec Lyor Cohen insisted on it, paying handsomely for the privilege.

"There were so many things working in my favor on that album," Scarface wrote in his memoir Diary of a Madman . "For the first time, I was working on an album for a label that believed in me 100 percent and didn’t want anything from me except for me to make the dopest album I could possibly make. And they went out of their way to make that possible."

Def Jam’s history of putting out classics inspired Face on The Fix , he writes in that book. And in the end, the album stands up there with any of them. It is one of only a small handful of rap records to earn a perfect five-mic rating from The Source , and it belongs in that rarified air with projects like Illmatic and Aquemini . 

Kanye West - 'The College Dropout' (2004)

Yes, today Kanye West is the worst: a Hitler-loving , Trump-supporting , paranoid , antichoice , antisemite who stands accused of sexual harrassment . But two decades ago, the world met a Mr. West who at least seemed very different. 

The College Dropout presented an artist who was already extremely well-known as a beatmaker. But Kanye’s carefully crafted persona as the bridge between mainstream rap and the underground — " First n— with a Benz and a backpack ," as he put it — meant that he appealed to pretty much everyone. The College Dropout wasn't West at the top of his rap game, but it did show his skill at developing song concepts, at beats, and at creating an artistic vision so powerful, and so relatable, that it captivated an entire generation.

Cam’ron - 'Purple Haze' (2004)

It’s impossible to talk about Def Jam without discussing Roc-A-Fella. Jay-Z’s label hooked up with Def Jam in 1997, and had a years-long hot streak with artists like Kanye, Beanie Sigel, Freeway, the Young Gunz, and of course Cam’ron’ s Diplomats crew — Cam, Juelz Santana, and the overall group all released projects there.

Purple Haze came at the very tail end of Roc-a-fella’s golden age. It has Cam at the absolute peak of his absurdist rhyming powers, keeping computers ‘puting and knocking out eight-syllable multis about Paris Hilton like it was nothing. During the Purple Haze era, it was Cam’s world, and we were all just lucky to be living in it.

Rihanna - 'Good Girl Gone Bad' (2007)

Rihanna ’s first two projects were full of Caribbean sounds and ballads. But when her third album came along, she needed a change. Riri wanted to go "uptempo," and history shows that was the right choice. Good Girl Gone Bad began the singer’s transformation into the megastar we know today. It spawned five singles and two separate quickie tie-in albums ( Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded and Good Girl Gone Bad: The Remixes ).

"Umbrella" was the way forward. Rihanna had a No. 1 record prior, but she’d never made a sensation like this. The song (with a guest verse by then-Def Jam president Jay-Z) not only made it to the top slot, it also won a GRAMMY and was undeniably the song of the summer . The album also contained the sensation "Don’t Stop the Music," a track that kickstarted the EDM/pop hybrid that dominated the late aughts . Without Good Girl Gone Bad , it’s safe to say we’d be living in a very different, Fenty -less world.

Read more: Songbook: The Ultimate Guide To Rihanna's Reign, From Her Record-Breaking Hits To Unforgettable Collabs

Frank Ocean - 'Channel Orange' (2012)

One could fill a whole blurb about Channel Orange simply by quoting the extreme praise it received. " A singular achievement in popular culture ." " Landed with the crash and curiousness of a meteor ." Two days after its release, Pitchfork was already saying that it " feels like a classic ."

And yet, somehow even that kind of acclaim doesn’t do the album justice. You really had to be there when it came out, when Frank looked into his soul and, in doing so, connected deeply with so many listeners

Read more: Frank Ocean Essentials: 10 Songs That Embody The Elusive Icon's R&B Genius

" Channel Orange is the most concentrated version of 2012 in 2012 so far," wrote Sasha Frere-Jones at the time, in one of the most dead-on statements about the album. It expressed the contradictions we all lived in. Its fragmentation mirrored the social media that was beginning to take over all of our lives. Ocean left bits of his biography scattered throughout the album, but they almost didn’t matter. He was speaking for all of us, in the way only great artists can. 

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Metro Boomin's Essential Songs: 10 Must-Know Tracks, From "Creepin" To "Like That"

The 2024 GRAMMY nominee for Producer Of The Year is one of hip-hop's most in-demand minds. Between his collab albums with Future and some highly debated beefs with rap's biggest stars, it's the perfect time to revisit the Metro-verse.

Metro Boomin has spent more than a decade redefining rap music. The gloomy, 808-induced trap beats that flood radio airwaves and blare from nightclub speakers are a symbol of his influence. But now, the Atlanta-based superproducer is on one of his biggest musical runs to date.   

In April, Metro released the second of two joint albums with Future , hinted at a third release this year, sold out a concert at the Kundalini Grand Pyramids in Egypt, and clinched the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 with " Like That " featuring Kendrick Lamar. He also delivered a first-of-its-kind instrumental diss aimed at Drake called " BBL Drizzy, " accusing the Toronto rapper of going under the knife.   

The diss was in response to Drake’s " Push Ups " and subsequent disses toward Kendrick Lamar. " Metro shut your hoe ass up and make some drums " he rapped. The verbal blow inspired Metro to release the hilarious instrumental, which he encouraged fans to rap on for a chance to win a free beat.   

Months before the feud, Metro celebrated two nominations for Best Rap Album and Producer of the Year, Non-Classical at the 66th GRAMMY Awards . While he didn’t take home a coveted golden gramophone, the momentum has elevated his career to new heights.   

Before the St. Louis-bred producer kicks off the We Trust You tour with Future on July 30, revisit 10 of Metro Boomin's biggest releases.   

"Karate Chop" (2013)  

A 19-year-old Metro crafted his first charting single right before making a life-changing move to Atlanta. With piercing synths and bubbly arpeggios, the song was the lead single for Future’s highly anticipated sophomore album, Honest .  

But Metro, a freshman at Morehouse College at the time, wasn’t sold on its success. " I never really like it, " Metro told XXL . " Then every time people would come into the studio, he would always play the record and I was like, ‘Why are you so stuck on this s—? We have way harder records.’ "    

But after cranking out a new mix on the original track, " Karate Chop " went on to become his first placement on a major label album. The remix with Lil Wayne further elevated the record and, by virtue, Metro’s profile as a musical craftsman.   

" Jumpman " (2015)  

  Metro mastered the late-summer anthem in 2015 with " Jumpman . " The song was the most notable hit from Drake and Future’s collaborative mixtape, What a Time to Be Alive, and went on to shut down bustling nightclubs and obscure strip joints. And while the record didn’t perform as well as other songs on this list, it secured Future his first Top 20 hit.   

The song — which features Metro’s signature bass and a screeching raven sound effect — also saw a streaming boost after an Apple Music commercial featuring Taylor Swift rapping to the song. According to Adweek , the campaign helped generate a 431 percent increase in global sales  

  What makes " Jumpman " even more special is that a collab between Future, Metro, and Drake may never happen again. Reportedly, the duo is at odds with Drake because the OVO artist decided to link with 21 Savage on Her Loss instead of doing a follow-up project with Future.   

"Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1" (2016)  

" Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1 " is the song that set Kanye West ’s album, Life of Pablo, ablaze. Opening with a clip of gospel musician and singer T.L. Barrett’s Father I Stretch My Hands,” Metro’s signature producer tag kicks the record into full gear. The pulsating synthesizers and bouncy percussion match West’s raunchy and sexually explicit lyrics.   

Metro’s production received significant praise, with several publications pointing to his contributions on end-of-year listings. And in the eight years since its release, " Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1 " has been certified six times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America , making it one of Ye’s most-sold records of all time.  

"Congratulations" (2016)  

After the success of "White Iverson," a young Post Malone was on the hunt for the hottest producers in the rap game. He managed to land Metro, who worked with fellow producers Frank Dukes and the prolific Louis Bell on the triumphant trap record "Congratulations."   

On a 2022 episode of the podcast " Full Send ," Metro revealed that the celebratory song was made after watching the world’s greatest athletes eclipse historic feats of their own. "I remember the Olympics was on TV, and just how the music was sounding, it sounded like some champion s—," he said.   

"Congratulations" marked Post Malone’s second Top 20 hit following his debut, "White Iverson." The song was certified diamond after totaling more than 11 million combined sales. Today, it remains one of Metro’s biggest achievements.

"Bad and Boujee " (2017)  

Fueled by virality and a shoutout from Donald Glover at the 2017 Golden Globes , the Migos and Lil Uzi Vert ’s "Bad and Boujee " landed Metro Boomin his first No. 1 Billboard hit as a producer.   

The song has every element Metro fans have grown to love: moody keys, hard-hitting bass, and plenty of room for the artists’ adlibs to pierce through the track.   

Two months before its eventual ascension, the song had a steep hill to climb atop the Billboard charts. But Metro’s production and the chemistry between Quavo , Offset , and Uzi helped the record shoot up to its rightful place. It continues to garner praise In the years since its 2016 release, too. It was ranked No. 451 on Rolling Stone ’s "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" list  

"Mask Off" (2017)  

When "Mask Off" dropped in 2017, it scorched the Billboard charts. Hip-hop was flirting with flutes (as heard on songs like Drake’s "Portland" and Kodak Black’s "Tunnel Vision" — another Metro-produced beat) — but "Mask Off" stands out as the biggest song of the short-lived era.   

Metro infused jazz-like undertones to perfectly meld the flute lick into the dark and mystic beat. The record led to the remix with Kendrick Lamar, with his verse breathing new life into the already-seismic hit. It’s now certified nine times platinum.   

Years after the song’s release, Future said "Mask Off" initially put radio programmers in disarray. In his East Atlanta rapper’s Apple Music documentary The WIZRD, he revealed that the song dropped before Carlton WIlliams’ "Prison Song" sample was officially cleared. "Out of all the songs, ‘Mask Off’ wasn’t even legit," he said. "The s— was on the radio, they’re thinking it’s not a sample, but it got so big they were like, ‘It’s a sample.’"  

"Heartless" (2019)  

The Weeknd 's "Heartless" is a pop and electro-clash classic that fires on all cylinders. The visuals are atmospheric, the lyrics are ultra-stimulating, and the production — partly handled by Metro — makes for a lasting club banger.   

The leading single for The Weeknd’s fourth studio album, After Hours, topped the Billboard charts. It marked the Toronto-born crooner’s fourth No. 1 hit and unveiled the depths of Metro’s musical arsenal.   

Metro produced four tracks on After Hours : "Faith," "Escape from L.A.," "Until I Bleed Out" and "Heartless." On the latter and in his other collaborations with The Weeknd , James Blake , and Solange , Metro’s creative sorcery was tested. He proved, once again, that he could generate a hit outside the confines of trap music.   

" Creepin ’ " ( 2022)

After a solid outing on his first album Not All Heroes Wear Capes , Metro returned with another series of hard-hitting records. His second solo venture, Heroes & Villains , featured John Legend , Don Tolliver , Travis Scott , and other premiere artists. But the biggest song to come out of the star-studded lineup was " Creepin ’" featuring 21 Savage and The Weeknd .   

The only single to Metro’s second solo album struck sonic gold. The Weeknd’s flowy vocals overlay the silky and harmonic record, which transitions to a more trap-induced beat once 21 Savage’s verse kicks in. The remake of Mario Winans’ "I Don’t Wanna Know" was a notable departure from Metro’s past singles, which heavily lean on his trap roots. But it still managed to connect with his audience – and even beyond it. " Creepin " peaked at No. 3 on Billboard, which was Metro’s highest-charting solo record up until that point.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (2023)  

Following the success of " Creepin ’" and his other smash singles, Metro extended his creative powers to the film world. He was given the green light to executive produce the soundtrack for Sony’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse .  

Metro Boomin told Indie Wire that he crafted songs from rough animations and selected scenes "just to get in the world and the story of Miles [Morales] and what he’s going through," He even exchanged phone calls and texts with the film’s composer Daniel Pemberton to ensure the soundtrack and score were on the same accord.   

From the classical serenade "Am I Dreaming" to the Latin swing of "Silk & Cologne" and the Timbaland -stomping "Nas Morales," the result was an equally transformative musical experience. Each record ranged in musicality and tone while beautifully complementing the vibrant animated superhero flick.

"Like That" (2024)  

"Like That" is easily one of the best beats in Metro’s catalog, and may end up being one of the most memorable. Samples from Rodney O & Joe Cooley’s "Everlasting Bass" and Eazy-E’s 1989 classic "Eazy-Duz-It" shaped the bouncy trap beat, sinister synths, and spine-chilling baseline. But Kendrick Lamar’s verse turned it into a heat-seeking missile.   

With the song’s thunderous bass and rapid hi-hats in the background, Kendrick dissed J. Cole and Drake for their recent claims of rap supremacy, particularly on 2023’s "First Person Shooter." The lyrical nuke sparked the Civil War-style rap feud, which led to a seven-song exchange between Kendrick and Drake.   

The initial musical blow made the genre stand still. It also led to the massive success of the record, which notched Future and Metro another No. 1 hit song. It also helped the pair’s album, We Don’t Trust You, claim the top spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart.   

Inside The Metro-Verse: How Metro Boomin Went From Behind-The-Scenes Mastermind To Rap's Most In-Demand Producer  

Photo: Theo Wargo/Getty Images for Coachella

10 Times Hip-Hop Has Given A Voice To Mental Health: Eminem, J. Cole, Logic & More Speak Out

From the message of "The Message" to Joe Budden's vulnerable podcast and Jay-Z speaking about the importance of therapy, read on for moments in the history of hip-hop where mental health was at the forefront.

