Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Rihanna
Background information
Birth name Robyn Rihanna Fenty
Born February 20, 1988 (age 20)
Origin Saint Michael, Barbados
R&B, Pop, reggae, dance-pop, electronica,
Genre(s)
electropop, dancehall
Singer, model, fashion designer, music
Occupation(s)
director
Years active 2005–present
Label(s) Def Jam Recordings
Associated Ne-Yo, Jay-Z, Chris Brown, Maroon 5,
acts Justin Timberlake, T. I., Timbaland
Website Official Site
Rihanna (born Robyn Rihanna Fenty; February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer,
model, fashion designer . She is the second artist, and first female, from Barbados to
have received a Grammy Award[1][2][3] (the first being Jimmy Senya Haynes).[4] Rihanna
is currently signed to the Def Jam Recordings label.[5] She has attained four Billboard
Hot 100 number ones thus far ("SOS", "Umbrella", "Take a Bow", and "Disturbia"),
tying her with Mariah Carey and Beyonce as the female solo artist with the most
number ones this decade.[6]
Rihanna came to fame in 2005 with the release of her debut album Music of the Sun,
which featured her breakthrough single "Pon de Replay". Less than a year later, Rihanna
released A Girl Like Me and gave her first number one single, "SOS". In 2007, Rihanna
released her third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad. The album has yielded six hit
singles including three worldwide number one singles "Umbrella", "Don't Stop the
Music" and "Take A Bow". Since the release of her debut album, Rihanna has amassed
eleven top 40 hit singles in the U.S.[7]
Biography
Rihanna was born in Saint Michael, Barbados to Ronald Fenty of Barbados and Monica
Fenty, who is of Guyanese descent.[8][9] She has two younger brothers, Rorrey and Rajad
Fenty.
Rihanna cites Brandy, Beyoncé Knowles, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Bob
Marley, Madonna and her Caribbean background as major musical influences.[10][11][12]
Rihanna also stated in a recent interview that former Island Def Jam record label artist
Fefe Dobson was someone whom she admired and looked up to, having a fellow artist
writing, singing, and performing the music she truly loves.[13][14][15]
Music career
2005–2006: Music of the Sun
Rihanna's debut album, Music of the Sun, was released on August 30, 2005, yielding
two singles, the first being "Pon de Replay" which was released on August 22, 2005.
This single became a huge success upon its release peaking at number 2 in the US on
Billboard Hot 100 charts.[16] It also became a global hit where it peaked within the top
10 across 15 countries as well as achieving top 20 chartings on 20 charts around the
world.[16] The single written by Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers was described by Rolling
Stone magazine as a "poppy piece of dancehall reggae with slapping, syncopated beats
recalling big-band jazz." [17] However, despite "Pon de Replays" commercial chart
success, the album itself was rated 2.5 out of 5 stars by Rolling Stone Magazine 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". Since its
release, the album reached the top 10 in both US and Canadian charts, gaining gold
certification from the RIAA from selling 500,000 units and subsequent platinum
certifications for selling 2 million units in various other countries.
The second single "If It's Lovin' That You Want" was less successful than "Pon de
Replay", but it became a hit nonetheless by managing to achieve a top 40 charting in the
USA reaching a high of number 36. In Australia, Ireland and New Zealand the single
proved to be well-received reaching the top 10 in those countries. Overall the single
became a top 40 hit on 11 charts around the globe. Despite the album not having huge
promotion and only releasing two singles Music of the Sun managed to sell over
500,000 copies in the United States and 2 million worldwide.[18]
When asked about the nature of the album by AskMen Magazine about the album itself,
Rihanna noted that it was released quickly after she was discovered in her home as a
means of portraying her image as a girl from a small area who had moved to a large
country in line with her debut, and that her second album was released somewhat
shortly thereafter to illustrate that in her time in the country she had grown up quickly
enough to release another album.
