Rihanna (6 page)

RiRi must have consumed a lot of peppermint tea during her tour: if she has a hectic day and knows she’ll be performing later, she drinks peppermint tea because it soothes her vocal cords. She loves performing for her fans, however, and enjoys it much more than performing at big awards shows.

This tour showed off how sexy Rihanna can be, and she wore several leather outfits which some people at the time thought were too revealing. She had totally changed her image from her first tour. Reviewers generally liked the
show, and Jason Macneil from the Canadian Online Explorer wrote in his review of the Toronto show: ‘The singer made a rather eye-popping impression, opening with “Pon de Replay” and clad in a sexy, dominatrix-like studded black leather ensemble.

‘Supported by four dancers and a six-piece band, the performer did a bit of choreographed dance steps during the set but relied mainly on slick, radio-friendly hooks early on with “Let Me” from her 2005 debut album,
Music of the Sun,
and “Break It Off ” from 2006’s
A Girl Like Me.
The biggest highlight was the catchy, dance-infused “Don’t Stop the Music” that had many boogieing in the aisles.’

Many reviewers felt that it wasn’t the best concert they had ever seen, but for her first full-blown world tour, Rihanna did really well. MTV’s Cheryl Leong said in her review: ‘She succeeded in getting the audience in the entire stadium on its feet to an immensely enjoyable
head-bobbing
, feet-thumping, body-swaying fest. Taking a breather from her bouncy club hits, Rihanna brought on some of her slower tracks like “Hate That I Love You” and “Unfaithful.”

‘I did enjoy myself a whole lot at the concert. It just wasn’t the most mind-blowing. Nevertheless, she did what she does best, which is to bring out an entire collection of #1 singles “live.”’

For those fans unable to see the tour, Rihanna made it available to them via the internet, when she allowed MSN Music to host a recording of the Montreal concert on its site. A DVD was also made of the Manchester concert
which was included on the deluxe version of
Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded.

In April 2009 Rihanna would begin touring again, this time as a support act on Kanye West’s ‘Glow In The Dark’ Tour.

A few weeks into ‘The Good Girl Gone Bad Tour’, she was spotted chatting to actor Josh Hartnett in the New York club, Pink Elephant. The press started saying they were an item, but this wasn’t the case at all, as Rihanna explained in an interview with
Allure
magazine: ‘This is what really happened. He and my management, they have each other’s contact information. I went to Pink Elephant, and he came by. All of a sudden, the next day I’m seeing that we were kissing and hugging each other. You can’t even go out with a friend who’s a celebrity and have a good time without people making [bleep] up. Well, at least he’s good-looking, right?’

Rihanna was so busy with the tour that she didn’t have time for a boyfriend. She was jetting off all over the place, and having a relationship wasn’t high on her priority list: when she had a day off, she just wanted to have a lie-in and then catch up on TV, not go on dates.

And she definitely didn’t need the stress that relationships can sometimes cause. In one interview she talked about a former boyfriend to
Sugar
magazine: ‘A few years ago I had a very insecure boyfriend. He kept breaking up with me for no reason, I’d cry all night and he’d just assume we would get back together the next day. Then I said “I’m not going through this anymore” and stopped returning his calls. It
took ages to get over him, but that’s when you need friends around you.’

Rihanna also had some advice for girls when it comes to dating: ‘When guys move too fast, it’s a sign they don’t see you as special. Guys have tried to get frisky with me when we don’t even know each other. Just get out of there!’

I
n February 2008, Rihanna was appointed the Youth and Cultural Ambassador for Barbados. This was an amazing honour and privilege; the only person to have previously been given the title was the sprinter and Olympic medallist Obadele Thompson, after the 2000 Olympics.

During the presentation ceremony, the proclamation was read by Steve Blackett, the Minister of Culture: ‘Whereas the Government and the people of Barbados truly acknowledge and celebrate the remarkable achievements of Robyn Rihanna Fenty; and whereas such an accomplishment has brought significant honour and deserving recognition not only to Rihanna but also to her beloved country and has elevated Barbados to the forefront of the entertainment world; and whereas this phenomenal success has come at so tender an age evoking invaluable
inspiration and motivation to youth everywhere; and whereas all Barbados stands proud in the face of this honour and gives full support to Rihanna on her continuing path; be it now proclaimed in Bridgetown, Barbados that the Government of Barbados designates Robyn Rihanna Fenty an honorary Youth and Cultural Ambassador of this country.’