In a world of braggadocio lyrics, where weakness is often looked down upon, hip-hop can often seem far from a safe place to discuss mental health. 

But underneath its rugged exterior, hip-hop culture and its artists have long been proponents of well-being and discussing the importance of taking care of one's mental health. Openness about these topics has grown in recent years, including a 2022 panel discussion around hip-hop and mental health , co-hosted by the GRAMMY Museum, the Recording Academy's Black Music Collective, and MusicCares in partnership with the Universal Hip-Hop Museum. 

"Artists are in a fight-or-flight mode when it comes to being in this game," said Eric Brooks, former VP of Marketing & Promotions at Priority Records who worked with NWA and Dr. Dre . "And there need to be strategies on how to deal with the inner battles that only happen in the mind and body."  

The panel only scratched the surface of the many times hip-hop culture has illuminated critical mental health issues that often remain hidden or under-discussed in the music industry. In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, read on for 10 times hip-hop has shone a light on mental health. 

J. Cole Apologized To Kendrick Lamar

A long-simmering beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar was reignited in March 2024 when Metro Boomin' and Future released " Like That ." The track featured a scathing verse from Kendrick, where he took aim at  Drake and J. Cole , and referenced the pair's collaborative song " First Person Shooter ." 

The single begged for a response, and J. Cole, under what was presumably a significant amount of pressure, surprise-released his Might Delete Later . The album featured "7 Minute Drill," in which Cole calls  Kendrick's  To Pimp, A Butterfly boring. 

But the same week Cole's album came out, he apologized  to Kendrick onstage at his Dreamville Fest, saying it didn't sit right with his spirit and that he "felt terrible" since it was released. Cole added that the song didn’t sit right with him spiritually and he was unable to sleep. Cole subsequently removed "7 Minute Drill" from streaming services. 

Strong debate followed about whether or not Cole should have removed the song. However, many heralded Cole’s maturity in the decision and said it was an important example of not doing things that don’t align with one's true emotions, and avoiding allowing others expectations of you weight down your own physical and mental health.

SiR Spoke Candidly About Depression & Sobriety

Although an R&B artist, TDE singer SiR is hip-hop adjacent, having collaborated with former labelmate Kendrick Lamar on tracks like "D'Evils" and " Hair Down ." SiR recently spoke with GRAMMY.com about the troubles that followed him after the release of his 2019 album Chasing Summer .

"I was a full-blown addict, and it started from a string of depression [and] relationship issues and issues at home that I wasn't dealing with," SiR says . After the Los Angeles-based singer had hit rock bottom, he found the spark he needed to do something about it. His initial rehab stint was the first step on the road to change.  

"I was there for 21 days [in 2021]. [The] second time, I was there for two months and the third time wasn't technically rehab…I did personal therapy, and, man, [that] did wonders," he recalls. 

SiR also tackled the stigma many Black communities place on therapy and seeking help for mental health issues. "I would've never done something like that if I was in any other position, so I'm thankful for my issues because they led me to a lot of self-reflection and forgiveness," SiR says.

Big Sean Educated His Audience About Anxiety & Depression 

One of the biggest challenges in addressing anxiety and depression is the feeling that those issues must be kept under wraps.  In 2021, Big Sean and his mother released a series of videos in conjunction with Mental Health Awareness Month, in which the GRAMMY nominee opened up about his battles with depression and anxiety. 

In one of those videos, Sean and his mother discussed  the importance of sleep and circadian rhythms when managing depression and mental health issues. In an industry that prioritizes the grind, the hip-hop community often overlooks sleep — much to its detriment.

"Sleep is the most overlooked, disrespected aspect of our well-being," said Myra Anderson, Executive Director & President of the Sean Anderson Foundation and Big Sean's mother. "Even one day without good sleep can mess up your hormones severely." 

As a busy recording artist, Sean concurs that, for him, a lack of sleep contributes to challenges with anxiety. “If I’m not in the right mindset, I don’t get the right sleep,” says Sean in the mental health video series. “Then that anxiety rides high, and my thoughts are racing. I’m somebody that lives in my head.”

G.Herbo's "PTSD" Addressed The Impact Of Street Violence

Eastside Chicago's G. Herbo is an artist vital to the city's drill music scene. On "PTSD," the title track of his 2020 album, Herbo raps about his struggles coping with violence and loss. 

"I can't sleep 'cause it's a war zone in my head / My killers good, they know I'm hands-on with the bread / A million dollars ahead, I'm still angry and seeing red / How the f*ck I'm 'posed to have fun? All my n— dead."  

The lyrics echoed the realities of what G. Herbo grew up seeing in O-Block, considered by many to be one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in Chicago . But it wasn't just a song title; G. Herbo was diagnosed with PTSD in 2019 and began therapy to manage it, showing that even rap's most hardened have opened themselves up to professional help. 

"I'm so glad that I did go to therapy," G. Herbo  told  GRAMMY.com in July 2020. "I'm glad that I did take that leap of faith to just go talk to somebody about my situation and just my thoughts and get 'em to a person with an unbiased opinion." 

Joe Budden Opens Up About His Darkest Times  

In 2017, on the "Grass Routes Podcast," rapper-turned-podcaster Joe Budden opened up about multiple suicide attempts and his lifelong battle with depression. 

"For me, there have been times where I've actually attempted suicide," Budden shared. "As open as I've been when it comes to mental health, it wasn't until retirement from rapping that I was able to dive into some of the things the fans have seen." 

Never one to shy away from rapping about his mental health struggles, Budden songs like " Whatever It Takes " peel back the layers on an artist fighting his demons: "See, I'm depressed lately, but nobody understands / That I'm depressed lately, I'm sorta feelin repressed lately." 

Budden continued to be a champion for mental health that year, including on his former Complex show "Everyday Struggle," where Budden  broke down  while discussing the suicide death of fellow rapper Styles P's daughter. 

In recent years, Budden has uses his wildly popular "The Joe Budden Podcast" as a tool to discuss his own struggles and raise awareness of mental health issues. 

Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five Broadcast A Serious "Message "

Hip-hop culture has long used rap as a tool to highlight mental health and the everyday struggles of its community. Released in 1982, Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five's "The Message" is an early, effective example of vulnerability in hip-hop.

"The Message" described the mental health impacts of poverty and inner-city struggle, describing desperate feelings and calling for support in underserved communities: "I can't take the smell, can't take the noise / Got no money to move out, I guess I got no choice." Perhaps the most recognizable lyric comes from Melle Mel, who raps, "Don't push me cause I'm close to the edge/I'm trying not to lose my head." 

Eminem Got Honest About Depression While In Rehab

On "Reaching Out," Queen and Paul Rodgers sing "Lately I've been hard to reach / I've been too long on my own / everybody has a private world where they can be alone." These lyrics were sampled on the intro to Eminem 's 2009 single "Beautiful," a raw tale of the rapper's struggles with depression. Half of the song was written while Eminem was in rehab, including lyrics like "I'm just so f—king depressed/I just can't seem to get out this slump." 

The lyrics pierced the core of Eminem's audience, who were able to see the parallels between the struggles of a rap superstar and their own issues. The song reached the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 and was nominated for a Best Rap Solo Performance GRAMMY Award. In an  interview  with MTV about the song, Eminem said it was an important outlet for him at a challenging time. 

But it was far from the first time Eminem has discussed mental health. One of the earliest examples was in his song " Stan, " where Eminem rapped from the perspective of an obsessed fan who ended up killing himself and his wife after Eminem failed to respond to his fan mail. In a 2000 interview , Eminem told MTV that he wrote the song to warn fans not to take his lyrics literally. 

Logic Sparked Change With A Number

One of the most impactful moments hip-hop has seen regarding mental health and sparking change was when Logic released his song "1-800-273-8255" in 2017. The record, named after the real National Suicide Lifeline Prevention phone number, which is now 988, hit the top three on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Following the song's release, the British Medical Journal released a  study  sharing data that showed the song contributed to a 27 percent increase in calls to the prevention hotline that year and may have even contributed to an actual reduction in deaths by suicide. 

Logic's single further proved that rap music's impact extends well beyond charts and sales. "1-800-273-8255" highlighted the connection artists have with their fans, as well as the ways music can be a tool to cope with challenges like mental health and suicidal thoughts. 

Kid Cudi Opened Up About Suicidal Urges  

Cleveland's own Kid Cudi has never shied away from putting his emotions on record, rapping vividly throughout his career about his struggles with mental health. Cudi records, like the hit single "Pursuit of Happiness," are brutally honest about trying to find happiness in a world filled with trials and tribulations. 

In a 2022  interview  with Esquire , Cudi recalled checking himself into rehab in 2016 for depression and suicidal urges. He had been using drugs to manage the weight of his stardom and even suffered a stroke while in rehab. "Everything was f—ed," Cudi said. 

Cudi took a break to develop stability, returning to the spotlight with the 2018 project Kids See Ghosts in collaboration with Kanye West.. Today, Cudi and his music remain pillars of strength for those facing similar challenges.   

Jay-Z Detailed The Importance Of Therapy & Getting Out Of "Survival Mode"

In 2017, Jay-Z released his critically acclaimed thirteenth studio album. 4:44 was packed with lessons on family, mental health, and personal growth.

An  interview  with the New York Times , Jay-Z discussed how helpful therapy had been to him. Therapy helped the rap superstar in his interactions with other people — something that had been hardened growing up as a black man in Marcy Projects. "I grew so much from the experience," he told the Times .

"I think the most important thing I got is that everything is connected. Every emotion is connected, and it comes from somewhere. I understand that, instead of reacting to that with anger, I can provide a softer landing and maybe, 'Aw, man, is you O.K.? You're in this space where you're hurting, and you think I see you, so you don't want me to look at you. And you don't want me to see you,'" he said. "You don't want me to see your pain."

The album also unpacked Jay-Z's infidelity. "I'll f— up a good thing if you let me," he raps on "Family Feud." In the same interview, Jay-Z shared that growing up in the hood put him into "survival mode," impacting his abilities to be a good partner and husband earlier in life. 

"You shut down all emotions. So even with women, you gonna shut down emotionally, so you can't connect," he reflected. "In my case, like it's, it's deep. And then all the things happen from there: infidelity." 

"I Made My ADHD Into My Strength": Understanding The Link Between Rap & Neurodivergence

Photo: L.E. Baskow/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

17 Love Songs That Have Won GRAMMYs: "I Will Always Love You," "Drunk In Love" & More

Over the GRAMMYs' 66-year history, artists from Frank Sinatra to Ed Sheeran have taken home golden gramophones for their heartfelt tunes. Take a look at some of the love songs that have won GRAMMYs.

Editor's Note: This is an update to a story from 2017.

Without heart-bursting, world-shifting love songs, music wouldn't be the same. There are countless classic and chart-topping hits dedicated to love, and several of them have won GRAMMYs.

We're not looking at tunes that merely deal with shades of love or dwell in heartbreak. We're talking out-and-out, no-holds-barred musical expressions of affection — the kind of love that leaves you wobbly at the knees.

No matter how you're celebrating Valentine's Day (or not), take a look at 18 odes to that feel-good, mushy-gushy love that have taken home golden gramophones over the years.

Frank Sinatra , "Strangers In The Night"

Record Of The Year / Best Vocal Performance, Male, 1967

Ol' Blue Eyes offers but a glimmer of hope for the single crowd on Valentine's Day, gently ruminating about exchanging glances with a stranger and sharing love before the night is through.

Willie Nelson , "Always On My Mind"

Best Country Vocal Performance, Male, 1983

In this cover, Nelson sings to the woman in his life, lamenting over those small things he should have said and done, but never took the time. Don't find yourself in the same position this Valentine's Day.

Lionel Richie , "Truly"

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male, 1983

"Truly" embodies true dedication to a loved one, and it's delivered with sincerity from the king of '80s romantic pop — who gave life to the timeless love-song classics "Endless Love," "Still" and "Three Times A Lady."

Roy Orbison , "Oh, Pretty Woman"

Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male, 1991

Orbison captures the essence of encountering a lovely woman for the first time, and offers helpful one-liners such as "No one could look as good as you" and "I couldn't help but see … you look as lovely as can be." Single men, take notes.

Whitney Houston , "I Will Always Love You"

Record Of The Year, Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, 1994

Houston passionately delivers a message of love, remembrance and forgiveness on her version of this song, which was written by country sweetheart Dolly Parton and first nominated for a GRAMMY in 1982.

Celine Dion , "My Heart Will Go On (Love Theme From Titanic)"  

Record Of The Year, Best Female Pop Vocal Performance, 1999

This omnipresent theme song from the 1997 film Titanic was propelled to the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 as the story of Jack and Rose (played by Leonardo DiCaprio and GRAMMY winner Kate Winslet) swept the country.

Shania Twain , "You're Still The One"

Best Female Country Vocal Performance, Best Country Song, 1999

Co-written with producer and then-husband Mutt Lange, Twain speaks of beating the odds with love and perseverance in lyrics such as, "I'm so glad we made it/Look how far we've come my baby," offering a fresh coat of optimism for couples of all ages.

Usher & Alicia Keys , "My Boo"

Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals, 2005

"There's always that one person that will always have your heart," sings Usher in this duet with Keys, taking the listener back to that special first love. The chemistry between the longtime friends makes this ode to “My Boo” even more heartfelt, and the love was still palpable even 20 years later when they performed it on the Super Bowl halftime show stage.