2006–2007: A Girl like Me
Rihanna second album, A Girl Like Me, was released in April 2006; less than eight
months after the release of her first album. The lead single, "SOS", was used in an
endorsement deal with Nike. The song became Rihanna's first number-one on the
Billboard Hot 100 chart; it also debuted at number one on the Hot Digital Songs chart.
"SOS" peaked at number one in Australia and number two in the UK. The second
single, entitled "Unfaithful", was written by R&B singer Ne-Yo. The song became her
third top ten hit in the U.S. and in the UK. The third single, "We Ride", wasn't as
successful as her previous releases, failing to chart on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100,
however, it became her fifth UK top 20 single, where it peaked at number 17 on that
chart and peaked at number one on the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play chart. Rihanna's
fourth single from the album, "Break It Off" featuring Sean Paul, had already climbed to
number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 based solely on airplay. It was released as a digital
download on February 19, 2007, which made the song jump from number fifty-two to
number ten and then eventually peak at number nine. A Girl like Me's sales were
significantly stronger, selling over 1 million in the U.S and over 3.5 million
worldwide.[19][20][21]
In total, Rihanna has had eleven number-ones on the Billboard charts and has had major
success on the Hot Dance Club Play chart with four number-ones ("Pon De Replay",
"SOS", "Unfaithful", and "We Ride"). 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 also made her acting debut in a cameo role in Bring It On: All
or Nothing, which was released on August 8, 2006.
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, features Jay-Z and Ne-Yo. Rihanna worked with Timbaland on three songs in
the album. Justin Timberlake co-wrote and provides background vocals on "Rehab".[22]
The album so far has yielded five hit singles, including the world-wide number one hit
"Umbrella", featuring Jay-Z. In addition to reaching number one in various countries,
"Umbrella" was the number one single in the UK for 10 consecutive weeks, making it
the longest running UK number one single since Wet Wet Wet's single "Love Is All
Around", back in 1994, and the longest running number one by a female artist since
Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You", which also topped the chart for 10 weeks
in 1992. By the end of the year, "Umbrella" was ranked second on the Billboard Hot
100 year-end chart in the United States;[23] however, due to the song's world-wide chart
dominance it was named the most successful song in the world for 2007, getting
8,160,000 points on the United World Chart.[24]
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, becoming Rihanna's seventh top ten single and her fourth top five
hit, while peaking at number one in various countries, including the United World
Chart. The fourth single (third single in the US and UK) "Hate That I Love You",
featuring Ne-Yo, was able to peak at number seven in the U.S.
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 called
the Good Girl Gone Bad Tour, and was released on DVD on June 17, 2008, featuring
the show performed at the Manchester Evening News Arena on December 6, 2007.
Rihanna premiered a new single, "Take a Bow", on KIIS-FM's On Air with Ryan
Seacrest. The song was backed by the re-issue of her third album, titled Good Girl
Gone Bad: Reloaded, which was released on June 17, 2008.[25] It peaked at number one
on the Hot 100 and on the UK Singles Chart, as well as numerous other countries. Good
Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded also includes Rihanna's duet with Maroon 5, "If I Never See
Your Face Again" and her newest US single, "Disturbia".
Future projects
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.[26] She went on the
Glow In The Dark Tour with Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D.[27]
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,[28] but on the Ryan Seacrest
show Rihanna said "I am not in the studio yet, Not yet no, We're not gonna have an
album out this year, probably the top of next year in 2009."[citation needed] In the near future,
Rihanna is scheduled to work with Ryan Tedder who named her as 'The Next
Britney'.[29] Rihanna will be a godmother of the eight season of Star Academy France.[30]
Charity work
Rihanna created her Believe Foundation[31] in 2006 to help terminally ill children.