As well as the title, Rihanna also received a plot of land in June of the same year, so that she would always see Barbados as her home. The land was in the Apes Hill Golf Resort area, St James, and was worth $1.2 million (approx £727,000). In giving Rihanna such a valuable piece of land, the Minister of Housing and Lands, Michael Lashley, felt the government was showing how committed they were to people who promote Barbados in the wider world. There was one condition to the gift, though: if Rihanna decided to sell the land within 15 years, she would have to pay the government $100,000, as that was what they themselves had paid for the land. Some politicians disagreed with the attached condition and felt that the gift should have none: if Rihanna decided to sell it, then so be it.

Since becoming Youth and Cultural Ambassador for Barbados, Rihanna has helped to bring many thousands of tourists to visit the country who wouldn’t necessarily have considered holidaying there, and she has considerably boosted the international profile of her home country by thanking the people of Barbados in various awards speeches and interviews.

Some Bajans (people who are native to Barbados) are jealous of her, though, and write negative things about the singer in blogs and on websites. They don’t approve of some of the things Rihanna does, and want her to stop wearing such revealing clothes in her videos. Rihanna tries to avoid looking at these negative blogs, because reading hurtful comments upsets her too much. As far as she is concerned, she is comfortable with what she wears and that’s all that matters. After all, she’s not hurting anyone. If her mum had a problem with the way she dressed, most probably she would cover herself up, but Monica is fully supportive and proud that she is her daughter.

W
hen Ne-Yo first wrote ‘Take A Bow', Rihanna was overwhelmed, and she knew she had to be the one to record it. She wanted to create an anthem for women, and liked the idea of having a song which had the man as the cheater and the woman staying strong. Rihanna was able to draw on her own experiences, too: when she was a teenager, a boyfriend did the same to her.

‘Take A Bow' was the first single to be released from
Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded
(it was also the fifth single overall from
Good Girl Gone Bad
). Released on 15 April 2008 in the US (and 12 May in the UK), it went straight to the top of the charts in many countries. It was No. 1 in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Denmark and Slovakia, No. 3 in Australia and reached No. 6 in Austria and Germany.

The video was filmed in Venice, Italy, and was again
directed by Anthony Mandler. It shows Rihanna's former boyfriend trying to apologise for cheating on her in the hope that she'll take him back. She won't accept his apology because she doesn't think he's sorry about cheating on her, just sorry she caught him. After staying in her house for a while (with him outside), she decides to drive off in her car but later returns and tells him to meet her there. When he arrives, she sets fire to some of his clothes (which are on the table) and leaves, not looking back.

Critics loved the track, and Chuck Taylor from
Billboard
magazine wrote in his review: ‘With superstars Stargate and Ne-Yo at the helm, the velvety ballad ticks along with well-applied piano and strings, as the instantly recognizable singer delivers a convincingly bemused vocal, complete with haughty laugh.'

It was nominated for two awards at the MTV Video Music Awards 2008, Best Female Video and Best Direction. Sadly, it lost out both times, as the award for Best Female Video went to Britney Spears for ‘Piece Of Me', and Best Direction was given to Erykah Badu for ‘Honey'.

Rihanna collaborated with Maroon 5 on the track ‘If I Never See Your Face Again', and this appeared on
Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded.
Maroon 5 had already recorded their own version of the song, which was included on their 2007 album,
It Won't Be Soon Before Long
, but they wanted to try something different with Rihanna. In fact, they liked her version so much that they released it as a single, rather than releasing their original version, and added it to the
re-release
version of their album, too.

The song was released on 26 May 2008 in the US and then a month later in the UK. It charted at No. 57 in the US charts and No. 28 in the UK. Worldwide, it did best in Australia and Holland, where it charted at No. 11.

The Rihanna version of ‘If I Never See Your Face Again' is sung as a duel between a man and a woman. She was eager to be on the record because the band were friends of hers, she rated their music and liked the song. She told IGN: ‘I've always been a fan of Maroon 5. I love the energy of the song and the lyrics are badass, so I was psyched to do it.