Bruno Mars , "Just The Way You Are"

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, 2011

Dating advice from Bruno Mars: If you think someone is beautiful, you should tell them every day. Whether or not it got Mars a date for Valentine's Day, it did get him a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100.

Cee Lo Green & Melanie Fiona , "Fool For You" 

Best Traditional R&B Performance, 2012

It's a far cry from his previous GRAMMY-winning song, "F*** You," but "Fool For You" had us yearning for "that deep, that burning/ That amazing unconditional, inseparable love."

Justin Timberlake , "Pusher Love Girl" 

Best R&B Song, 2014

Timberlake is so high on the love drug he's "on the ceiling, baby." Timberlake co-wrote the track with James Fauntleroy, Jerome Harmon and Timbaland, and it's featured on his 2013 album The 20/20 Experience , which flew high to No. 1 on the Billboard 200.

Beyoncé & Jay-Z , "Drunk In Love"

Best R&B Performance / Best R&B Song, 2015

While "Drunk In Love" wasn't the first love song that won Beyoncé and Jay-Z a GRAMMY — they won two GRAMMYs for "Crazy In Love" in 2004 — it is certainly the sexiest. This quintessential 2010s bop from one of music's most formidable couples captures why their alliance set the world's hearts aflame (and so did their steamy GRAMMYs performance of it).

Ed Sheeran , "Thinking Out Loud"

Song Of The Year / Best Pop Solo Performance, 2016

Along with his abundant talent, Sheeran's boy-next-door charm is what rocketed him to the top of the pop ranks. And with swooning lyrics and a waltzing melody, "Thinking Out Loud" is proof that he's a modern-day monarch of the love song.

Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper , "Shallow"

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance / Best Song Written For Visual Media, 2019

A Star is Born 's cachet has gone up and down with its various remakes, but the 2018 iteration was a smash hit. Not only is that thanks to moving performances from Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper, but particularly thanks to their impassioned, belt-along duet "Shallow."

H.E.R. & Daniel Caesar , "Best Part"

Best R&B Performance, 2019

"If life is a movie/ Know you're the best part." Who among us besotted hasn't felt their emotions so widescreen, so thunderous? Clearly, H.E.R. and Daniel Caesar have — and they poured that feeling into the GRAMMY-winning ballad "Best Part."

Kacey Musgraves , "Butterflies"

Best Country Solo Performance, 2019

As Musgraves' Album Of The Year-winning LP Golden Hour shows, the country-pop star can zoom in or out at will, capturing numberless truths about the human experience. With its starry-eyed lyrics and swirling production, "Butterflies" perfectly encapsulates the flutter in your stomach that love can often spark.

Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber , "10,000 Hours"

Best Country Duo/Group Performance, 2021

When country hook-meisters Dan + Shay teamed up with pop phenom Justin Bieber, their love song powers were unstoppable. With more than 1 billion Spotify streams alone, "10,000 Hours" has become far more than an ode to just their respective wives; it's an anthem for any lover.

Lovesick Or Sick Of Love: Listen To GRAMMY.com's Valentine's Day Playlist Featuring Taylor Swift, Doja Cat, Playboi Carti, Olivia Rodrigo, FKA Twigs & More

• 1 Songbook: The Ultimate Guide To Rihanna's Reign, From Her Record-Breaking Hits To Unforgettable Collabs
• 2 Celebrate 40 Years Of Def Jam With 15 Albums That Show Its Influence & Legacy
• 3 Metro Boomin's Essential Songs: 10 Must-Know Tracks, From "Creepin" To "Like That"
• 4 10 Times Hip-Hop Has Given A Voice To Mental Health: Eminem, J. Cole, Logic & More Speak Out
• 5 17 Love Songs That Have Won GRAMMYs: "I Will Always Love You," "Drunk In Love" & More

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The 200 Greatest Songs By 21st Century Women+

Rihanna is the 21st century's most influential musician.

Jenny Gathright

Rihanna performs on stage at the BRIT Awards in 2016. Photo Illustration: Ian Gavan/Getty Images and Angela Hsieh/NPR hide caption

Rihanna performs on stage at the BRIT Awards in 2016.

It's not enough to make list after list. The Turning the Tables project seeks to suggest alternatives to the traditional popular music canon, and to do more than that, too: to stimulate conversation about how hierarchies emerge and endure. This year, Turning the Tables considers how women and non-binary artists are shaping music in our moment, from the pop mainstream to the sinecures of jazz and contemporary classical music. Our list of the 200 Greatest Songs By Women + offers a soundtrack to a new century. This series of essays takes on another task.

Turning The Tables

Women Are The Fabric Of 21st Century Pop

The 25 arguments writers make in these pieces challenge the usual definitions of influence. Some rethink the building legacies of popular artists; others celebrate those who create within subcultures, their innovations rippling outward over time. As always, women forge new pathways in sound; today, they also make waves under the surface of culture by confronting, in their music, the increased fluidity of "woman" itself. What is a woman? It's a timeless question on the surface, but one deeply engaged with whatever historical moment in which it is asked. Our 25 Most Influential Women Musicians of the 21 st Century illuminate its complexities. –Ann Powers

The cover of Rihanna 's 2016 album ANTI , created by artist Roy Natchum and commissioned by Rihanna, features the singer as a young child with a crown that's fallen down over her head so that it covers her eyes. She holds a balloon and red paint drips down over her from the top corner of the canvas. Overlaying the entire painting is a poem rendered in Braille, written by the poet Chloe Mitchell in collaboration with Rihanna and Natchum.

"I sometimes fear that I am misunderstood," it starts. "It is simply because what I want to say, what I need to say, won't be heard. Heard in a way I so rightfully deserve. What I choose to say is of so much substance that people just won't understand the depth of my message..."

Rihanna at the album artwork reveal for ANTI in 2015. Christopher Polk/Getty Images for WESTBURY ROAD ENTERTAINMENT LLC hide caption

Rihanna at the album artwork reveal for ANTI in 2015.

What does it mean to think of Rihanna, global superstar, as unheard? Her music has soundtracked most of this century, and that kind of ubiquity is easily taken for granted, like air. She released a full-length studio album every single year between 2005 and 2012, save for a one-year break in 2008. Of the 61 Rihanna songs on the Billboard Hot 100, 14 of them were No. 1 hits, and 31 of them were top 10 hits. No album has landed as many No. 1 songs on Billboard 's Dance Club Songs chart as ANTI , the album Rihanna released in 2016 after an unprecedented (for her) hiatus.

For most of my life, there has been a Rihanna single — or multiple Rihanna singles, or multiple songs defined by a Rihanna hook — playing prominently on Top 40 radio. So it's not enough to say Rihanna is the air. Rihanna shaped the texture and taste of the air by consistently doing what pop, at its very best, is supposed to do: taking disparate genres — rock, EDM, dancehall, trap and even dubstep — and turning them into something that makes sense to us, to everyone. If she's not seen as taking musical risks, it's only because so many of them paid off.

Rihanna is the most important pop artist of the century because of these contributions to music — and her music is beloved. It's still worth asking, however, how we as an audience can adequately love Rihanna the person.

When Rihanna received the Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards, Drake introduced her. His speech is memorable for his cute, unsurprising and ultimately distracting faux-confession: "She's someone I've been in love with since I was 22 years old." Equally instructive, though, are the parts of Drake's speech that were about Rihanna and not Drake. He mentioned her achievements in music but ultimately asserted that what was "most impressive" was Rihanna the person.

"She succeeds by doing something that no one in this music industry does, which is being herself," Drake said. "We love the music, which can change styles from album to album, we love the videos, which change their artistic vision from year to year, but most of all, we love the woman, who hasn't changed since day one."

Rihanna was gracious in her acceptance speech. She spoke about how her success is never just about her — it's about Barbados, her family, her fans and "women, black women." She also went on to thank the directors who went along with her "crazy ideas" — her subtle way of asserting what Drake did not: that she is pop music's vanguard, and that the work itself is where her prowess lies. Drake's speech focuses on the product : It was the music that changed styles and the videos that changed artistic vision. The only thing Rihanna did, according to this syntactical choice, was remain the same.

Rihanna performs during the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. Michael Loccisano/Getty Images hide caption

Rihanna performs during the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards.

In her lead essay for the first iteration of Turning the Tables, a list of the 150 greatest albums by women in the pop era, Ann Powers notes that descriptions of greatness are often gendered: "Women are linked to the natural and the timeless, while men innovate and make history. Men build civilizations and create great works, while women animate spaces and connect people with their nurturing souls and alluring energy."

Those who claim to love Rihanna often say it's because of her soul, or her energy. Miranda July wrote about this phenomenon in her 2015 profile of the pop icon , where she describes how various people responded when she asked them about Rihanna: "A lesbian art history professor told me that she's 'the real deal.' Others used the words 'magic' and 'epic.' But when I tried to get anyone to pinpoint things she had said or done — particular interviews or incidents — everyone became lost in inarticulacy." When July told her Uber driver he was taking her to interview Rihanna, he responded, "You kidding? That's my girl," he said. "I love her. She's so down-to-earth."

But after meeting Rihanna, words fail July, too. Her final observation of the star is about her soul: "Souls don't really care about good or bad, right or wrong — they're just true. Everlasting. It makes you sound dumb to talk about this stuff, which is why no one could tell me exactly what it was about Rihanna. But millions of fans don't seem to need it explained to them. A soul just knows a soul."

"My understanding, from the moment she sat down, was that we were in love," July continues. It is a bold presumption of emotional access.

In a 2012 profile for GQ , Jay Bulger says Rihanna comes across as more authentic than her peers: "She sometimes gets grouped with theatrical pop stars like Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, and Nicki Minaj. But those are one-woman masquerade balls, their real selves hidden behind the next costume change. Rihanna, on the other hand, comes off as wild, weird, unfiltered, a little unhinged, which just makes everyone else go all unhinged."

The scholar Esther L. Jones has argued that as Rihanna established more and more narrative authority over her public image, she began to author a woman "simultaneously ordinary and exceptional, intimate and distant, known and inaccessible." Her social media feeds exemplify this: She promotes her wildly successful global fashion brands, but she also loves to post memes . For MTV News, Doreen St. Felix wrote that "a cultivation of lifestyle — her trips back home to Barbados, her tattoos, her laughter, her love of family, her social media presence — in the moment that every other person of her caliber is trying out reclusivity, and the secondary group is trying out diva-hood, makes Rihanna the last rock star."

It matters that Rihanna comes across as genuine, that her sense of self appears unshaken by celebrity , that she feels accessible to her fans. But this, as Jones and St. Felix are getting at, is not a persona that occurs without effort. Rihanna has been performing what it means to be in the thick of things — not above them, not outside looking in, not past them — for her whole career. That takes emotional and intellectual work, especially when you consider — as Jones does in her essay "'What's My Name?': Reading Rihanna's Autobiographical Acts" — that the public-private distinction Rihanna had spent years cultivating was shattered in 2009, when Rihanna's then-boyfriend Chris Brown physically assaulted her just ahead of the Grammys and the photo evidence spread across the Internet.

To really love Rihanna, one must respect that what we so often find lovable about her — her so-called relatability, the way she's able to de-emphasize the significant social and artistic distance between herself and her fans — is also her work.

"We Found Love," released two-and-a-half years after Chris Brown attacked Rihanna, is classic dance pop with an edge. It's meant to sound like joy, but the lyrics are vague enough to account for a whole range of human feeling. In the video, Rihanna chooses darkness. It's about two people who are not good for each other. There are fights that look unhealthy. There are plenty of drugs. It starts with an opening monologue about a relationship gone wrong. "When it's over, and it's gone," the English actress Agyness Deyn reads, "you almost wish that you could have all that bad stuff back so that you could have the good."

In a New Yorker profile, director Melina Matsoukas says it was completely unintentional that Rihanna's on-screen partner in the video looked eerily like Chris Brown — lightskinned, blonde. But she says the plot took inspiration from "[her] terrible love life and obviously [Rihanna's] terrible love life and every woman's terrible love life."

Matsoukas also told The New Yorker 's Alexis Okeowo that Rihanna was on board: "She was open to taking it there ... and with being honest and showing what life really is."

Rihanna had been taking it there for a while. "Russian Roulette," the lead single from her 2009 album Rated R , is about love with life or death stakes, with a video whose imagery comes a bit too close for comfort to police reports from Chris Brown's physical assault of her. Brown's assault of Rihanna took place in a car. A speeding car appears in the video multiple times; at once point, it hurtles towards a standing Rihanna.

When asked about the demand that she be a role model, Rihanna told Vogue : "That title was put on me when I was just finding my way, making mistakes in front of the world. I didn't think it was fair." The videos for "We Found Love" and "Russian Roulette" are not about looking back on hard moments that you've gotten over. They're about being in the messy present. It's not clear that this is what people are talking about when they call Rihanna "down-to-earth," but this too is evidence of the work of being real — dealing with patriarchy and racism and making art through it.

In the video for "S&M," which Matsoukas also directed, Rihanna wears a dress made of newsprint. She's immobile, bound up in plastic wrap as her body's literally covered in media commentary. "Rihanna's 'enjoyment' of the public flagellation with words and accusations is her attempt to speak back to the larger forces of dominance and power, forces that uphold Chris Brown's assault on her by prolonging it for their own entertainment and profit," writes scholar Donna Aza Weir-Soley in the paper "From 'F Love' to 'He Is the One'?: Rihanna, Chris Brown and the Danger of Traumatic Bonding."