Rihanna has performed a number of concerts to raise funds for both charities and the
Foundation. After her performances, she met children from the local charities, signing
autographs and posing for pictures with her young fans. She explains her reasons for
starting the Foundation, "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."[32]
From taking time out for little acts of kindness, such as signing a games console for an
auction benefiting Mission Australia, her commitment to helping children has extended
to becoming a 2008 Cartier LOVECHARITY Bracelet Ambassador, performing at
Madonna’s Raising Malawi fundraiser, and even using her fame to help a mother of two
find a bone marrow donor.[33]
Filmography
• 2006 - Bring It On: All or Nothing.... As Herself
• 2009 - Mama Black Widow.... Carol Tilson
Television
• 2006 -Punk'd
Discography
This is a comprehensive listing of official releases by Rihanna, a Barbadian pop
singer. Rihanna has released three studio albums, thirteen singles, and twelve music
videos on her record label Def Jam.
Rihanna's debut album Music of the Sun was released in August 2005, and sold over a
million copies worldwide.[1] It produced the top five single "Pon de Replay", which was
certified Gold in 2006.[2] Her second album A Girl like Me was released the following
year and enjoyed international chart success. The album's lead single "SOS" reached
number one in the U.S. and the song "Unfaithful" won "Best International Song" at the
NRJ Music Awards in 2007.[3] Good Girl Gone Bad, Rihanna's third album, was
released in June 2007 and has sold over 5.5 million copies becoming her best selling
album to date. Rihanna has sold over 10.8 million albums worldwide, and over 3.4
million in the U.S. She has also had seven number-one singles on the Billboard Hot
Dance Club Play chart and five number-ones on the Billboard Hot Dance Airplay.
Albums
Studio albums
Chart positions
Year Title Sales/certification
U.S. CAN UK GER FRA NZ JAP AUS
• RIAA
certification:
Music of the Sun Gold
• US sales:
2005 • 1st studio album 10 7 35 31 93 28 14 — 500,000+
EPs
• 2006: Sessions@AOL
1. "SOS"
2. "If It's Lovin' That You Want"
3. "Unfaithful"
4. "Pon de Replay"
• 2007: Sessions@AOL
1. "Umbrella"
2. "Shut Up and Drive"
3. "Unfaithful"
4. "SOS"
DVD
• Good Girl Gone Bad Live
o Release: June 13, 2008 (EUR), June 14, 2008 (US)
• Barbadian Superstardom
Singles
Chart positions
Ye Albu
Single U. U
ar U.S. m
W U. S. .S. U AU N IR CA GE FR SU CR AU IS PO NO NE E BR
Airp
W S. po dan K S Z E N R A I O T R L R T U A
lay
p ce
"Pon
de
3 2 2 1 1 2 6 1 2 7 6 18 3 3 5 2 2 3 18 2 —
Replay
"
Musi
20 c of
05 the
"If It's
Sun
Lovin'
That 34 36 15 — — 11 9 9 8 48 25 — 19 10 31 10 2 — 17 35 —
You
Want"
"SOS" 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 3 3 2 2 12 3 1 4 2 1 3 4 1 22
"Unfai
4 6 4 1 1 2 2 4 2 1 2 7 1 2 2 1 1 2 4 1 —
thful"
A
20 "We 1 Girl
06 Ride" — — 84 1 —
7
24 7 17 45 45 — 42 11 — 15 24 — 42 27 — like
Me
"Break
It Off" 16
(feat. 21 9 6 — — — — — — 29 — — — — — — — — — —
0
Sean
Paul)
"Umbr
ella" 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 6 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 1
(feat.
Jay-Z)
"Shut
Up 1
11 15 10 1 — 5 4 4 7 6 33 14 7 31 8 6 13 5 8 16
and 2
Drive"
20 G
"Don't
07 ood
Stop
Girl
the 1 3 2 1 1 4 1 3 6 2 1 1 1 2 1 1 2 7 1 1 1
Gon
Music
e
"
Bad
(and
Reloa
"Hate ded
That I Editio
1 n)
Love 6 7 7 — — 14 6 13 17 11 16 13 3 14 8 — — 7 8 1
You" 5
(feat.