‘[Filming the video] was fun, but it was difficult to get serious for the seductive scenes because Adam and I are friends. We would burst out laughing on every other shot – that was the best part.'

The video was directed by Anthony Mandler and they shot it in Castaic, Los Angeles. It was set completely indoors and the team wanted it to have an 80s glam feel. Throughout, Rihanna and Adam Levine flirt on a couch, bed and at a table but at the end of the video, Adam grabs her by the hair.

Fans of both Rihanna and Maroon 5 loved the video, and it was nominated for the Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals Grammy, but eventually lost out to Robert Plant and Alison Krauss's ‘Rich Woman'.

‘Disturbia' was the third single Rihanna released from
Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded
, and it came out in July 2008. It was written by Chris Brown, Andre Merritt, Brian Kennedy and Robert Allen, and was originally penned for a male voice. Rihanna was in the studio opposite when the
guys were writing the song, and when she first heard it, she told them she wanted it. They never expected her to want to record a synthpop song: if she hadn't been there at that precise time, she might never have had the opportunity. Brown and Merritt recorded backing vocals for the track.

It topped the charts in the US, Belgium and New Zealand, reached No. 2 in Canada and Finland, and was No. 3 in the UK, Norway and France. Many critics felt that it was one of Rihanna's best songs ever, and it became the first of her tracks to go triple-platinum.

The song is about being frightened, and for the video, Rihanna and Anthony Mandler decided to set it in a torture chamber. They directed it together, and Rihanna wore white contact lenses to cover her irises and pupils in some scenes. She caresses a mannequin, she has tarantulas placed all over her body, and she gets tied up and chained up, too!

Yet again Rihanna was nominated for a Grammy but this time lost out to Daft Punk for their track ‘Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger', which was named Best Dance Recording. She did win the award for Best International Song at the NRJ Music Awards in France, but when the Pussycat Dolls announced the winner, they said it was Katy Perry for ‘I Kissed A Girl' instead. With ‘Disturbia' playing in the background, poor Katy came on stage and gave a speech… only to find out later in the night that Rihanna was the real winner!

R
ihanna might have sold millions of records, but at this point in her career, she wasn’t a millionaire by any stretch of the imagination. Like many singers in her position, she allowed others to sort out her finances and instead concentrated on making great records. According to the website blackarazzi.com, she fired her business manager, Patricia Williams, accusing her of stealing after she discovered how little there actually was in the bank.

Blackarazzi.com claimed Patricia Williams felt that she had to set the record straight. She said: ‘It’s not my fault that she only has $20,000 to her name. I have worked for many high-profile actors, musicians and multi-million dollar corporations. Why would I steal from Rihanna?

‘I showed her all the paperwork and tried to explain the circumstances to her, but she wouldn’t listen. She called me
all sorts of horrible names and stormed off. I now feel compelled to share with the world the background story, as I will not allow my name to be slandered.

‘Def Jam doesn’t fund Rihanna properly, so Marc [her manager] uses the money Rihanna makes from
third-party
endorsements and from tours to fund her album and music videos.

‘I don’t want to disrespect Marc’s name. He is a fantastic manager and genuinely believes in Rihanna, but he uses her money to fund her future projects because he believes he can break her in the world market. Her album sales are not nearly as close to her single sales and he knows that if she is only known as a “singles artist” she will only be as good as her last hit. Unfortunately, he didn’t inform his client and I’m receiving the brunt of it.’

There was no official statement from Rihanna’s management in response to either the article or the claims being made about how little RiRi actually had in the bank.

Rihanna collaborated with the rapper T.I. on his track ‘Live Your Life’, which was released in September 2008 in the US and November 2008 in the UK. It had been leaked online shortly before its release. Their track samples ‘Dragostea din tei’, by the band O-Zone.

Rihanna and T.I first performed it together on 7 September 2008, at the MTV Video Music Awards. It charted at No. 1 in the US, giving Rihanna her fifth USA No. 1 and T.I his third; it also made No. 1 in New Zealand,
No. 2 in the UK, No. 3 in Australia and Ireland, No. 4 in Canada and No. 5 in Austria and Holland.