As for Rihanna, she told Spin about the song: "I don't think of it in a sexual way, I'm thinking metaphorically ... People are going to talk about you, you can't stop that. You just have to be that strong person and know who you are so that stuff just bounces off."

On the album Unapologetic , which came out as rumors of Rihanna and Chris Brown's romantic reunion swirled ( they were later confirmed ), critic Jessica Hopper wrote for Pitchfork: "She's quite a distance from the tidy narrative we'd like, the one where she's learned from her pain and is back to doing diva triumph club stomp in the shadow of Beyoncé. Unapologetic rubs our faces in the inconvenient messy truth of Rihanna's life which, even if it were done well, would be hard to celebrate as a success."

But Unapologetic was also home to " Pour It Up ," the song and video in which Rihanna plays both the dancer and the client in a strip club. It's a meditation on financial independence and an assertion of control.

Rihanna's realness is not just about her carefree Instagram posts, or her habit of taking wine to-go . Her realness is popular art that cuts to the hard questions. She stretched the boundaries of genre, of course, but she also demanded that her vast audience grapple with the complexity of her inner life — both when it was empowering and when it was difficult. The worry that often accompanies this kind of bravery is that it won't be legible to your audience — or that you'll be misunderstood.

Last year, Jamila Woods , another artist who thinks a lot about authorial control, told me she was thinking about something Sonia Sanchez said: "I shall become, I shall become a collector of me. And put meat on my soul."

When your ears are always burning, I imagine it must be important to write against the stories you believe others are telling about you. "Sometimes a person looks at me and sees dollars. They see numbers and they see a product," Rihanna told GQ in that same 2012 profile. "I look at me and see art. If I didn't like what I was doing, then I would say I was committing slavery."

My favorite Rihanna moment is the line in "B**** Better Have My Money" where she sings, "Turn up to Rihanna while the whole club f****** wasted." It's an acknowledgement that she has the privilege of living in the sonic landscape she created herself — that she is a collector of herself. That line is delivered in the archetypical "Rihanna voice," which is, as Jayson Greene argued for Pitchfork , the most influential vocal of the past decade in pop.

"Umbrella" was the song that showed me all that a single note, sung on "eh," could contain. Rihanna sings the word "uuhm-buh-rella" like she invented it: unafraid of emphasis, letting each part of the word travel into the next. Her voice is so engaging that on "Live Your Life," which came out a year later in 2008, when she sings "live your life" all on the same D, then hovers around the neighborhood of that D for the majority of the hook, it doesn't feel dumb or boring at all.

Greene wrote of the title lyric in "What's My Name": "Who knows how many dozens of times Rihanna practiced that vocal take until she had distilled all of those competing emotions — pleading and playful, weary and sensual, even a little mocking — into three goddamn syllables, looping perfectly."

Rihanna's 'Birthday Cake': Reasons To Listen

I love Rihanna's voice mostly because I have always heard within it the feeling of mustering, an acknowledgement that being comfortable in our skin is possible with intention and effort. Apparently, she wears a chain with the word "Savage" on her neck, or at least she did for that Vogue interview. "Savage is really about taking complete ownership of how you feel and the choices you make," she says. "Basically making sure everybody knows the ball is in your court."

ANTI is this hard-fought confidence embodied. There's confidence, of course, in the lyrics (see: "Sex With Me" and "Needed Me"). But there's also confidence in the delivery: Rihanna stretches her voice to its breaking point on songs like "Higher" and "Love on the Brain," letting it crack in ways we haven't heard before, or linger in falsetto for longer than we're used to. In moments like this, when she takes the vocal template she designed to uncharted places, Rihanna becomes, according to Greene, "both the vandal and the monument."

The question I asked was about whether Rihanna's audience has ever adequately loved her — whether we've given her the kind of love that respects both what she's created and all the labor that went into creating it. But the answer Rihanna gives, through ANTI , is that Rihanna probably doesn't care about the question to begin with.

Rihanna Launches College Scholarships For Foreign Students

In a promotional video for ANTI , Rihanna is given a crown from a child who we can only assume is that same child on the album cover, a young Rihanna. The whole video leads up to this moment, when Rihanna takes the crown and places it on her head. The moment is a lesson: You can wait — wait for ANTI to get the Grammy it deserved, wait for the world to give the genius of your work its due — or you can crown yourself.

Rihanna Biography

Birthday: February 20 , 1988 ( Pisces )

Born In: Saint Michael, Barbados

Robyn Rihanna Fenty popularly known as Rihanna is a Barbadian singer-songwriter who gave us hits like ‘Pon de Replay’, ‘SOS’, ‘Umbrella’, and ‘Take a Bow’. A very successful artist still in the prime of her youth, she has already sold over 41 million albums and 150 million songs worldwide, becoming one of the best-selling artists of all time. Born in Barbados, she grew up listening to reggae music and began singing when she was quite young. Disturbed by her chaotic family life and the constant arguments between her parents, she immersed herself in music and before long realized that she wanted to be a professional singer. She formed a musical group while still in high school and got an opportunity to an audition with music producer Evan Rodgers who was highly impressed by the teenager’s talents. He asked the girl to move to New York in order to pursue a full-time career as a singer which she gladly did. Her debut album was soon released and Rihanna became a musical sensation before long. Her peppy, foot-tapping songs became the hot favorites of the youngsters motivating her to venture into films as well. Pretty, young and highly talented, she is today regarded as a teen idol and a fashion icon. Rihanna also puts her fame to good use and is actively involved with several charitable causes

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Nick Name: Rihanna, RiRi, Caribbean Queen, The Barbados Babe

Also Known As: Robyn Rihanna Fenty

Age: 36 Years , 36 Year Old Females

Spouse/Ex-: Chris Brown

father: Ronald Fenty

mother: Monica Braithwaite

siblings: Jamie Fenty, Kandy Fenty, Rajad Fenty, Rorrey Fenty, Samantha Fenty

Born Country: Barbados

Pop Singers Hip Hop Singers

Height: 5'8" (173 cm ), 5'8" Females

You wanted to know

What are some of rihanna's popular hit songs.

Rihanna has many hit songs, including "Umbrella," "Work," "Diamonds," "We Found Love," and "Love on the Brain."

What is Rihanna's makeup brand called?

Has rihanna won any acting awards, what is rihanna's clothing line called, where is rihanna originally from.

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Rihanna is not only a successful singer, but also a savvy businesswoman with her own makeup line, Fenty Beauty, which gained widespread acclaim for its inclusive range of shades.

She is known for her philanthropic efforts, including founding the Clara Lionel Foundation, which supports education and emergency response programs around the world.

See the events in life of Rihanna in Chronological Order

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Rihanna Height, Weight, Age, Boyfriend, Husband, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About Rihanna

• Does Rihanna Smoke? Yes
• Does Rihanna drink alcohol? Yes
• Music producer Evan Rogers spotted Rihanna for the first time when he was in Barbados on a holiday with his wife.
• Rihanna took over control for creating her third album Good Girl Gone Bad and was not ready to compromise on the creative process.
• Rihanna has to her name, five  Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified platinum albums.
• She won a Grammy for her album Unapologetic and her album ANTI, hit the Billboard 200 at the top position even when the album was not released properly.
• Rihanna has multiple singles and collaborations that have been the best-selling singles  of all time.
• She’s sold more than 200 million copies worldwide which makes her one of the best selling artists.
• She would’ve liked to study Psychology in case she wasn’t a singer, although her favorite subjects were mathematics and chemistry.
• Rihanna is the youngest artist who won fourteen number one Billboard Hot 100 Chart-ratings and that too in the shortest span of of career of all.
• Rihanna has eight Grammys and eight American Music Awards to her name, along with 2 BRIT Awards and the inaugural Icon  Award at the American Music Awards 2013.
• She has been awarded with a  Lifetime Achievement Award  by the  Council of Fashion Designers of America in 2014.
• She has seen a lot of drug and emotional abuse in her childhood. Her father was addicted to cocaine, crack and alcohol and her parents had rough marriage; which could be the reason for tumor-strong headaches as she ceased to experience them as her parents divorced when she was fourteen.
• Rihanna has a turtle and two dogs Marley and DJ.
• Rihanna was classmates with  Carlos Brathwaite and  Darren Sammy .
• The England and West Indies cricketers, Chris Jordan and Kraigg Brathwaite (respectively) were her classmates in school.
• Rihanna was admitted in a sub-military program, where she was a army cadet, commanded by  the singer-songwriter Shontelle. 
• Rihanna won a talent show and a beauty pageant contest at her school.
• Rihanna stayed on the charts till the end of the year ad with her 8th single hitting it too, she was called “Diva of the Year” for her power and presence on the charts.
• For some reason, after Rihanna dropped the label Def Jam and joined Roc Nation , her album ANTI did not include her initial three releases – “Bitch Betta Have Money”, “American Oxygen” and “Four Five Seconds”. However, ANTI became her second album to rank number one on Billboards 200.
• She still keeps in touch with her Bajan friends.
• Rihanna is official ambassador for Barbados’ tourism agency.
• Rihanna had signed a $25 million with Samsung in October 2015, where she agreed to sell the Samsung Galaxy range and Samsung would support release her album ANTI and its World Tour.
• Rihanna’s voice type is mezzo-soprano and her vocal range is three scales and two notes.
• Rihanna took vocal-lessons from Ne-Yo while she was recording  Good Girl Gone Bad.  She had never had any vocal training before this.
• She would sing Whitney Houston’s songs, brushing her hair, so much that her neighbors started calling her ‘Robyn Redbreast’.
• New York Times  named her cookie-cutter teen queen because of her ability to change styles frequently. She said her inspiration for fashion comes from her mother.
• She broke a Guinness World Record by selling 58 million copies of a single in 2012.
• Rihanna co-owns the music streaming  business  Tidal with several other artists.
• Rihanna’s and all her siblings’ names start with the letter ‘R’.
• She used to sell clothes on a stall with her father.
• She was rumored to be dating Jay-Z when he was dating Beyonce already. The rumors were false but helped Rihanna get some attention.
• Rihanna asked her fans  not  to bring umbrellas to her concerts, so that they dont hurt each other while doing her steps.
• Barbados has actually made Rihanna’s birthday a national holiday! Her way of saying thank you was doing a free concert for her fans.
• Her mother would return every gift she would get for her after checking the prices and finding them too expensive. Now it’d be hard to return a five-bedroom house! Which she could not.
• Her line of fragrances are named as ‘Nude’ and ‘Rebelle’!
• She always chug a short or too of dark liquor before her shows.
• Rihanna and Katy Perry are good friends and she threw her a Bachelorette Party  in Las Vegas.
• She has 19 tattoos and still counting. No wonder she likes hanging out in the tattoo shops.
• Rihanna has several wax models around the world and her legs are insured at $1 million.

Rihanna adorned a striking pink look complemented by Indian jewelry at the event in Jamnagar, Gujarat, India

References/Sources: [ + ]

Rihanna (I)

• Music Artist

IMDbPro Starmeter See rank

• Contact info
• 96 wins & 327 nominations total

• Petty Officer Cora 'Weps' Raikes

• Gratuity 'Tip' Tucci (voice)

• Smurfette (voice)
• Pre-production

• Marion Crane

• Composer (as Robyn Fenty)
• Composer (music by)

• In-development projects at IMDbPro

Personal details

• Apple Music
• Robyn Rihanna Fenty
• 5′ 8″ (1.73 m)
• February 20 , 1988
• Bridgetown, St. Michael, Barbados
• Children RZA Athelston Mayers
• Parents Monica Braithwaite
• Relatives Reginald Leslie Forde (Grandparent)
• Other works CD: "A Girl Like Me" (Def Jam)
• 3 Interviews
• 48 Articles
• 21 Pictorials
• 665 Magazine Cover Photos

Did you know

• Trivia In the United Kingdom, she became the only female; and the only artist in 52 years to have three top ten songs at once on the "UK Official Chart". She also became the first female artist; in the history of the chart, to have a number one in five consecutive years.
• Quotes I love the high-risk (guys). I don't like cream puff, corny guys. Usually, they are the nice guys, the ones that won't hurt you. They will pull out the chair for you and the whole nine yards. Everything is perfect and boring. I like the risk, I like the edge. That's the thrill for me.
• Trademarks Leather outfits and revealing outfits
• The Caribbean Queen
• The Barbados Babe
• The Bajan Beauty
• The Princess of Pop
• The Princess of R&B
• How old is Rihanna?
• When was Rihanna born?
• Where was Rihanna born?

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Rihanna - Biography

The barbadian singer is one of the biggest-selling female artists in history..

Who is Rihanna?

Robyn Rihanna Fenty, better known by her stage name Rihanna , was born in Barbados in 1988. Her childhood was deeply affected by her parents' marital problems and her dad's battle with drug and alcohol addictions, which eventually led to their divorce when she was 14. 

After his recovery, father and daughter grew close again and Rihanna still refers to him as the "coolest person on the planet". As a teenager Rihanna turned to music to escape her home troubles and formed a musical trio with two of her classmates. 

Rihanna's rise to fame

Her big break came in 2003 when friends introduced her and fellow bandmates to record producer Evan Rogers, who was on holiday in Barnados with his wife. When the group auditioned for Evan, he later told Entertainment Weekly that "the minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist." 

