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Rated R

CD

^$9.47 ~~$9.99~~ Save 5%

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Overview

Rated X, Rihanna's follow-up to 2007’s multiplatinum Good Girl Gone Bad, features the controversial first single, "Russian Roulette." The dark ballad was written and produced by Ne-Yo, and is Rihanna's first solo single since her altercation with then-boyfriend Chris Brown before the Grammys on February 8, 2009. According to Rolling Stone, Rhianna also recruited producers The-Dream & “Tricky” Stewart, Chase & Status, Stargate and Justin Timberlake for Rated R.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/23/2009
Label:	Def Jam
UPC:	0602527283715
catalogNumber:	001382702

Tracks

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Rihanna Primary Artist
Glenn Fischbach Celli
Peter Nocella Viola
Olga Konopelsky Violin
Emma Kummrow Violin
Igor Szwec Violin
Gregory Teperman Violin
will.i.am Synthesizer
Future Cut Keyboards
Allen White Acoustic Guitar
Bernt Rune Stray Guitar
Makeba Riddick Background Vocals
James Fauntleroy Background Vocals
Chase & Status Musician
Mikkel Storleer Eriksen Musician
Brian Kennedy Keyboards
Caleb Speir Bass
Luigi Mazzocchi Violin,Soloist
Jon Epcar Drums
James J. Cooper Celli,Soloist
R. Swire Musician
Tor Erik Hermansen Musician
Ben Harrison Guitar
Beardyman Vocals
Monte Neuble Keyboards
Tim Stewart Guitar
Davis Barnett Viola
Jessie Bonds Guitar
Charles Parker Violin
Keith Harris Strings

Technical Credits

Ys Producer
Evan Rogers Executive Producer
Pat Thrall Engineer
Karl Heilbron Vocal Engineer
Christopher "Tricky" Stewart Composer,Producer
Simon Henwood Art Direction
Paul Foley Engineer
Stargate Producer
will.i.am Producer,Engineer,drum programming
Neil Tucker Guitar Engineer
Justin Timberlake Composer
C. Stewart Composer
Mike Johnson Engineer
Padraic Kerin Engineer
Makeba Riddick Composer,Vocal Producer
Shaffer Smith Composer
Sean Tallman Engineer
James Fauntleroy Composer
Rihanna Composer,Executive Producer,Art Direction
The-Dream Composer,Producer
Ne-Yo Producer
Chase Producer
Status Producer
Chase & Status Producer
Mikkel Storleer Eriksen Composer,Engineer,Vocal Producer
Brian Kennedy Programming,Producer
Chuck Harmony Producer
Ester Dean Composer
Andrew Wuepper Engineer
Rob Swire Composer
Ciarra Pardo Art Direction
Marcos Tovar Engineer
Tor Erik Hermansen Composer
Ben Harrison Additional Production
Robin Tadross Composer
M. McHenry Composer
Jay Jenkins Composer
Charles Harmon Composer
J. Baptiste Composer
M. Riddick Composer
Antonio Reid Executive Producer
Paper-Boy Additional Production
JP Robinson Art Direction
B. Kennedy Composer
B. Kennedy Seals Composer
Carl Styrken Executive Producer
Brian "B-Luv" Thomas Engineer
Marcos Taylor Engineer
Chris "Tek" O'Ryan Engineer
B. Harrison Composer
T. Tendayi Composer
A. Pineda Composer
Saul Milton Composer
Allan Pineda Composer
Tor Erik Germansen Composer
Terius Nash Composer
Will Kennard Composer
William Adams Composer

Editorial Reviews

"Russian Roulette," released weeks prior to Rated R, just hinted at Rihanna's sudden desire to provoke. Even with the realization that it is metaphorical, the song startles with its hesitant gasps, spinning cylinders, and verses that are glacially paced, where a cold piano line and the slight inflections in Rihanna's voice are front and center. And then there's an audible shudder followed by a discharged bullet -- the abrupt end to one of Rated R's most restrained moments. It's not the only instance where Rihanna's rise in fame, combined with being the victim in the decade's highest-profile felonious assault, added up to a perfect-storm scenario for a creative overhaul. Rated R is more like Good Girl Gone Evil, or Abused Girl Full of Vengeful Rage, not Good Girl Gone Bad, where the only casualties were some dishes. The closest the set gets to upbeat pop is "Rude Boy," and by any standard it is stern; needless to say, there is quite a difference between "Can you get it up?" and "You can stand under my umbrella." Much of this daring album is absolutely over the top, bleak and sleek both lyrically and sonically, but it's compelling, filled with as many memorably belligerent lines -- two of which, "I pitch with a grenade/Swing away if ya feeling brave" and "I'm such a fuckin' lady," set the tone early on -- as a rap album made ripe for dissection. "G4L," over a low-slung and sleek production, is the most fantastical of all, in which Rihanna leads a band of homicidal women, opening with "I lick the gun when I'm done 'cause I know that revenge is sweet" and "Any mothaf*cka wanna disrespect/Playin' with fire finna get you wet." The breakup song, "Fire Bomb," even though it is also metaphorical, is a close second in terms of lyrical extremity: "I just wanna set you on fire so I won't have to burn alone." Some of the breathers -- the songs that are less intense -- hold the album back since Rihanna sounds detached from them. The one exception is the wistful, bittersweet "Photographs," a rare instance of the singer dropping her guard, but it really sticks out since it is surrounded by material that has her taking the variably authentic roles of abused lover, dominatrix, and murderer. Whether the album seems ridiculous or spectacular (or both), Rihanna's complete immersion in the majority of the songs cannot be disputed. That is the one thing that is not up for debate.

All Music Guide - Andy Kellman

It’s a bleak, adamant album that’s both brave and skillful. Its love songs are about breakups and passion’s destructive power, leaving listeners to read into them what they will. Meanwhile, in the power-chorded “Rockstar 101,” Rihanna announces, “I never play the victim.”

New York Times - Jon Pareles

The songs are etched in somber shades and minor chords, with Rihanna belting over synths and booming beats. The results are a musical match for the black-on-black CD cover — goth R&B.

Rolling Stone - Jody Rosen