The video was directed by Anthony Madler and plays backwards, with the start of the action being T.I battered and bloody at 6.33pm, and working backwards to 4.41pm to show what happened to him. Rihanna plays a singer, and the producer of the song, ‘Just Blaze’, makes a brief appearance as a man playing pool.

It won them a BET Award for ‘Viewers Choice’ and T.I also picked up the Best Male Video award at the MTV Video Music Awards. At the BET Hip Hop Awards, it scooped two awards: ‘Best Hip Hop Collaboration’ and ‘Best Hip Hop Video’.

When Rihanna was invited by L.A Reid to sing on the ‘Just Stand Up’ record, she couldn’t say no. She felt she had to be involved in the single, which raised money for the ‘Stand Up To Cancer’ charity, and joined forces with Beyoncé, Carrie Underwood, Sheryl Crow, Fergie, Leona Lewis, Keyshia Cole, Miley Cyrus, LeAnn Rimes, Natasha Bedingfield, Melissa Etheridge, Mary J. Blige, Ciara, Mariah Carey and Ashanti. Rihanna loves supporting charitable causes in whichever way she can.

Their single was released on 21 August 2008 and they also performed it on the ‘Stand Up To Cancer’ show, which aired on 5 September in the US. For the live performance, Nicole Scherzinger joined the group and sang Sheryl Crow’s part, with the other girls covering for LeAnn Rimes and Melissa Etheridge, who were also missing. No video for the single was ever made, but it did well in the
charts, reaching No. 11 in the US charts, No. 1 in the UK and No. 10 in Canada.

On 6 October 2008, Rihanna released the last single from her
Good Girl Gone Bad
album. ‘Rehab’ was released in the UK two months later. Charting at No. 18 in the US and No. 16 in the UK, it did better elsewhere: it was No. 3 in Holland, No. 4 in Germany and Norway, and No. 6 in Belgium.

Justin Timberlake and Timbaland wrote the track for Rihanna back in 2007. Timbaland went on to produce it alongside Hannon Lane, and Justin Timberlake appeared in the video as Rihanna’s love interest. The track was actually one of Rihanna’s favourites from the
Good Girl Gone Bad
album.

Rihanna explained how the track came about to EW.com: ‘Well, Timbaland was on tour with Justin and we had to follow Timbaland, really. So we went to Chicago first and one night after the show, Justin just came into the studio and he started messing around, making a beat. And it was fun. We played around with that one, too. And when we came to New York, Justin came back to the studio and he was like, “I wanna write this song for Rihanna.” So Timbaland had an idea and he knew he wanted to call the song “Rehab” and he had a beat. So then Justin Timberlake came in and he just put his thing on it. He wrote the song in his head, he didn’t write anything on paper. He went into the booth and sang it, and I was very, very impressed. We all loved it.’

She went on to describe the track: ‘“Rehab” is a
metaphorical song. “Rehab” really just means, “we have to get over the guy”. So we talk about checking ourselves into rehab, meaning we have to get over him. And we compare the guy to a disease or an addiction. We’re just saying, “We don’t wanna smoke any cigarettes no more,” meaning we don’t wanna deal with this (rubbish) anymore.’

They filmed the video at Vasquez Rocks Nature Area Park in California, and it was another video directed by Anthony Mandler. Some photos from the shoot were eventually leaked, and several websites suggested that Timberlake’s girlfriend at the time (Jessica Biel) was jealous of the chemistry between Justin and Rihanna.

In the video Rihanna leans up against a vintage car in the middle of the desert. Justin arrives on a motorbike, then has an outdoor shower before approaching Rihanna. They get close a few times in the video, and Rihanna wears some gorgeous outfits while singing how he is like a drug to her. The video was a big hit and was awarded ‘Best Music Video’ at the Urban Music Awards, while Rihanna was named ‘Best Female Artist’.

In the Digital Spy review, the journalist David Balls comments: ‘The pop pair put in such a highly charged, effortlessly sexual display that it’s no surprise Justin’s lady was far from happy.’

Carol Han from fashion site StyleCaster commented: ‘Rihanna’s brand new music video for her single “Rehab” was just released today, and it literally left me breathless. The only thing that had me more mesmerized than the sight of
Justin Timberlake drenching himself in water, all
scruffy-faced
and hot, was the sight of Rihanna’s amazing green bathing suit.’