Rihanna – Unapologetic

Text: Sherman Yang

Rihanna starts off big with opening track ‘Phresh Out The Runway’, a massively bass heavy track which might give you a headache after a while. If you’re one for such music however, the head-banging track could very well become your new rave song for the year. Do look out for the other party tracks as well like ‘Jump’ and ‘Right Now’ which have breakdowns that would make people go wild.

Rihanna shines brightly with the first single from the album, ‘Diamonds’ giving her her twelfth Number 1 single on the Billboard charts. The song is an emotional ballad which grows on you the more you listen to it.

A little surprise on the album is ‘Nobody’s Business’, a duet with Chris Brown. The track is an old school pop track which sounds a little Jackson-esque (partly because the lyrics from ‘The Way You Make Me Feel’ are incorporated into the song). While it is difficult to find fault with the song itself, the two artistes sing a duet about love just generates too much judgemental thoughts about the pair’s relationship. Maybe that’s what they’re trying to prove, it’s nobody’s business.

The album has a nice healthy share of slower ballads like ‘Get It Over With’ and ‘Love Without Tragedy/ Mother Mary’. The latter being a 7 minute emotional track that seems to tell the story of Rihanna’s life ending with the lyrics, ‘I’m prepared to die in the moment’.

Rihanna has definitely outdone herself with this album and it’s no wonder she’s finally gotten the elusive #1 on the Billboard 200.

Recommended tracks: ‘Phresh Out The Runway’, ‘Diamonds’, ‘Love Without Tragedy / Mother Mary’ 

Rating: 4.5/5