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Rihanna
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Robyn Rihanna Fenty (born February 20, 1988), known as Rihanna (pronounced /ri?'??n?/), is a Barbadian singer, model, and former beauty queen. She also serves as the cultural ambassador for Barbados. She is the first Barbadian artist to win a Grammy Award. Rihanna is currently signed to the Def Jam Recordings label.
She has attained five Billboard Hot 100 number ones thus far ("SOS", "Umbrella", "Take a Bow", "Disturbia" and T.I.'s "Live Your Life").
Rihanna broke into the recording industry in 2005 with the release of her debut album, Music of the Sun, which features the hit single "Pon de Replay".
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Encyclopedia
Robyn Rihanna Fenty (born February 20, 1988), known as Rihanna (pronounced /ri?'??n?/), is a Barbadian singer, model, and former beauty queen. She also serves as the cultural ambassador for Barbados. She is the first Barbadian artist to win a Grammy Award. Rihanna is currently signed to the Def Jam Recordings label.
She has attained five Billboard Hot 100 number ones thus far ("SOS", "Umbrella", "Take a Bow", "Disturbia" and T.I.'s "Live Your Life").
Rihanna broke into the recording industry in 2005 with the release of her debut album, Music of the Sun, which features the hit single "Pon de Replay". Less than a year later, Rihanna released A Girl Like Me and earned her first number-one single, "SOS". In 2007, Rihanna released her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad. Along with the Reloaded edition, the album has yielded eight singles, including "Umbrella", "Don't Stop the Music", "Take a Bow" and "Disturbia".
Biography
1988–2004: Early life and recording contract
Rihanna was born in Saint Michael, Barbados, to Ronald and Monica Fenty. She has two younger brothers, Rorrey and Rajad Fenty. Her mother, a native of Guyana, is Afro-Guyanese and her father is Afro-Barbadian and caucasian.
Rihanna attended Charles F. Broome Memorial School, a primary school in Barbados, and then the Combermere School, where she formed a musical trio with two of her classmates at the age of fifteen. In 2004, she won the Miss Combermere Beauty Pageant. She was an army cadet in a sub-military programme that trained with the military of Barbados and Shontelle was her drill sergeant.
In 2003, friends introduced Rihanna and her two bandmates to record producer Evan Rogers, who was vacationing in Barbados with his wife. The group auditioned for Rogers, who said that "the minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist." She eventually moved to Connecticut to live with Rogers and his wife. Rogers, along with his partner, Carl Sturken, helped Rihanna record material in the U.S. to send to various recording companies. Rihanna's demo made its way to Def Jam, which invited her to audition for the label's then-President Jay-Z, who quickly signed her.
2005–2007: Music of the Sun and A Girl like Me
Rihanna released her debut album, Music of the Sun, on August 30, 2005 in the United States. The album reached number 10 on the Billboard 200. As of 2009, the album is certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, denoting shipments to US retailers of over 500,000 units. The album received mixed reviews by music critics. Rolling Stone magazine rated it 2.5 out of 5 stars and described as lacking the replay value, ingenuity and rhythm of the single with "generic vocal hiccups and frills" of US R&B inflecting upon her "caribbean charm".
Music of the Sun yielded two singles, the first being "Pon de Replay", which was peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. It also became a global hit where it peaked within the top 10 across 15 countries. The second single, "If It's Lovin' That You Want" was less successful than "Pon de Replay", having managed a peak position of number 36 in the United States. In Australia, Ireland and New Zealand the single proved to be well-received reaching the top 10 in those countries.
Less than eight months after the release of Music of the Sun, Rihanna released her second album, A Girl Like Me, in April 2006. The album reached number five on the Billboard 200 and has been certified platinum by the RIAA, having shipped over one million units. The lead single, "SOS," peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first number-one in the United States. The second single, "Unfaithful," was a worldwide hit. In 2006, before the release, Rihanna served as an opening act for Gwen Stefani to promote the album. Rihanna then started touring with Pussycat Dolls from November to February 2007 in the United Kingdom.
When Rihanna received an endorsement deal from Clinique, 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 P&G's female deodorant Secret. During this time Rihanna made her acting debut in a cameo role to the film Bring It On: All or Nothing, released on August 8, 2006.
2007–present: Good Girl Gone Bad
Rihanna went into the studio in early 2007 with Ne-Yo, Stargate, and Timbaland among others to record her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad. The album was released on June 5, 2007.
The album so far has yielded eight hit singles, including the worldwide number one hit "Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z. In addition to reaching number one in various countries, "Umbrella" was the number one single in the United Kingdom for 10 consecutive weeks, making it the longest-running UK number-one single since Wet Wet Wet's single "Love Is All Around" spent 15 weeks at the top in 1994. Her other singles, "Shut Up and Drive" and "Don't Stop The Music" were able to mirror the success of "Umbrella," with "Don't Stop the Music" reaching number three on the Billboard Hot 100 while peaking at number one in various countries.
