In the blink of an eye, Rihanna has released her seventh studio album, Unapologetic, the follow-up to her 2011 release, Talk That Talk. The standard version of the album, composed of 14 tracks, includes collaborations from Eminem, Chris Brown, David Guetta, Mikky Ekko, and Future.
She kicks off the album with a ratchet club banger titled “Phresh Off Da Runway,” produced by David Guetta and The-Dream. Rihanna gets bold on the bass-driven track, using profanity as often as possible. “How could you be so hood, but you so f*cking pop,” Rihanna says. Other bass-heavy club bangers include “Numb,” featuring Eminem and “Pour It Up.” These tracks really don’t add substance to the album, although party-goers may find these songs to be amazing.
The most annoying yet catchy song on the album is “Loveeeee Song,” featuring Future. The pre-chorus and chorus will have you singing along. But, Future’s voice is just annoying as hell in this song. He confuses me. Is he a singer or rapper? Whichever is the case, he sounds like a dying dog and could have been left off the song.
There are light moments on the album, though. “Nobody’s Business” featuring Chris Brown is a standout track and is probably the best song on the album. On the Carlos McKinnley and The-Dream penned track, which samples Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel,” Rihanna and Chris tell haters, when it comes to their personal lives, mind their business! “ ‘Nobody’s Business’ is basically the way I look at everything regarding my personal life,” Rihanna told Andy Cohen on Facebook Live.
Ballads such as “Diamonds” (written by Sia Furler, Benjamin Levin, Mikkel Eriksen, and Tor Hermansen); “Stay” (written by Mikky Ekko, Justin Parker, and Elof Loelv); “What Now” (written by Olivia Waithe, Parker Ighile, and Nathan Cassells); and “Love Without Tragedy-Mother Mary” (written by The-Dream and Carlos McKinnley;) prove that Rihanna knows how to enlist great songwriters to help add substance to an album.
Unapologetic may leave a little to be desired, but the effort deserves a “C” for satisfactory. If Rihanna took out the filler tracks, it could have been a successful five-song EP.
Standout tracks: “Diamonds,” “Stay,” Nobody’s Business,” and “Loveeeee Song”