Over the course of the next year, Rihanna travelled to Rogers' home in Connecticut to work on her demo album. With the help of songwriter Carl Sturken she made a four-song demo that included "Pon de Replay" which would become her first hit single. Rihanna officially relocated when she was 16.

 "When I left Barbados, I didn't look back," she said. "I wanted to do what I had to do, even if it meant moving to America." Soon after, her demo fell into the hands of recording company Def Jam. She auditioned for them and legendary rapper Jay-Z, who was so impressed he signed her almost immediately. "We made a little Godfather joke," recalls Jay-Z. "We said the only way she could leave was through the window."

Eight months later Rihanna released her debut album, Music of the Sun , which went platinum despite less-than-rave reviews from Rolling Stone magazine who deemed it "lacking of ingenuity and rhythm." Her follow-up album, A Girl Like Me , fared better with critics in 2006 and included the hit SOS . Rihanna went through a total transformation from teen pop singer to ultimate superstar with her third album Good Girl Gone Bad . It featured hit single Umbrella that won her her first Grammy Award. She flaunted her sex symbol status in her next four albums, with songs entitled "Hard", "Rude Boy", "S&M" and the like, and frequently topped Sexiest Women Alive lists for her raunchy stage performances and music videos. 

Which awards has Rihanna won? 

Rihanna has been labelled one of the most consistent hit makers in pop music for her chart-topping seven albums and collaborations with legends Jay-Z, Enimen, Kanye West and Calvin Harris. She has won countless awards including Grammys, Brits, MTV awards and World Music Awards among others. 

Rihanna's dating life

Her love life has been somewhat less plain sailing than her music career. Rihanna started dating Chris Brown late 2007 and the couple remained intensely private about their relationship. But just after midnight on February 8, a 911 call was made after a pre-Grammy party that the pair had attended. When the police arrived on the scene, Rihanna was found distressed and hurt. 

It was reported that she had found texts from another girl on his phone and after repeatedly pressing him on the subject, an argument sparked which left Rihanna assaulted, even losing consciousness at one point. After the incident, Rihanna admitted feeling vulnerable. "I put my guard up so hard," she said. "I didn't want people to see me cry or feel bad for me. It was a very vulnerable time in my life, and I refused to let that be the image." 

How many children does she have?

The 'Umbrella' singer, 35, and partner A$AP Rocky welcomed their first child  — a boy whose name remains a mystery — in May 2022, and are awaiting the second soon. 

The award-winning singer confirmed her second pregnancy to the world in 2023 via an internet-breaking performance at the Super Bowl Halftime Show.

Rihanna's charity work

She is eager to put her fame and fortune to good use, and is involved in many charity ventures. She created The Believe Foundation in 2006 to help terminally ill children, joined H&M for their Fashion Against AIDS campaign, and was the face of the Gucci UNICEF campaign.

Discover more about Rihanna here . 

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Rihanna, a national hero in Barbados, and a superstar worldwide

Topic: Music (Arts and Entertainment)

Rihanna has been named a national hero in Barbados. ( Reuters: Mario Anzuoni )

When pop star Rihanna was declared a national hero in Barbados, the country that bears her roots, the crowd in her hometown of Bridgetown cheered.

Key points:

• Robyn Rihanna Fenty, known professionally as Rihanna, has been declared a national hero in Barbados
• Rihanna was born and raised on the Caribbean Island, but is an international superstar
• The singer and entrepreneur accepted the honour at a ceremony held to mark the birth of the new republic

Rihanna too was very much grateful for the honour.

"Nothing, nothing compares to being recognised in the soil that you grew in," the 33-year-old said.

Born Robyn Rihanna Fenty, the singer was conferred the honour by Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley.

"May you continue to shine like a diamond and bring honour to your nation by your words, by your actions, and to do credit wherever you shall go," the PM said referencing her hit song Diamonds.

"God bless you, my dear."

The Caribbean Island has made the historic move to become a republic , removing Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state, and inaugurating President Sandra Mason in that role.

The singer was honoured at the Presidential Ceremony marking the birth of the new Barbados republic. ( Reuters: Jonathan Brady  )

But the "new Queen" of Barbados is arguably Rihanna, who expressed surprise when crowned a national hero.

"This is a day that I will never, ever forget. It's also a day that I never saw coming."

The singer said the people of Barbados are the true heroes, and she takes pride in calling Barbados home.

"I'm going to be a Bajan till the day I die, and this is still the only place I've ever called home. I love Barbados.

"I love you guys and I pray that the youth continue to push Barbados forward."

Rihanna, the global superstar

Rihanna became a worldwide star when her distinctive voice hit airwaves across the world, after she was signed to rapper Jay-Z's record label.

Pon de Replay was the song that propelled her into international stardom in 2005.

She won a Grammy a couple of years later for the single Umbrella featuring Jay-Z, with her 2007 album Good Girl Gone Bad selling several million copies worldwide. She's since won multiple Grammys.

Rihanna is also an entrepreneur. Her Beauty line Fenty has been described by Essence magazine as "a love song to women of colour", in the way it's inclusive of shades that "all women of colour can find themselves in."

Rihanna said she "wanted everyone to feel included" when she launched her beauty line. ( Reuters: Simon Dawson )

Forbes announced her billionaire status earlier this year, saying she's "the wealthiest female musician in the world".

Her album Rated R contained lyrics that touched on revenge, and was released after fellow star Chris Brown was convicted of a 2009 assault against her when the two were dating.

Rihanna has always repped Barbados

Rihanna was born in St Michael parish, Barbados to a Barbadian father and a Guyanese mother in February 1988.

She grew up in Barbados, and won a high school talent show there with a rendition of Hero by Mariah Carey.

A fan of reggae, hip hop and R'n'B, Rihanna was in a girl group, before attracting the attention of an American record producer, who helped shop her demo to Jay-Z.

She's now a bonafide superstar, a billionaire, and a National Hero.

Rihanna carried herself like Royalty at the Met Gala.  ( Larry Busacca/Getty Images/AFP )

Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the United States at the age of 17 to pursue a recording career under the guidance of record producer Evan Rogers. She subsequently signed a contract with Def Jam Recordings. [1]

• 1.1 1988-2004: Early life and career
• 1.2 2005–2006: Music of the Sun and A Girl Like Me
• 1.3 2007–2008: Good Girl Gone Bad
• 1.4 2009–2011: Domestic violence case, Rated R , and Loud
• 1.5 2011–2013: Talk That Talk and Unapologetic
• 1.6 2014–2017: Standalone releases, Home soundtrack and Anti
• 1.7 2018–present: Hiatus, and Super Bowl LVII halftime show
• 2 Musical artistry and influences
• 3 Public image
• 4 Other ventures
• 5 Philanthropy
• 6 Discography
• 7 Filmography
• 9 Awards and nominations
• 12 References

Biography [ ]

1988-2004: Early life and career [ ]

Robyn Rihanna Fenty was born on February 20, 1988, in Saint Michael, Barbados to Monica Braithwaite, and Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor for a garment factory. Her mother, a native of Guyana, is Afro-Guyanese, and her father is of Barbadian and Irish descent. She also has two half-sisters and a half-brother from her father's side, each born by different mothers before Rihanna's father married her mother. Rihanna grew up listening to reggae music, and began singing at around the age of seven. Her childhood was deeply affected by her father's addiction to crack cocaine, alcohol, and marijuana, and her parents' turbulent marriage ended when she was 14. She grew up in a three-bedroom bungalow in Bridgetown and sold clothes with her father on a street stall. She attended Charles F. Broome Memorial Primary School and then the Combermere High School, where she formed a musical trio with two of her classmates. Rihanna was an army cadet in a sub-military programme that trained with the military of Barbados and fellow Barbadian and singer-songwriter Shontelle was her drill sergeant. Although she initially wanted to graduate from high school, she chose to pursue her musical career instead.

Before signing to Def Jam Recordings , Rihanna was discovered in her home country by American record producer Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers. The two met in December 2003 through mutual friends of Rihanna's and Rogers' wife, while the couple was on vacation in Barbados, because of how Rihanna's friend had told Rogers' wife how the aspiring singer was always singing and performing. After meeting for the first time, Rogers' asked Rihanna to come to his hotel room, where she performed renditions of Destiny's Child "Emotion" and Mariah Carey's "Hero". Rihanna's renditions impressed Rogers, who then took her to New York, where she was accompanied by her mother, Monica, to record some demo tapes which could be sent to record labels. Production of the demo tapes took about a year, due to Rihanna only being able to record during school holidays. At the age of 16, Rihanna was signed to Rogers' and Carl Sturken'ss production company, Syndicated Rhythm Productions, who assigned her a lawyer and manager, before the completed demo tape was distributed to various record labels around the world in late 2004. The first to respond to the demo tape was Jay-Z, who had recently been appointed as president and CEO of Def Jam Recordings. Rihanna auditioned for him and music mogul L.A. Reid, in his office. Looking back on the audition and meeting Jay-Z, Rihanna explained in an interview how she felt before walking into the room, saying:

" That's when I really got nervous... I was like: 'Oh God, he's right there, I can't look, I can't look, I can't look!' I remember being extremely quiet. I was very shy. I was cold the entire time. I had butterflies. I'm sitting across from Jay-Z. Like, Jay-Zee. I was star-struck. "

During the audition, Rihanna performed Whitney Houston's cover of "For the Love of You", as well as her first single "Pon de Replay" and "The Last Time", which were written and produced by Rogers and Sturken and would be included on her debut album Music of the Sun . Jay-Z was initially skeptical about signing Rihanna after he felt "Pon de Replay" was too big for her, saying "when a song is that big, it's hard [for a new artist] to come back from. I don't sign songs, I sign artists". The audition resulted in Rihanna signing a six-album record deal with Def Jam Recordings in February 2005, on the same day of the audition, with Jay-Z saying "There's only two ways out. Out the door after you sign this deal. Or through this window meaning that he was not going to let her leave with signing a record deal. After signing to Def Jam Recordings, Rihanna cancelled other meetings with record labels and relocated from Barbados to New York to live with Rogers' and his wife. Rihanna explained the concept behind the title of the album to Kidzworld, saying that the sun is representative of the her native Caribbean culture as well as herself and that the album consists of music from her heritage.

2005–2006: Music of the Sun and A Girl Like Me [ ]

After signing with Def Jam, she spent the next three months recording and completing her debut album. The album featured production from Evan Rogers, Carl Sturken, Stargate and Poke & Tone. She first collaborated with rapper Memphis Bleek on his fourth studio album 534 before her debut. She released her debut single, "Pon de Replay" on August 22, 2005, which peaked at number two on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the UK Singles Chart. It became a global hit, peaking within the top ten across fifteen countries. Her debut album, Music of the Sun, was released in August 2005 in the United States. The album reached number ten on the Billboard 200, selling 69,000 copies in its first week. The album went on to sell over two million copies worldwide and received a Gold certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments of over 500,000 units to retailers in the United States.

Her music was marketed within the reggae genre because of her Caribbean descent. The album received mixed reviews by music critics. Rolling Stone magazine gave it 2.5 out of 5 stars and described as lacking the replay value, ingenuity and rhythm of the peee with "generic vocal hiccups and frills" of US R&B inflecting upon her "Caribbean charm". Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine described the album as a "glut of teen R&B chanteuses " and described her lead single "Pon de Replay" as "a dancehall-pop mixture that owes plenty of its sweat and shimmy to Beyoncé's "Baby Boy". A reviewer for Entertainment Weekly commented that the "dancehall/R&B debut is filled with chintzy production and maudlin arrangements that block out the Music of the Sun. The albums second single, "If It's Lovin' that You Want" was less successful than its predecessor, managing a peak position of number thirty-six in the United States, and number eleven in the United Kingdom. The single proved to be more well-received in Australia, Ireland and New Zealand reaching the top ten.

A month after the release of her debut album, she began working on her second studio album. The album contained production from record producers Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken who produced most of her debut album, as well as Stargate, J. R. Rotem and label-mate singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. Whilst recording the album, Rihanna served as an opening act for Gwen Stefani on tour to promote her debut album. A Girl Like Me was released in April 2006, less than eight months after her debut. The album reached number five on the Billboard 200 selling 115,000 copies in its first week and was certified Platinum by the RIAA, having shipped over one million units. Internationally, the album peaked at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart and number five in the UK and Ireland. Critical response to the album was mixed; Rolling Stone magazine commented "Like her filler-packed debut album, this similar but superior follow-up doesn't deliver anything else as ingenious as its lead single." Critics described the album as a record that almost identically alternates between the sunny dancehall/dub-pop, hip-hop-infused club bangers and gushy, adult-oriented ballads.

