Barely a year since she released her Album of the Year grammy-nominated, Loud and while she was on her international Loud tour, Rihanna managed to still get in the studio to record a new album called Talk That Talk. The new album was sparked off by the Calvin Harris produced We Found Love, which has also become Rihanna's 11th number-one record on the USA Hot 100 singles chart, which is a true testament that she has become one of music's most commercial and bankable popstars because it seems that every song releases automatically becomes a hit.
Talk That Talk is a pretty enjoyable album, but in my opinion the formula remains the same as her last two albums. From the reggae/dubstep inspired sounds on You Da One and Talk That Talk(featuring Jay-Z) to the international crossover pop appeal on songs like Where Have You Been and the aforementioned first single, while still trying to maintain an urban edge on a song like Roc Me Out. Where this this album differs is that Riri does not hold back, this might be her most risque album due to the sexual references on songs like Birthday Cake and Cockiness (Love It) which I love, but I just hope she has edited versions for younger listeners because I don't want to imagine them singing the lyrics at her concerts. A song that sounds so much like her Rated R cut Te Amo but I still think it happens to be the best song on this album is Drunk On Love, songwriter Ester Dean and producing duo Stargate created what I might call the best Rihanna song ever made.
One thing is for sure, Rihanna has mastered her craft as an artist that is able to choose songs that are radio friendly and digitally consuming, which is why she has been able to rack up 11 number-one hits in a 6 year career. However, I think she still has a lot to prove as an artist with regards to being a vocalist and songwriter. We still haven't heard that she has written any songs or proved herself to be a vocally strong individual but she will always remain a guilty pleasure and an itunes darling.
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