Rihanna
Talk That Talk

After a little more than a year, Rihanna is already ready to release a new album (the sixth) Talk That Talk, a project that I think could do a lot if well managed.

1 You Da One

The album starts with a high-quality mid-tempo reggae, although not like Man Down, one of the best in my opinion. The song was released as the second single from the album without much success, perhaps due to almost nonexistent promotion.

Rating: 7-

2 Where Have You Been

After the sweet You Da One, we move on to an incredible electronic track Where Have You Been, my favorite in the album. The song will be released in May as the fourth official single, and they even filmed a video that I hope to see soon.

Rating: 9.8

3 We Found Love

The first single extracted from the album, an amazing success, 11 consecutive weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, and so on; for me, this excessively repetitive song is pleasant enough to listen to but did not deserve such a big success because Rihanna has done better in her career, for example, Umbrella, which deserved the same success.

Rating: 8

4 Talk That Talk feat Jay Z

It's the third single extracted from the album, sung in collaboration with Jay Z. The song was a flop (unfortunately) even though it has been climbing the charts lately, but it probably won't go very high. For me, the song is one of the best on the album, definitely the best mid-tempo after You Da One.

Rating: 8.8

5 Cockiness (I Love It)

One of the worst songs on the entire album for me, it's too exaggerated and repetitive, the chorus in the song repeats thousands of times.

Rating: 5.7

6 Birthday Cake & Birthday Cake feat Chris Brown The Remix

Birthday Cake is the only interlude of the album and closes the first part, opening the second, composed of many mid-tempos and ballads. The original version is very pleasant to listen to, however, it sparked much controversy among fans due to the short length of the song, so a full version was released (not included in the album). The full version with Chris Brown is beautiful and hypnotic, and it was released as the fourth official single in the United States.

Rating (Interlude Version): 8+

Rating (Full Version): 9.1

7 We All Want Love

The second part opens with a rather clichéd and ineffective ballad, becoming one of my least favorite tracks in the album, as I usually love ballads, but this one is just boring.

Rating: 6.2

8 Drunk On Love

My favorite mid-tempo on the album and one of the most beautiful tracks on the album and in Rihanna's entire career.

Rating: 9.3

9 Roc Me Out

Roc Me Out is the second track I prefer most on this album, even if it has a notable resemblance to Rude Boy, the second single from Rated-r, for me, it manages to be even better than the original.

Rating: 9.5

10 Watch n' Learn

After two beautiful mid-tempos comes a breath of fresh summer air Watch n' Learn, a song that surely surprised me positively with its unique beauty, yet it's not suitable to be a single.

Rating: 9

11 Farewell

The quintessential ballad of the album; for me, it's an excellent track, and I think it could do a lot even as a single.

Rating: 9.2

and here the standard version of the album closes, now let's move on to the deluxe

13 Red Lipstick

And it starts with a dark and eerie song, Rated-r style. When I read the title, I thought it would be a carefree up-tempo, but instead, here emerges a real gem that was previously in the shadows because this beautiful track was once Saxon by Nicki Minaj!!!!!!

Rating: 9.2

14 Do Ya Thing

But when I thought that Red Lipstick would have been the carefree up-tempo, I was wrong, and Do Ya Thing is an incredibly boring track, one of the worst on the album.

Rating: 6.1

15 Fool In Love

And finally, a hidden gem Fool In Love where Rihanna showcases an angelic voice that I think might be a bit enhanced with auto-tune, I could see it as a last single.

Rating: 9.4

Total Rating: 8.4

And here concludes the review of Rihanna's new album, which I think is also one of her best works.