After making fans wait for almost four years, Rihanna finally dropped another album.
The highly anticipated “Anti,” released on Jan. 28, made fans go crazy on social media. Tweet after tweet, all anyone seemed to care about was that Rihanna’s absence on the music scene was finally over. The self-titled “bad gal” finally put her fans out of their misery, as the album leaked, and Tidal officially released it. The album went straight to number one, and the Recording Industry Association of America even certified it platinum. But did “Anti” live up to the hype?
Truthfully speaking, the first listen to the album is disappointing. The songs are weird and lacked her usual catchiness. The only fun track is “Work”, featuring Drake, and it’s reminiscent of Rihanna’s Caribbean upbringing. The two can do no wrong when they decide to collaborate, so the fact that the song was an instant hit came as no surprise.
However, a second listening to the album changes everything. “Love on the Brain” and “Close to You” displayed the Bajan’s raspy but melodic voice, and “Pose” serves as a reminder that Rihanna is still the “bad gal” of the music industry. With lines such as “All my haters so so broke,” we get a glimpse of that playful cockiness that fans love about her.
The album is composed differently than anything fans have ever heard from the singer. “Anti” still has her style and swagger, but the album, like almost everything Rihanna, pushes the boundaries, as some songs are a Travis Scott-esque: a mixture of heavy metal and hip-hop, which is an interesting combination.
Unfortunately, “Anti” lacks the lyrical impact that her previous album, “Unapologetic,” had. “Unapologetic” was all about conveying emotions through her words, which is why songs such as “Stay” and “Diamonds” did so well. With this album, few songs tap into the listener’s emotions with lyrical complexity. Instead, the emotions in this album are found in the bass guitars and percussions, as Rihanna uses the acoustics and melody to give her album the kind of depth we usually expect from lyrics.
Even though the album is bursting with rhythm, fans won’t hear any of these songs in the club anytime soon. “Work” is probably the only song that DJs will play from the album, which probably means that Rihanna purposefully didn’t want “Anti” to be a mainstream album. Instead, the album is filled with gothic undertones and sexual innuendos that definitely take some getting used to.
This album won’t make non-fans of Rihanna reconsider, but, for the “Navy,” this is just Rihanna exercising her right to be artistic. The album didn’t live up to its hype, and this isn’t her best work. It was only released a few weeks ago, and the buzz surrounding the album is already dying down.
This album won’t add any awards to Rihanna’s collection, but fans must be thankful she finally released it.
