As "Pon De Replay" (2005) became a massive hit and soared to the 2nd rank of Billboard Hot 100, the future certainly looks bright for Rihanna. From an ordinary young girl with a simple life, she has really transformed into a new jewel of American music industry. With her extraordinary talent of singing and writing songs, it is just a matter of time before she rises as the new diva of R&B.Born as Robyn Rihanna Fenty in 1988 in Barbados, Rihanna was like any other teenage girls of her age who attended high school and loved to sing for fun together with some friends. It all began to change drastically after she was introduced to Evan Rogers, a New York City music producer who is also the owner of Syndicated Rhythm Productions. Rogers and his Barbadian wife named Jackie happened to be in Barbados to spend their 2003 Christmas vacation near St. Michael, Rihanna's hometown. Getting impressed with her amazing voice, Rogers offered Rihanna to record some tracks in New York by spring.
Together with Rogers and his partner, Carl Sturken, Rihanna composed almost a dozen songs, taking inspiration from dancehall and ragamuffin which are the musical culture of her origin and blended them with R&B tunes. "My music is mostly Caribbean beats mixed with R&B," she described eagerly. "I don't want to be pigeon holed into being just a dance artist because I can sing too. I have ballads on the album as well as upbeat tracks."
Looking for a label, Rihanna landed her feet at Def Jam Recordings in which Shawn Carter or popularly known as Jay-Z has become the president as well as its CEO. Upon witnessing her performance, the acclaimed rapper quickly offered her a recording contract on the spot. She afterwards set out to collect materials for her debut album, co-writing most of its tracks. Meanwhile, 'Pon De Replay" eventually was released on May 25, 2005. The single turned out to be a great piece of music as it was labeled one of the summer's hottest jams in U.S..
Achieving success with "Pon De Replay," Rihanna put her hopes to repeat the same attainment on her first album "Music of the Sun" which was scheduled to be launched on August 30, 2005. With tracks featuring both Elephant Man and Vybz Kartel, it would surely provide some serious heat to burn either radio stations or clubs throughout the country. Looking upon these, it was truly like a dream came true for this enchanting performer. "If I hadn't met Evan and Carl I might have just been dreaming forever. I am so thankful for everything they've done for me," she said gratefully. Dream or no dream, her debut album later on recorded by RIAA to receive Gold in US and Platinum in several other countries. She was soon the highly anticipated act that Gwen Stefani tapped her to open her tour.
This success was relayed by Rihanna's sophomore set titled "A Girl Like Me" that was out in April 2006, only eight months after the first album's release. Instead of crushing her career, the rush actually brought a greater triumph for her. The lead single "SOS" entered Billboard Hot 100 chart at #1 and therefore marked her first No.1 song. The same song gained popularity in U.K. and Australia followed by equally strong "Unfaithful". The third single released "We Ride" however, didn't meet the same fate as it failed to enter the Hot 100 chart but was good enough to send the album to 2x platinum sale. Seemingly having a good rhythm, Rihanna released the third album 'Good Girl Gone Bad' the next year. Before the package arrived on the shelves, first single 'Umbrella' featuring Jay-Z had a slow start in Billboard Hot 100 by entering the chart under Top 40. However, the catchy chorus and fresh beat quickly win the single a much better luck by peaking at no.1 in U.K. single chart and a ten consecutive week reign at the same position. She was then frequent nominated artist and winners of awards events including Teen Choice Awards and MTV Video Music Awards in 2007.
