Rihanna
Rapidly
rising to international stardom in just five short years, Rihanna has become
one the biggest contemporary R&B acts on the scene today. Christened Robyn
Rihanna Fenty, she was born and raised in Barbados, only moving to the USA at
the age of 16 to pursue her music career. After being signed by Def Jam on the
strength of a demo tape, she has since gone on to record four albums, land four
US number one singles, and win three Grammy awards, all in the space of half a
decade.
The eldest of three siblings born to a warehouse manager and an accountant, Rihanna’s start in life was humble and often traumatic. Her father’s addiction to crack cocaine put great pressure on Rihanna’s family, resulting in her parents’ eventual separation when she was just 14. However, this was difficult time was quickly followed by a dramatic turn in fortunes for the young star-in-waiting. In 2003, aged 15, she formed a girl group with two of her classmates, and later that year was introduced to record producer Evan Rogers, who was holidaying in Barbados with his wife, who was spellbound by what he saw. Under a year later, she had relocated to the USA under Rogers’ watchful eye, and began work on a demo tape. Eventually completed a year later after she had finished her school tuition, the demo tape made it to Def Jam and Jay-Z, who invited her to audition. After witnessing her talent in person, Jay-Z immediately signed her to the label.
After signing to Def Jam, she quickly recorded her first album, “Music of the Sun”, which was released in August 2005. Also the critical reaction was mixed, the public response to her music was intense and immediate. Her debut single, “Pon de Replay”, shot to number two on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually becoming an international smash that made the top ten in fifteen countries across the globe. Off the back of this success, her album sold 69,000 copies in the first week alone, and eventually sold over two million copies worldwide. A star was born, and this star was not resting on her laurels. A mere month after the release of “Music of the Sun”, Rihanna began work on her second album, “A Girl Like Me”. Released in April 2006, only eight months after her debut, it featured her first number one single in “SOS”, as well as two other top ten hits in “Unfaithul” and “Break It Off”, the latter featuring Jamaican rapper Sean Paul.
Following a period of worldwide touring, Rihanna released her third album, “Good Girl Gone Bad”, in June 2007. The album was yet another success for the young singer, featuring eight hit singles including the worldwide smash “Umbrella”, featuring Jay-Z, which held the UK number one slot for ten consecutive weeks. The album was such a success that it was re-issued a year later, under the title “Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded”. After a bad start to 2009, when she was infamously assaulted by her then-boyfriend Chris Brown, Rihanna ended the year on a high with the release of her fourth album, “Rated R”, in November 2009. The album yielded her sixth US number one in “Rude Boy”, which also made the top ten in the UK and three other countries. Her accompanying “Rated R Tour” is due to commence in April 2010, and knowing Rihanna, it won’t be too long before her next hit album is ready for release. This is one hard-working musician who will surely be recording music for a long time to come.