Ne-Yo)
"Take a
1 1 2 14 7 1 3 2 1 1 6 12 7 1 6 5 7 5 3 1 1
Bow"
20
08
"Distu
3 1 1 3 4 4 8 1 4 2 — — 9 1 — 12 17 3 20 9 15
rbia"
Number-
4 4 2 7 5 2 3 2 2 3 2 1 3 3 2 3 3 1 1 5 4
one songs
Top-ten 1
8 9 10 8 7 8 9 9 8 7 3 6 10 6 10 8 7 7 9
hits 0
Top-forty 1 1
11 12 9 7 11 11 11 11 9 8 9 12 9 11 10 8 10 11
hits 2 1
Guest singles
Chart positions
A
Ye Sing
U. U lbu
ar le U.S.
W U. S. .S.
Airp
U A
NZ
IR CA GE FR SU CR AU IS PO NO NE FI PO
EU
m
W S. po dan K US E N R A I O T R L R T N R
lay
p ce
20 "Rol
— — — — — — — — — — 33 — 89 — — — — — — 8 20 — '
07 l It"
"Thr
ow
20 Your
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 20 — '
08 Han
ds
Up"
Good
Girl
"If I Gone
Nev Bad:
er Reloa
ded
See
It
Your Won't
Face 27 51 36 — — 28 11 21 16 12 — — 52 15 — 6 41 — 11 — — 75 Be
Agai Soon
n" Befor
(with e
Maro Long
on 5) :
Delu
20 xe
08
"
Just
Sta
nd
Up" Char
(wit TB 12 TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB TB ity
TBA 33
h A 0 A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A singl
Vari e
ous
Fem
ale
Artis
ts)
Other charted songs
Chart positions
Year Single Album
JAP BUL POR
Single certification
• ARIA: Australia IFPI: Austria IFPI: Germany SNEP: France NVPI: Netherlands IFPI: Norway
IFPI: Sweden IFPI: Switzerland RIAA: U.S. BPI: UK
2006
Clinique 'Get Your Happy' CD
"Just Be Happy"
sampler
Nicole
"Winning Women" Her Name Is Nicole
Scherzinger
"Where Do We Go" Razah Razah
2008
"Electric Guitar"(Album Chris Brown Graffiti
Version)
Music videos
Anthony Mandler /
"Disturbia"
Rihanna
Tours
• 2006: The Pussycat Dolls with Rihanna UK Tour
• 2006: Rock tha Block Tour
• 2007: Good Girl Gone Bad Tour
• 2008: Glow in the Dark Tour (with Kanye West, N.E.R.D, and Lupe Fiasco)
Awards
This is a comprehensive list of awards and nominations won by Rihanna, a Barbadian
singer-songwriter. Her first single led her to win three awards, following her winning
more awards for both herself and her debut album. Her second album, A Girl Like Me
(2006), was much more successful and earned her many more awards and nominations.
Good Girl Gone Bad, the third album, was the most successful album of her career. She
won Favorite Female Artist — Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards, a Best
Rap/Sung Collaboration award at the 2008 Grammy Awards, and an International
Album of the Year award at the Juno Awards. Since beginning her career, Rihanna has
received forty-three awards from seventy-eight nominations.
BET Awards
Year Nominated work Award Result
Brit Awards
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are held annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences. Rihanna has won one award from six nominations.
2008
"Don't Stop the
Best Dance Recording Nominated
Music"
Juno Awards
2008 "Good Girl Gone Bad" Album of the Year (International) Won
Other awards
Nominated
Year Title Award Result
work
20th Japan Gold Disc
New Artist of the Year Rihanna Won
Award[1]
"Shut Up and
People's Choice Awards Favorite R&B Song Won
Drive"
Premios Principales
Song of the Year "Umbrella" Won
2007
Image Awards Best Music Video "Umbrella" Nominated
Umbrella (feat.
Swiss Music Awards Best Song International Won
Jay-Z)