With the re-issue of her third album, titled Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, which was released on June 17, 2008, Rihanna released the singles "Take a Bow" — which became a worldwide number-one hit — the duet with Maroon 5, "If I Never See Your Face Again," and "Disturbia", the latter of which also peaked at the number-one spot on the Hot 100 chart, giving the artist her fourth number-one singles. Rihanna has five Billboard Hot 100 number ones hits both as a lead artist thus far ("SOS," "Umbrella," "Take a Bow" and "Disturbia"), as well as T.I.'s "Live Your Life", on which she is featured. This makes her one of the two female solo artist with the most number ones this decade, with the other being Beyonce. Good Girl Gone Bad has shipped over two million units in the United States, receiving a two-time platinum certification from RIAA; this gave Rihanna her best-selling album, to date.
Starting September 12, 2007, Rihanna toured Canada and the United States in support of the album with several shows and then crossed to Europe. The tour was called the The Good Girl Gone Bad Tour, and was the first tour headlined by her alone. A documented performance at Manchester Evening News Arena on December 6, 2007 was released as a DVD on June 17, 2008. Rihanna won Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist at the 2008 American Music Award.
On December 24, 2008, Rihanna stated that she would be back in the recording studio in early 2009 to resume working on her fourth studio album. She expects the album to be released in 2009. There are conflicting reports about her next album. MTV.com reported that Rihanna has now gone into the studio to start recording her fourth album. "Bad Girl" was the first single to be recorded and featured rap vocals from Chris Brown, the single was since re-recorded by the Pussycat Dolls and now features in the film "Shopaholics." Other singles and demos have leaked too.
On February 8, 2009, Rihanna's scheduled performance at the 2009 Grammy Awards was canceled. Reports later surfaced regarding an alleged altercation with her 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.
Musical style and performance
Music and theme
Rihanna's music has been described as a Reggae/R&B/Dancehall vibe. With the release of her debut album 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 will." Rihanna is also described as utilizing "dancehall-lite beats and a reggae vocal cadence." NME describes the singer as a "heady mix of dancehall, reggae and R&B." Barry Walters of Rolling Stone considers Rihanna's A Girl Like Me to be "[l]ightweight 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."
Influences
Rihanna cites Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, Fefe Dobson, Whitney Houston, Destiny's Child, Celine Dion, Brandy, and Gwen Stefani as musical influences.
Videography
Jon Bream of the Star Tribune commented "[i]n the tradition of Madonna and Janet Jackson, Rihanna has become the video vixen of the '00s ... Rihanna has perfected the pout, the long-legged strut and trend-setting hairdos that keep women and men alike checking her out on YouTube." George Epaminondas of InStyle considers Rihanna's music videos to be "cinematic" due to her "blend of lush island rhythms and swinging pop and ... mischievous sensuality." Rihanna commented that Marilyn Monroe and vintage clothing served for visual inspiration for the music video "Hate That I Love You"; in contrast, the "dark, creepy" scenes of "Disturbia" have drawn comparison to Michael Jackson's Thriller.
Charity work
Rihanna created her Believe Foundation in 2006 to help terminally ill children. Rihanna has performed a number of concerts to raise funds for both charities and the Foundation. She is also a 2008 Cartier LOVECHARITY Bracelet Ambassador, performed at Madonna’s Raising Malawi fundraiser, and helped a woman find a bone marrow donor.
In September 2008, Rihanna joined other female pop, rock, R&B & country singers such as Carrie Underwood, Ciara, Beyoncé Knowles, Leona Lewis, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, and Fergie to record "Just Stand Up!", the theme song to the the anti-cancer campaign Stand Up to Cancer and its theme song.
Rihanna has teamed up with H&M and other celebrities like Timbaland and Good Charlotte for "Fashion against AIDS." The collection is designed to spread awareness about HIV/AIDS. It was released at H&M in early February 2008.
She went on the Glow in the Dark Tour with Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D.
Rihanna was also selected as the spokesmodel for Gucci’s first UNICEF ad campaign. She will appear in the fashion house’s Tattoo Heart campaign, premiering in December. Rihanna will be photographed in series of special edition print ads with UNICEF items, twenty-five percent of sales will benefit the children’s charity.
In New York, Rihanna was then enlisted by Gucci's Frida Giannini along with Madonna to light the UNICEF Christmas snowflake. Rihanna, is now the face of the fourth annual Gucci Campaign to Benefit UNICEF, which aims to raise funds for children in Africa through the sale of its Tattoo Heart collection of bags.
Discography
Awards
See also
- List of honorific titles in popular music
External links
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