The lead single, " SOS ", peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first single to top the charts in the United States. The second single, "Unfaithful", became a major worldwide hit, reaching the top ten in eighteen countries around the world, including the US where it reached number six, as well as topping the charts in Canada and Switzerland. The album's third single "We Ride" did not achieve the same success, remaining uncharted in the US and reaching a peak of seventeen in the UK. However, the fourth US single, "Break It Off" featuring Sean Paul, reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100. After the release of the album, Rihanna embarked on her first headlining tour, the Rihanna: Live in Concert Tour. She then embarked on the Rock Tha Block Tour followed by touring with the Pussycat Dolls from November 2006 to February 2007 in the UK. Rihanna made her acting debut in a cameo role in the straight-to-DVD film Bring It On: All or Nothing, which was released on August 8, 2006. Kelly Mberabahizi 

In 2005, Rihanna released her debut studio album, Music of the Sun , which peaked in the top ten of the Billboard 200 chart and features the Billboard Hot 100 top five hit single " Pon de Replay ". In less than a year, she released her second studio album, A Girl Like Me (2006), which peaked within the top-five in the United States, and produced her first Hot 100 number one single, " SOS ". Rihanna's third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad released in May 2007, spawned the international hit singles " Umbrella ", " Don't Stop the Music ", " Take a Bow " and " Disturbia ", with an additional four singles being released. The album was nominated for nine Grammy Awards, winning Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Umbrella". Her fourth studio album Rated R (2009), produced the top-ten singles " Russian Roulette ", " Hard " and " Rude Boy ", with the latter achieving the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Loud (2010), Rihanna's fifth studio album, spawned the number-one hits " Only Girl (In the World) ", " What's My Name? " and " S&M ". " We Found Love " served as the lead single from Rihanna's sixth studio album, Talk That Talk (2011). The song was an international success, topping the charts in seventeen countries She also had Stay, and Diamonds from Unapologetic.

Rihanna's work has earned her numerous awards and accolades, including five American Music Awards, 18 Billboard Music Awards, two BRIT Awards and six Grammy Awards. She has achieved a total of fourteen number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the youngest solo artist to achieve the feat. Billboard named Rihanna the Digital Songs Artist of the 2000s decade, and ranked her as the seventeenth artist of the same decade. She is the highest-selling digital artist in U.S. history. Furthermore, she has also shipped 7.3 million album units in the U.S. as of September 2011. Some of her singles have earned their place on the list of best-selling singles worldwide. Rihanna has claimed to sell more than 200 million records worldwide since the beginning of her career in 2005, which makes her tied for 7th artist with the most claimed sales, but her certified sales are over 180 million making her the third artist with the most claimed sales topping Micheal Jackson.

Rihanna also had collaborations with artists like Eminem with songs like Love the Way You Lie , The Monster , with Jay-Z on Run This Town, with Shakira on Can't Remember To Forget You , with T.I. on Live Your Life , and many others.

On August 4, 2021, it was announced that Rihanna is now officially a billionaire, net worth of $1.7 billion, mainly for her share in the cosmetics line she is a co-owner of. [2]

2007–2008: Good Girl Gone Bad [ ]

With her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), Rihanna wanted to head in a new direction with the help of music producers Timbaland, will.i.am and Sean Garrett, and re-imagine her album compositions with fresh, uptempo dance tracks. She adopted a more rebellious image whilst recording the album, eventually dying her hair black and cutting it short. Rihanna commented, "I want to keep people dancing but still be soulful at the same time You feel different every album, and at this stage I feel like I want to do a lot of uptempo songs." The album topped the charts in multiple countries including the UK, Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Japan, Russia and and at number two in the US and Australia. Unlike previous work, the album featured a more dance-pop sound instead of the dancehall, reggae and ballad styles found in Rihanna's first two albums. The album received positive reviews by critics, becoming her most critically acclaimed album at that time compared to her previous efforts.

Good Girl Gone Bad yielded four chart-topping singles – all reaching the top three of the Billboard Hot 100 – including the major worldwide number one hit, " Umbrella ", featuring Jay-Z. In addition to reaching number one in twelve other countries, "Umbrella" peaked at number one in the UK for ten consecutive weeks, making it the longest-running number one single since Wet Wet Wet's single "Love Is All Around" spent fifteen weeks at the top in 1994. It became the longest-running chart topper of the 2000's decade, and remains the longest-running number one since its release in 2007. The song was listed at number three on the '100 Best Songs of 2007' published by Rolling Stone magazine. It became Rihanna's first single to be named one of the best-selling singles worldwide, having sold over 6.6 million singles since being released. Her other singles, " Shut Up and Drive ", and " Hate That I Love You ", " Don't Stop The Music " were released from the album and were able to mirror the success of "Umbrella", with the latter reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100, whilst peaking at number one in Australia, the Netherlands, France, Germany and Switzerland. At the 2007 American Music Awards, Rihanna won the award for 'Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist'.

The re-issue of her third album, titled Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded , released in June 2008, features three added songs. The first single from the re-release, " Take a Bow ", topped the charts in six countries worldwide, including in Canada, Ireland, the the UK and US. " If I Never See Your Face Again ", a duet with Maroon 5, was also included in the re-release, alongside " Disturbia ", which also reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned Rihanna a nomination for Best Dance Recording at the 51st Grammy Awards. "Disturbia" and "Take a Bow" both silmiltaneously appeared inside the top five on the Hot 100, making Rihanna the seventh female artist to have two songs in the top five. She was also featured on rapper T.I.'s "Live Your Life," which peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, giving Rihanna her fifth number one single on the chart at the time, and making Rihanna the artist with the joint-most number one singles of the 2000's decade, with the other being Beyoncé Knowles. A remix of the album, Good Girl Gone Bad: The Remixes, was also released containing remixed versions of songs from the reloaded edition of the album. "Good Girl Gone Bad" has shipped over 2.7 million units in the United States alone, receiving a two-times-platinum certification from the RIAA and marking Rihanna's best-selling album to date in the country. Rihanna was nominated in four categories at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, winning 'Monster Single of the Year' and 'Video of the Year' for "Umbrella". Rihanna won her first award at the 50th Grammy Awards in 2008, winning Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, in addition to receiving five other nominations, including Record of the Year, Best Dance Recording, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group and Best R&B Song. In support of the album, she kicked off her second headlining tour, the Good Girl Gone Bad Tour on September 12, 2007, with a total of 80 shows across the US, Canada and Europe and then embarked on the Glow in the Dark Tour with Kanye West , Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D on April 16, 2008. Rihanna won the awards for 'Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist' and 'Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist' at the 2008 American Music Awards.

2009–2011: Domestic violence case, Rated R , and Loud [ ]

Rihanna was dating Chris Brown before the altercation with him.

On February 8, 2009, Rihanna's scheduled performance at the 51st Grammy Awards was canceled. Reports later surfaced regarding an alleged altercation with then-boyfriend, singer Chris Brown , who was arrested on suspicion of making criminal threats. On March 5, 2009, Brown was charged with assault and making criminal threats. Due to a leaked photograph from the Los Angeles Police Department obtained by TMZ.com—which revealed Rihanna had sustained visible injuries — an organization known as STOParazzi proposed a law called "Rihanna's Law," which, if enacted, would "deter employees of law enforcement agencies from releasing photos or information that exploits crime victims." Gil Kaufman of VH1 reported the "nonstop coverage of the Rihanna/Brown case has brought up a number of issues regarding the privacy of alleged victims of domestic violence, including the decision by almost all major news outlets to divulge the identity of the victim—which is not typically done in domestic-violence cases" and the controversial distribution of the leaked photograph. Rihanna was subpoenaed to testify during a preliminary hearing in Los Angeles on June 22, 2009. Rihanna's attorney, Donald Etra told US Weekly, "The DA told me Rihanna will be subpoenaed. I will accept on her behalf." On June 22, 2009, Brown pled guilty to the felony assault. In exchange for his plea Brown received five years probation and was ordered to stay fifty yards away from Rihanna, unless at public events, which then would be reduced to ten yards. However, in February 2011, at the request of Brown's lawyer, Judge Patricia Schnegg modified with Rihanna's consent the restraining order to a "level one order," allowing both singers to appear at awards shows together in the future. The following year, a police statement outlining what Rihanna said happened during the events, was leaked online. Statements in the documents were made by the responding LAPD officer.

Rihanna made her first appearance in a music video since the assualt, as the central character in Kanye West's clip, "Paranoid". She also collaborated with Jay-Z and West on " Run This Town " which peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, number one in the UK, and reached the top ten in ten other countries. The song won 'Best Rap Song' and 'Best Rap/Sung Collaboration', at the 52nd Grammy Awards. Her fourth studio album, Rated R was released in November 2009, and was described as having a very dark and mature atmosphere due to previous events. Rolling Stone was favorable of the album commenting that "Rihanna has transformed her sound and made one of the best pop records of the year". The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 and was certified Platinum by the RIAA for shipment of over one million copies. Debut single, " Russian Roulette ", received commercial success, reaching number one in Norway and Switzerland. It also reached the top ten in sixteen other countries including in the UK at number two, and number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100. The second single, " Hard " was released predominantly in the United States only. However, besides from reaching the top ten in the country at number nine, it also charted in other countries such as Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. " Rude Boy ", the third global single, became the biggest worldwide success from the album, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks, as well as claiming top ten positions in twenty-two other countries. Two other singles were released from Rated R, U.S. and Australian only single, " Rockstar 101 " and the final European single, " Te Amo ". "Rated R: Remixed" was released in the spring of 2010 and featured ten tracks from the album revamped as remixes by Chew Fu. To further promote the album, she embarked on her second worldwide tour, the Last Girl on Earth Tour, performing 67 shows.

In January 2010, Rihanna won two Barbados Music Awards for 'Song of the Decade' with "Umbrella" and 'Entertainer of the Decade'. She was also named 'International Female Artist of the Year' at the 2010 NRJ Music Awards. During the summer, she collaborated with rapper Eminem on " Love the Way You Lie ", which was a major worldwide success, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100, as well as in twenty other countries worldwide. "Love the Way You Lie" became Rihanna's seventh Hot 100 number one of her career, making her the female artist with the fifth-most number ones in the chart's history. Despite reaching number two, the song became the biggest-selling song of 2010 in the UK, and the first of three Rihanna singles to sell over one million copies in the country. It also remains Rihanna's highest-certified and best-selling single in the US, and best-selling single worldwide. With sales of over nine million to date, it is one of the best-selling singles worldwide; and Rihanna's biggest-selling single worldwide. Later that year, Rihanna recorded a sequal to the track entitled, "Love the Way You Lie Part II" for her fifth studio album, from her perspective, featuring Eminem once more. It received positive reviews from critics and managed to reach the top twenty of the Canadian Hot 100 after the album's release. It remained on the chart for eight weeks. She also lent her vocals to the hook of " All of the Lights ", the fourth single from Kanye West 's fifth studio album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, which features additional vocals from several other recording artists, including John Legend, The-Dream, Elly Jackson, Alicia Keys, Fergie, Kid Cudi, and Elton John. In October 2010, she released a self-titled book, and announced that she was parting ways with manager Marc Jordan and would henceforth be managed by Jay-Z 's Roc Nation Management. She also stated that she plans to start her own company entitled, "Rihanna Entertainment", in which she will "merge all of her businesses including music, film, fragrance, fashion and book ventures".

Loud spawn three number one singles.

Rihanna released her fifth studio album, Loud on November 16, 2010. It debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 207,000 copies in its first week, making it the biggest opening week sales of her career to date. Its lead single, " Only Girl (In the World) ", reached number one in fourteen countries including Australia, Canada, the UK and US. The song also won the award for 'Best Dance Recording' at the 53rd Grammy Awards in 2011. The album's second single, " What's My Name? ", featuring Canadian rapper Drake , also reached number one in both the US and UK, making Rihanna the first female solo artist to have five number one singles in the United Kingdom in consecutive years. The song reached number one on the Hot 100 before "Only Girl (In the World)", making it the first time in he chart's history that an album's debut single reached number one after the second. With her third international single from the album, '" S&M " featuring Britney Spears , the singer earned another milestone when the track reached number one on the Hot 100, becoming the youngest artist in the chart's 52-year history to achieve ten number one singles. " Man Down ", served as the fourth US single and in other territories worldwide. It reached number one in France, as well as peaking within the top ten in eight other countries. " California King Bed " and the final single, " Cheers (Drink to That) " were last to be released from the album with the latter reaching number seven on the Hot 100.

In June 2011, Rihanna embarked on her worldwide concert tour, the Loud Tour , to promote the album. It spanned 98 dates, becoming Rihanna's longest ever tour. Additionally, Rihanna broke the record for selling out ten nights at the The O2 Arena in London, the most sold out shows for a female artist ever, breaking the previous eight-night record held by Britney Spears . In October 2011, Rihanna appeared in the Judges' Houses round of the American reality TV program, The X Factor, assisting L.A. Reid as a guest mentor. During that month, Nicki Minaj released the collaboration " Fly " featuring Rihanna from her album "Pink Friday" which peaked within the top twenty in both the US and UK.

2011–2013: Talk That Talk and Unapologetic [ ]

Rihanna's sixth album, Talk That Talk , was released on November 21, 2011 in both deluxe and standard editions. The lead single " We Found Love " premiered on September 22, 2011 and was released the same day for digital download in the US. With the ascension of the track to number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, Rihanna became the fastest solo artist in the chart's history to achieve twenty Hot 100 top ten singles, breaking the previous record set by Madonna. The song later became Rihanna's eleventh number one single on the chart. With this, Rihanna became only the seventh artist in the 53-year history of the chart to amass at least eleven number one singles, behind The Beatles (20), Mariah Carey (18), Michael Jackson (13), Madonna (12), The Supremes (12) and tying with Whitney Houston, who also achieved eleven number one singles. Additionally, Rihanna moved into third place, tied with Houston, for the female artist with the most number one singles, behind Carey and Madonna. "We Found Love" ultimately spent ten non consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, surpassing "Umbrella" as Rihanna's longest number one single, and was 2011's longest-running number one in the country. In the UK, the single became Rihanna's second solo single (third overall) to sell over one million copies in the country alone, after " Love The Way You Lie " and " Only Girl (In The World) " (2010). "We Found Love" was a superior global sensation, topping charts in eighteen countries worldwide and peaking in the top ten of charts in thirty countries, breaking a string of records worldwide. It became Rihanna's highest-charting single on the Japan Hot 100 and her best-selling single in New Zealand. The song was covered by many popular artists including the Glee Cast and both Coldplay and Jessie J, in the Radio 1 Live Lounge. " You Da One " was released as the second single from the album on November 11, 2011; and was a moderate success reaching the top twenty in both the UK and US. It was followed by the title track featuring Jay-Z as the third single in early 2012, after asking fans on Twitter. It has currently reached numbers 25 and 31 in the UK, and US, respectively. At the end of 2011, Rihanna was named the highest-selling singles artist of the year in the UK, having overtaken Adele by a sales margin of 6,000 units.

