Features
Thursday, October 27 2011
"A Very Strong Underlying Message 4 Girls Like Me": Rihanna's "Man Down" Video
In a culture that glorifies pimping and exploiting women’s bodies for profit, Rihanna's "Man Down" sends a powerful message to both men and women about women's sexual autonomy.
Friday, April 29 2011
Dancing Till the World Ends: Why Does Contemporary Pop Love War?
The Europop renaissance in Top 40 music has ushered in a peculiar fascination with the sounds, smells and visions of war. Seeing pop as a kind of warfare, or warfare in pop, provides a psychic escape for the listener.
Tuesday, December 14 2010
The 10 Most Disappointing Albums of 2010
Considering the caliber of artistry here, some of them are major disappointments, while others were simply predictable, but failed to deliver on the off-chance hope that it could have been better.
Columns
Wednesday, January 18 2012
Gleeks and Beliebers Rejoice: In Defense of Pop
Pop music makers like Rihanna, Justin Bieber and Katy Perry may get the kiss off from critics, but really, what's the harm in getting your pop groove on to their style of music?
Reviews
Wednesday, November 30 2011
Rihanna: Talk That Talk
Is Talk That Talk actually an album? It's certainly a CD with a booklet and some music.
Monday, December 13 2010
Rihanna: Loud
After finding personal vindication in 2009's Rated R, Rihanna returns almost exactly a year later with Loud, which further taps into Rihanna's post-Brown themes: sexuality and female empowerment.
Thursday, December 10 2009
Rihanna: Rated R
At the heart of Rated R lies a common misconception: that slower songs are more emotional and more powerful, that big ballads say more about a singer's soul than, say, an R&B club hit.
Tuesday, June 26 2007
Rihanna: Good Girl Gone Bad
The midyear 2007 rankings in Female Rhythm & Pop: 1. Beyoncé, 2. Rihanna... Wait. What? Rihanna?!
Thursday, June 1 2006
Rihanna: A Girl Like Me
The Bajan Princess of the dancehall can "break it up" like nobody's business. And when you can drop it like it's on fire, there's no need to cool it off.
Blogs
Tuesday, November 17 2009
Jay-Z and Rihanna Live in London (video)
R&B superstar Rihanna formally launched her new album, Rated R, last night in London. The album drops last week and she played her first live…
News
Tuesday, November 22 2011
Rihanna can ‘Talk That Talk,’ but can she walk the walk?
LOS ANGELES — Were she willing to tip her hand a little earlier, Rihanna might have considered kicking off her new album, “Talk That Talk,”…
Thursday, December 3 2009
Chris Brown's answer to Rihanna album a puzzling mix of accusations, partying
Two weeks ago, Rihanna delivered a brilliant album, "Rated R," that doubled as a thinly veiled, emotionally turbulent reflection on her ill-fated romance with Chris…
