Rated R; Rihanna

If there is one album that can be easily mistaken for a dud, it has to be Rated R. Like many I gave this album one listen and declared Rihanna's career over. However the few tracks that got me grooving made me listen to the album again. It was then that I realized that this album is actually a grower.

Rated R is one of the most edgiest records I've ever heard. Rihanna has definitely made an exit from her previous musical style when she was all about making club bangers and dance floor anthems. This time around she has kept the album much more intimate and I think that's why many fail to feel the album at the first listen.

While the song are indeed much different from what Rihanna has done before, are they related in anyway to the bashing incidence at the 2009 Grammys?! Can't say. Related or not, the songs are clearly awesome and something completely new. I'm glad she changed her style. With GaGa being the new dance queen, Rihanna needed to advance to something bigger and better. Lo behold, we have Rated R.

The track listing is as follows;

1. 
   
   Mad House
   
   
   
2. 
   
   Wait Your Turn
   
   
   
3. 
   
   Hard ft. Young Jeezy
   
   
   
4. 
   
   Stupid in Love
   
   
   
5. 
   
   Rockstar 101 ft. Slash
   
   
   
6. 
   
   Russian Roulette
   
   
   
7. 
   
   Firebomb
   
   
   
8. 
   
   Rude Boy
   
   
   
9. 
   
   Photographs ft. Will.i.am
   
   
   
10. 
    
    G4L
    
    
    
11. 
    
    Te Amo
    
    
    
12. 
    
    Cold Case Love
    
    
    
13. 
    
    The Last Song
    
    
    
14. 
    
    Hole in My Head ft. Justin Timberlake
    

I became a fan of Rihanna because of her dance anthems and I was never a fan of her ballads. The only slow tempo song I ever liked from her was 'Unfaithful' from her second album A Girl Like Me. However this time round, its the ballads that I'm really crazy about. 'Stupid in Love', 'Russian Roulette', 'Firebomb', 'Te Amo' and 'The Last Song' are some of my favorite tracks of the record. 'Firebomb' and 'The Last Song' are especially really good tracks. I instantly took a liking to them and played them non-stop for a couple of days on my iTunes.

'Cold Case Love' is another ballad, however it didn't quite appear to me as a song that would suit Rihanna. There is something about that song that puts me in a slumber. It's a sleeper. Nothing memorable about it! And it is also, in my opinion, one of the weak spots off the record. Rihanna can most definitely do alot better than this.

This time round, there hasn't been alot of hip hop on the record. Frankly speaking, this was a very smart move on Rihanna's part. 'Wait Your Turn', 'Rockstar 101' and 'G4L' are all hip hop songs and they get old fast. 'Rockstar' is one of the most annoying songs I've ever heard and there is absolutely nothing about it that appeals to me. Given the fact that she tells the listener to frisk her under-garments is another complete turn-off. 'G4L' which translates to 'Gangster for Life' is a complete mafia song, where Rihanna tells how she can mess up anyone who tries to mess with her and how she's got a whole gang of mobsters backing her. I know she's going for a more dark and fierce image this time, but why the voilence?!

'Hard' and 'Rude Boy' are two extremely strong acts. The chorus will drive you crazy with the repetitive lines but before they can manage to do that, they will have you addicted to them. It's no surprise, they were chosen as the second and third single off the album. 'Rude Boy' is most definitely my favorite track of the record. Here we see the sassy, sultry, out-for-the-kill Rihanna once again. These types of track in my opinion have always been Rihanna's forte. She simply can't go wrong with them.

'Hole in My Head' is another track along these lines. And further more, it is a JT collab. While JT may not be producing any new music, but his collaborations are always piping hot. 'Love Sex Magic' by Ciara and '4 Minutes' by Madonna are still going strong on my personal charts. Justin definitely brings out the sassyness of Rihanna in one of the most amazing collective effort tracks of 2009. Too bad it is a bonus track, it can easily outshine 'Rockstar 101' and 'Cold Case Love'.

'Photographs' is another track. It's likeable enough but there is nothing amazing about it. You listen a few times and then your done with it. But it maybe different if you are a huge fan of Will.i.am. For me, it gets a slightly above average rating.

'Rated R' is definitely Rihanna's strongest effort to date. Surprisingly there is news circulating that she will be putting out another album this summer. I hope it's true. But I want her to more mature and not to regress back to the Good Girl Gone Bad era. Till next time, peeps!