Rihanna is the best-selling digital artist in US.

On January 8, 2012, Rihanna was named the best-selling digital artist of all time in the United States, having sold 47,571,000 million singles and albums as of 2011, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In early 2012, two collaborations featuring Rihanna were released; Coldplay's " Princess of China " from the album Mylo Xyloto and Drake 's Take Care from his album of the same name. Both have currently reached the top twenty of the Billboard Hot 100 at numbers 20 and nine, respectively. In February, "All of the Lights" was nominated for Song of the Year, 'Best Rap Song', and 'Best Rap/Sung Collaboration' at the 54th Grammy Awards in 2012, eventually winning the latter two awards, bringing Rihanna's total Grammy awards to six. Later that month, Rihanna won her second BRIT Award for 'Best International Female Artist', following the same win the previous year.

On February 16, 2012, it was speculated that former boyfriend Chris Brown was the featured artist on the full length version of Rihanna's track, " Birthday Cake ", from Talk That Talk. These rumours were later confirmed when Rihanna posted the song on her Twitter account on her 24th birthday, February 20, 2012, after over a week of speculation. The reports gained worldwide media controversy, due to Brown and Rihanna's physical altercation three years prior. Beth Hardie for the Daily Mirror wrote that the remix came as a shock and noted that Rihanna would face harsh criticism from journalists and fans alike for setting a bad example to younger girls. Hardie continued to state that although the collaboration came as a surprise, "We have to admit, it’s a pretty amazing stroke of genius in terms of publicity and messing with people’s minds." In addition to the shocking remix for the Rihanna track, the pair furthermore fueled controversy having recorded another remix together, this time for Brown's single, " Turn Up the Music " which was released moments later. Rihanna will appear as Petty Officer, Raikes in the Peter Berg-produced film Battleship, which is based on the game of the same name, due for release in May 2012.

On November 19, 2012 Rihanna released her seventh studio album Unapologetic . The album debuted in the United States number on the   Billboard  200  with  sales of 238,000, becoming Rihanna's first number one album in the country.   In addition, it became the best-selling debut week of her career, besting her fifth studio album  Loud  (2010). n

rihanna&chris

Rolling Stone , Rihanna confirmed that she has rekindled her relationship with  Chris Brown .   The confirmation followed persistent media speculation throughout 2012 regarding a reunion between the pair. Brown remains under probation for their 2009 domestic violence incident.

In March of 2013, Rihanna embarked on her Diamonds World Tour to support her seventh studio album. The tour reached North America, Europe, Oceania, and Africa and has received positive reception.

2014–2017: Standalone releases, Home soundtrack and Anti [ ]

In 2014, Rihanna appeared on Shakira's single, "Can't Remember to Forget You". Following the release of Unapologetic and its accompanying tour, Rihanna aimed to take a hiatus from recording music, stating: "I wanted to have a year to just do whatever I want artistically, creatively." In May 2014, Rihanna left Def Jam Recordings to sign fully with Roc Nation, the record label that had managed her career since October 2010.

A year after Rihanna began working on her eighth studio album, the single "FourFiveSeconds" was released, which featured Rihanna paired up with Kanye West and Paul McCartney. Two further singles followed its release: "Bitch Better Have My Money" and "American Oxygen"; neither made the final track listing for Rihanna's eighth studio album. During the creation of the album, Rihanna ventured into other endeavors and appeared in the voice role of Tip in the animated feature film Home alongside Jim Parsons and Jennifer Lopez, the film was based on The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex. Rihanna also released a concept album soundtrack for the film.

In late 2015, Rihanna inked a $25 million contract with Samsung that would see her promoting Samsung's Galaxy line of products whilst Samsung would sponsor the release of her eighth studio album and its supporting tour. The Anti World Tour was announced in November 2015 and began in March 2016, with Travis Scott supporting in North America and Big Sean supporting at selected European dates.The Weeknd had also initially planned to support at certain European sites, but he backed out citing "unforeseen changes in upcoming projects". On January 28, 2016, Rihanna released her eighth studio album, Anti , exclusively through streaming service Tidal. The album peaked at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200, becoming Rihanna's second No. 1 and eighth top 10 album on the chart. The album was supported by the release of four singles, including the lead single "Work", featuring Drake, which topped the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. Further Platinum-certified singles "Needed Me" and "Love on the Brain" both peaked inside the top 10 of the US Hot 100.

In 2016, Rihanna was featured in several singles. The first collaboration single was Kanye West's "Famous", where Rihanna provided uncredited guest vocals. She was then officially featured on Calvin Harris' "This Is What You Came For", which was a success. Rihanna was also featured on Drake's "Too Good" and on Mike Will Made It's "Nothing Is Promised". In June 2016, Rihanna released "Sledgehammer", a single from the Star Trek Beyond movie soundtrack. On August 28, 2016, Rihanna was honored with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards after performing various medleys of her hit songs.

Rihanna released several collaborations in 2017. First she was the featured part in Future's "Selfish", the lead single from the rapper's sixth studio album, Hndrxx . Summer 2017 saw the release of Rihanna's collaborations with record producer DJ Khaled, "Wild Thoughts", which also featured Bryson Tiller and was a worldwide success, and Kendrick Lamar's single, "Loyalty", which earned Rihanna her ninth Grammy Award at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards. In November 2017, Rihanna was part of N.E.R.D's comeback single "Lemon" from the band's album No One Ever Really Dies .

2018–present: Hiatus, and Super Bowl LVII halftime show [ ]

In October 2017, Shakka revealed that he was working with Rihanna on her "absolutely insane" album. In December 2018, Rihanna confirmed that the album would be released in 2019, and later announced that it is a reggae project. In August 2019, fans noticed that Rihanna and co-songwriters Collin Edwards, Monique Lawrence, and Alexander Ogunmokun registered a song titled "Private Loving" with the music publishing organization BMI. In September 2019, it was announced she had signed with Sony/ATV Music Publishing. In December 2019, Rihanna alluded to her album being complete and indefinitely withholding the release date in an Instagram post. She was next featured on Canadian singer PartyNextDoor's song "Believe It", which was released on March 27, 2020. On September 25, 2022, Rihanna announced that she would be headlining the Super Bowl LVII halftime show, which marked her first live performance in over five years, and the end of her previously self-imposed boycott of the event, which she instigated in solidarity with Colin Kaepernick. The show had a mostly positive reception. It was initially reported that the performance gained a total of 118.7 million viewers across TV and digital platforms, however the figure was later revised by Nielsen Media Research, who adjusted the number to 121.017 million viewers, making it the most-watched halftime show in history, surpassing Katy Perry's performance at the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show.

On October 28, 2022, Rihanna released the lead single from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack, "Lift Me Up", her first solo musical release since Anti . The song earned her nominations for the Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Musical artistry and influences [ ]

Rihanna has named Madonna as her idol and biggest influence. She said that she wanted to be the "black Madonna" and praised her ability to reinvent herself throughout her career. She noted, "I think that Madonna was a great inspiration for me, especially on my earlier work. If I had to examine her evolution through time, I think she reinvented her clothing style and music with success every single time. And at the same time remained a real force in entertainment in the whole world."

Another major influence on Rihanna's music and career has been Mariah Carey , whose song "Hero" she performed when Rihanna was still a teenager at her high school talent show. She revealed that Carey's song " Vision of Love " "was the song that made [her] want to do music."

In her youth, she would see Bob Marley on television because of his fame in the Caribbean. She stated, "He's one of my favourite artists of all time Idols.

Rihanna Has also Named Whitney Houston as an inspiration. She Stated That She Loved Whitney Houston and Mentioned “She is a big idol of mine and so influential.

During her childhood, she would go around singing Whitney Houston songs.

Rihanna stated that the first song that she remember falling in love with the Whitney Houston song "I Will Always Love You". Rihanna told MTV News: "It was really inspiring, and it made me develop a passion for music, so really, she’s partly responsible for me being here in this industry."

Rihanna was also influenced by Janet Jackson , Aaliyah , Tupac , Beyoncé and Destiny's Child . Other musical influences and idols include Celine Dion , Grace Jones , Lil' Kim , Alicia Keys , Prince , Fefe Dobson , and Brandy .

She cited Brandy's fourth studio album, Afrodisiac (2004), as her main inspiration for her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007).

Volume 65 of the Contemporary Black Biography book series notes that "Rihanna is the rare rhythm and blues (R&B) diva to emerge from the Caribbean world." Becoming an international sensation, Rihanna is known for blending R&B with Caribbean music, such as reggae and dancehall. At the time of her debut, reviewers referred to her as a "bubblegum queen" and her music to "teen pop." Larry Meyler of The Sun stated that "Rihanna going bad is very good" and that she had "[shaken] off any 'teen pop' image as she rocked the stage." While performing at the Ottawa Bluesfest, Denis Armstrong of Canadian Online Explorer commented on her performance saying "her show was a Disney-esque choreographed fantasy of non-stop hip-swivelling, sassy attitude and personal endearments and a string of funky, sugar-free hits."

Rihanna was originally marketed as a reggae singer since she burst into the music scene in 2005, with a styles of pop, R&B and dancehall. Her music include various styles of musical genres, including contemporary R&B, dance-pop and the Caribbean music styles of reggae and dancehall. With the release of Music of the Sun and its lead single "Pon de Replay", Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic described Rihanna's musical style as "synthesize Caribbean rhythms and beats with standard-issue urban dance-pop: Caribbean-inflected urban, if you". Rihanna is described as utilizing "dancehall-lite beats and a reggae vocal cadence." NME describes the singer as a "heady mix of dancehall, reggae and contemporary R&B." Barry Walters of Rolling Stone considers Rihanna's A Girl Like Me to be "lightweight dancehall and R&B jams." After the release of Good Girl Gone Bad, Allmusic's Andy Kellman credits Rihanna to be "as pop as pop gets." Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times described her hit "Umbrella" as a lightweight pop confection with a heavy hip-hop backbeat, a breezy love song enriched by those unexpectedly goth-sounding keyboards and by the incongruous hint of anguish in Rihanna’s girlish voice.

Her debut album featured production from pop veterans Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken who first discovered her. Sturken and Rogers have collaborated with Rihanna many times, including with her debut single "Pon de Replay", which helped launch her career with the tradition of reggae and dance pop and collaborated on her second album. Rihanna then enlisted into the pop and contemporary R&B working with music producer Stargate and singer-songwriter Ne-Yo on "Unfaithful" and sampling the key section, bass line, and drum beat from Soft Cell's 1981 single "Tainted Love" on "SOS". With songs like "Kisses Don't Lie" and "Shut Up and Drive", her music style became more rock-oriented. Unlike Music of the Sun or A Girl Like Me, her third album contained a more dance-pop sound and less of the dancehall, reggae and ballad styles of her previous albums. She has included various styles of music from uptempo pop-reggae with "Pon De Replay", to an 1980s new wave fueled club banger "SOS" to the whiff of gothic horror in a love song "Unfaithful". Most of her love subject ballads contain a mid-tempo pop sound, with an R&B influences that uses of a gently strummed acoustic guitar with the production of Stargate and the songs written by Ne-Yo. Some of her up-tempo dance-pop songs include production from Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and J. R. Rotem. She has also sampled songs from other artist like Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" on "SOS", New Order's "Blue Monday" on "Shut Up and Drive" and 1970s original song "Soul Makossa" of Manu Dibango with a part of the chorus from Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" on "Don't Stop the Music".

Public image [ ]

Rihanna has been called one of the most beautiful womens on Earth by several magazines, in several different years.

New York magazine described Rihanna's early look as that of a cookie-cutter teen queen while stating that she has the ability to shift looks dramatically and with great ease. This was underscored when in March 2011 American Chronicle writer Arturo Tora termed her “Rihannaissance Woman.” Around the time of the release of her second album, many critics felt that Rihanna's sound and musical material were too similar to those of Beyoncé. Negative reviews appeared, in which her music, music videos, performances and her image were compared to those of Beyoncé, which garnered Rihanna much criticism. Some media even claimed that Jay-Z fashioned her to be a replica of Beyoncé. During the release of her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad, she adopted a more sexual image. Sonya Magett of Black Voices reported that Rihanna's style has become quite risqué since she burst onto the scene four years ago. After revealing a new image while headlining her first tour, she was likely to be criticized for her tight leather outfit during each show. A review in The Times compared Rihanna's stage wardrobe styling to that of Janet Jackson. He described her outfit as "a vision of Ann Summers couture in thigh-high boots and a few scraps of black PVC." Stuart Derdeyn of The Province commented that "even with the whole haute couture B&D clearly firing on all points, she's still got a ways to go to become the new Janet Jackson."

Rihanna has appeared on Maxim's Hot 100 list five consecutive years, listed in positions eight in 2007, fifteen in 2008, eight in 2009, six in 2010, and twenty-two in 2011.She was also listed on People's 10 Best Dressed Stars of 2008, and ranked seventeenth on Glamour magazine's list of the 50 Most Glamorous Women in 2009. Tracey Lomrantz of Glamour commented, "If style risks could be measured in miles, Rihanna would have criss-crossed the globe a thousand times over already." Rihanna was also declared as Woman of the Year 2009 by Glamour. In June 2007, Gillette named her the Venus Breeze's Celebrity Legs of a Goddess. In October 2011, Esquire declared Rihanna as the Sexiest Woman Alive for 2011. Rihanna has four wax figures of herself at Madame Tussauds Wax Museums in Washington D.C., Vienna, Berlin and London.

Other ventures [ ]

In October 2005, Rihanna struck her first endorsement deal with Secret Body Spray for them to sponsor her first tour, Rihanna's Secret Body Spray Tour In 2006, Rihanna participated in several endorsement deals, including Nike sportswear for the launch of her "SOS" and J. C. Penney. That same year, she received an endorsement deal from Clinique to promote their Happy fragrance. She recorded a song written by Ne-Yo entitled "Just Be Happy" as part of the deal to promote their Happy fragrance. Rihanna also recorded a song called "Winning Women" with Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger for Procter & Gamble's female deodorant Secret. In 2007, Rihanna signed with CoverGirl and became a celebrity spokesperson which included appearances on TV commercials and in the Barbados Tourism Authority's tourism commercials.

In December 2008, Rihanna contracted with Gucci to appear in their ads for the Tattoo Heart Collection, a special-edition line. In the Gucci handbag ad, Rihanna is seen hanging from a giant hoop, scantily clad in a barely-there white bodysuit and wearing an oversized white Gucci purse. The success of her single, "Umbrella" earned her an endorsement deal with Totes. Her handlers pitched her hit "Umbrella" to Totes and the song became the soundtrack for commercials in which she starred. On April 8, 2009, it was announced that Rihanna inked a fragrance deal with Jay-Z’s licensing company Iconic Fragrances. The fragrance is named Reb'l Fleur and was released in 2011. Rihanna was working with her artistic director for Rated R, Simon Henwood, on the book Rihanna. It was released on September 14, 2010. In August 2010 Rihanna began appearing in an Australian television advert for Optus, a position previously held by Pink. In May 2011, Rihanna became a spokeswoman for the German skincare brand Nivea. Rihanna's song "California King Bed" was featured as a part of Nivea's "100 Years of Skincare" commercial campaign.

Philanthropy [ ]

Rihanna created her Believe Foundation in 2006 to help terminally ill children. Rihanna explained her reasons for starting the foundation saying, "When I was young and I would watch television and I would see all the children suffering, I always said: when I grow up, I want to help." Rihanna is also heavily involved in the marketing of her native country of Barbados. She began by including the flag and broken trident in many of her videos, shooting her album packaging for A Girl Like Me there. In September 2007, she became the official face of tourism for Barbados, being included in many of their ad campaigns. She holds the honorary title of Ambassador for Culture and Youth in Barbados. She additionally was honored by the Prime Minister David Thompson, who presented her with several gifts at a national concert on February 20, 2008, in Barbados, called "Rihanna Day". In February 2008, Rihanna thanked and honoured her country during the acceptance speech for her win of "Best Rap/Sung Collaboration" at the Grammy Awards. Although Rihanna is heavily involved in the promotion of her country and works with the government in Barbados to do so, she is often criticized by other Barbadians for everything from her music to her successes and for wearing "skimpy clothes". Rihanna, speaking on one incident, said, "I went to the beach and I had on a one-piece swimsuit with jeans They took the picture and they made it look like a top that was really revealing... There were radio programmes about it. It was a big deal for, like, three weeks straight – talking about I'm not setting a good example." Rihanna states she was bullied at school. "Having lighter skin wasn’t a problem in my household, but it was when I went to school – which really confused me at first. The harassment continued to my very last day of elementary school."

Rihanna was the 2008 Cartier Love Charity Bracelet Ambassador

Rihanna has performed a number of concerts to raise funds for both charities and the Foundation and is a 2008 Cartier Love Charity Bracelet Ambassador. She performed at Madonna’s Raising Malawi fundraiser on February 6, 2008, in New York City. After becoming an honorary cultural ambassador for Barbados, Rihanna became involved with DKMS, an international donor network based in Tübingen, Germany, to try to find a donor for Lisa Gershowitz Flynn. The Manhattan attorney had been diagnosed in November with acute myelogenous leukemia. In January 2008, Rihanna contributed in the fight against AIDS when she visited the H&M in New York to support Fashion Against AIDS by presenting her t-shirt design and signing autographs for a limited time with slogans like "Believe" and "Stop and Think." The collection features t-shirts and hoodies designed by Rihanna, Timbaland and other well-known designers, musicians and artists. The line, called Fashion Against AIDS, was launched in February 2008 to raise awareness of the disease among teens and spread awareness about HIV/AIDS. In August 2008, Rihanna and other pop, rock, R&B and country singers such as Carrie Underwood, Ciara, Beyoncé Knowles, Leona Lewis, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, and Fergie recorded the charity single, "Just Stand Up!", the theme song to the anti-cancer campaign Stand Up to Cancer and its theme song. The singers performed the song live on September 5, 2008. Rihanna was also selected as the spokesmodel for Gucci’s first United Nations Children's Fund ad campaign. She appeared in the fashion house’s Tattoo Heart campaign, which premiered in December 2008. Rihanna was photographed in series of special edition print ads with United Nations Children's Fund items, twenty-five percent of sales will benefit the children’s charity.

On November 19, 2008, Rihanna was enlisted by Gucci's Frida Giannini along with Madonna to light the United Nations Children's Fund Christmas snowflake in New York City at the Grand Army Plaza. In 2008, she became the global representative and the face of the 4th annual Gucci Campaign to Benefit United Nations Children's Fund. The campaign aimed to raise funds for children in Africa through the sale of its Tattoo Heart collection of bags, which launched worldwide on November 19, 2008. Rihanna has been a part of many benefit concerts to help raise money for various illnesses, such as cancer for Hope Rocks. Rihanna performed on January 20, 2009, at the Recording Industry Association of America's Presidential Inauguration Charity Ball to raise money for the world largest anti-hunger organization. On April 2, 2009, Rihanna visited the NYU Medical Center to help look for another bone marrow donor for a young girl named Jasmina Anema. Rihanna first learned about Anema's plight in February 2009, when she saw the moving video Anema's best friend, Isabelle Huurman, and her mother, Karen Detrick, made appealing for donors to save Anema. Rihanna honored Anema's best friend, Isabella, for her efforts for trying to save her best friend at a DKMS Gala on May 7, 2009. Jasmina Anema eventually received her transplant on June 11, 2009, but died on January 27, 2010. In September 2009, Rihanna performed at Jay-Z's "Answer the Call" concert, which paid tribute to the police officers and firefighters who died on the September 11 attacks. In February 2011, Rihanna was scheduled to perform at a charity concert for the Women's Cancer Research Fund, but was forced to pull out at the last minute, due to bronchitis.

Discography [ ]

• Music of the Sun (2005)
• A Girl like Me (2006)
• A Girl Like Me: Deluxe Edition (2006)
• Good Girl Gone Bad (2007)
• Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded (2008)
• Good Girl Gone Bad; The Remixes (2009)
• 3CD Collector's Set (2009)
• Rated R (2009)
• 2 for 1: Music of the Sun + A Girl Like Me (2010)
• Rated R: Remixed (2010)
• Coffred 4 CD (2010)
• Loud (2010)
• Loud (Deluxe Edition)
• Talk That Talk (2011)
• Talk That Talk (Deluxe Edition) (2011)
• Unapologetic (2012)
• Unapologetic (Deluxe Edition) (2012)
• Anti (2016)
• Anti (Deluxe Edition) (2016)

Filmography [ ]

• Bring It On: All or Nothing (2006)
• Las Vegas (2003-2008)
• Good Girl Gone Bad Live (2008)
• Almost Famous II (2009)
• Inside Stargate (2012)
• Bettie Page Reveals All (2012)
• Battleship (2012)
• Katy Perry: Part of Me (2012)
• This Is The End (2013)
• Rihanna's Secret Body Spray Tour (2005)
• PCD Album Promotional Tour (2006)
• Rock Tha Block (2006)
• Rihanna: Live in Concert Tour (2006)
• Good Girl Gone Bad Tour (2007—2009)
• Glow in the Dark Tour (2008)
• A Girl's Night Out (2008)
• Last Girl on Earth Tour (2010—2011)
• Loud Tour (2011)
• 777 Tour (2012)
• Diamonds World Tour (2013)
• Anti World Tour (2016)

Awards and nominations [ ]

• List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna

Gallery [ ]

See gallery here .

• Rihanna is a tall girl (or girl of average height), she stands at 173 cm (5 feet and 8 inches) tall.

References [ ]

• ↑ https://wikiake.com/rihanna/
• ↑ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-58092465
• 1 Rihanna's tattoos
• 2 Disturbia (song)
• 3 Chris Brown

• Daily Soaps
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• POP Culture News

How old is Rihanna?

Rihanna is 35 years old. She made a name for herself at such a young age through her perseverance and hard work.

The famous singer Rihanna was born on 20 February 1988 in Saint Michael and she was born and brought up in Bridgetown. Evan Rogers, a record producer from the United States, invited her to the country to record demo recordings after she gave an audition. She quickly became popular after joining Def Jam in 2005 and releasing her 1st two studio records, A Girl Like Me and Music of the Sun.

Both records had Caribbean music influences and placed in the list of top 10 of the American Billboard 200 list. In both 2012 as well as 2018, Time ranked her among the top hundred most influential individuals around the globe. She was chosen by the government of Barbados to serving as an ambassador for investment, tourism, and education in 2018, and on the very 1st day of the parliamentary republic of Barbados in 2021, she was named a national hero.

Rihanna has had 14 number-one singles, 32 top-ten singles in the US, and 31 top-ten entries in the UK. In 2023, her outstanding Super Bowl halftime performance drew the highest viewers ever.

Who is Rihanna?

Rihanna is a famous singer from Barbados, a businesswoman, and an actress. The 2nd best-selling female musician of all time, she has sold more than 250 million albums globally. Her accomplishments include 6 Guinness World Records, the NAACP President's Award, the Icon Award from the American Music Awards, twelve Billboard Music Awards, and 9 Grammy Awards.

Rihanna is well-known for her contributions to charitable organizations, business endeavors, and the fashion sector, in addition to her music. She is the creator of the charitable organization Clara Lionel Foundation, the cosmetics line Fenty Beauty, and the LVMH-affiliated fashion label Fenty. She leads an LVMH luxury brand as the company's first black female CEO. Along with singing, Rihanna has dabbled in acting, playing important parts in movies like Home and Ocean's 8.

Does Rihanna have children?

Yes, Rihanna has a child as she became the mother of a son on May 13, 2022 and second son on August 3, 2023. The singer had her baby boy with her boyfriend ASAP Rocky and made her baby bulge public during a pregnancy photo session in January in New York City's icy weather with her partner.

Rihanna shared another photo of her stomach with her online social media fans later the same week. Rihanna posted an Instagram picture taken in her bathroom in February with the phrase "How the gang pulled up to Black History Month." Her celebrity friends and followers left her a tonne of positive notes.

Recent 2023 Updates

Rihanna's first son's name revealed.

Nearly a year after his birth, Rihanna and A$AP Rocky's first child has finally had his name revealed. RZA Athelston Mayers had his first birthday on May 13, 2023.

According to a copy of the birth certificate obtained by The Daily Mail, the world's coolest kid is named RZA, a member of the Wu-Tang Clan, and his father, who also has the middle name Athelston.

Rocky's formal first name is Rakim, in honor of the musician Rakim; thus, Little RZA's moniker appears to be a paternal family tradition.

The Second Son Born

Just over a year after welcoming her first son, RZA Athelston Mayers Rihanna gave birth to her second son on August 3, 2023, according to TMZ. The 35-year-old welcomed both of her sons with rapper A$AP Rocky, whom she has been dating since 2020.

Rihanna gave birth to her second son on August 3, 2023, barely six months after revealing she was expecting again. Despite the singer's lack of an official declaration announcing the birth, the name of Rihanna's child, like the name of her firstborn son, RZA Athelston Mayers, begins with an "R," according to people close to her.

She revealed to Entertainment Tonight that her second pregnancy was distinct from her first while she was at the Met Gala in May 2023. “It’s so different from the first one,” she said at the time. “Just everything! No cravings, tons of nausea, everything’s different.”

Rihanna claimed that her second pregnancy had given her a lot of energy. She said, “I’m enjoying it! I feel good. I feel energetic.” “I’m in love! I’m obsessed, and I don’t even feel guilty about it.”

According to Forbes, the net worth of Rihanna is estimated to be $1.4 billion as of September 2023.

Robyn Rihanna Fenty started her path to superstardom at the age of 16.

Although ASAP Ricky proposed to Rihanna in the music video for his song "D.M.B," as far as we are aware, the two are not yet married.

Rihanna stands 5 feet 8 inches, or 173cm.

Rihanna is 35 years old. 

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