Anti (album)

For the Autechre EP, see Anti (EP).

Anti
Studio album by Rihanna
Released January 28, 2016 (2016-01-28)
Studio
Genre
Length 43:36
Label
Producer
Rihanna chronology
Home
(2015)		 Anti
(2016)
Singles from Anti
  1. "Work"
    Released: January 27, 2016

Anti is the eighth studio album by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna, released on January 28, 2016, through Westbury Road and Roc Nation. The singer began planning the record in 2014, at which time she left her previous label Def Jam and joined Roc Nation. Work continued into 2015, during which she released three singles, including the internationally acclaimed "FourFiveSeconds"; they were ultimately removed from the final track listing. Anti was made available for free digital download on January 28 through Tidal and was released to online music stores for paid purchase on January 29. The album was launched to physical retailers on February 5.

As executive producer, Rihanna contributed to most of the album's lyrics and collaborated with producers including Jeff Bhasker, Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, Hit-Boy, Brian Kennedy, Timbaland and No I.D. to achieve her desired sound. Their efforts resulted in a departure from Rihanna's previous dance and club music genre and created a primarily pop and R&B album, with elements of soul and dancehall. The producers incorporated dark, sparsely layered, minimalist song structures, whilst most of Anti's lyrics dealt with the complexities of romantic love and self-assurance.

Background

In November 2012, Rihanna released her seventh studio album, Unapologetic, a pop[1] and R&B album[2] that incorporates elements of dubstep and other electronic music.[3][4] It received mixed reviews from music critics[5] and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart with sales of over 238,000 copies.[6] The album spawned seven singles, including the international hits, "Diamonds" and "Stay". To further promote it, in 2013, Rihanna embarked on her fifth concert tour, the Diamonds World Tour. From the start of her career in 2005 until 2012, Rihanna released or re-released at least one album annually.

In 2013, however, Rihanna took a step back from music and did not release a new album that year or the following.[7] She instead opted to take part in other endeavours, starring in the 3D animated film Home, alongside Jim Parsons, Steve Martin and Jennifer Lopez, as well as executively producing its accompanying soundtrack.[8] In May 2014, it was announced that Rihanna had left Def Jam to sign fully with her manager Jay Z's company Roc Nation,[9] There was considerable confusion among music journalists and fans, with Rihanna avoiding discussing the album or its release.[7] In October 2015, it was revealed that Rihanna had acquired the masters to all her recordings and would be releasing Anti jointly through her own record label Westbury Road and Roc Nation.[10] Later that month it was announced that Rihanna had inked a $25 million contract with Samsung. The deal would see Rihanna promoting Samsung's Galaxy line of products whilst Samsung would sponsor the release of Anti and its supporting tour.[11]

Development

In December 2014, Rihanna invited her fans to participate in a promotional video which she shot in Paris.

The span gap between Rihanna's last studio album, Unapologetic and Anti is the longest wait between records in her music career. On October 8, 2014, she posted a picture of herself in the studio, working on the album.[12] American singer Ne-Yo, and also her frequent collaborator, in an interview with Capital Xtra on November 11, regarding Anti said, "The stuff I've heard is absolutely incredible. I can’t speak on what it sounds like because I’ll get in trouble. But I definitely feel like people are gonna enjoy it. Anybody that's a Rihanna fan is gonna stay a Rihanna fan, and anybody that's not might become a Rihanna fan ... just gear up for it."[13] On November 19, 2014, while on the red carpet for the premiere of director Andrew Jenks documentary, It's Not Over, Rihanna told Entertainment Tonight, that her album should come out "very soon". She further said, "I'm really excited about the music that we've been working on, so I can't wait for people to hear it."[14]

Rihanna invited "hundreds" of her fans in Paris to participate in a promotional video shot on December 18, 2014. It was reported that the clip might be associated with the release of Anti.[15] On February 8, 2015, during his Grammy Awards red carpet interview, Kanye West announced, that he will be the executive producer of Anti.[16] West further compared Rihanna's vocals on the song to that of Scottish singer Annie Lennox: "I feel like she has this type of energy in her vocals. And she even brought it to another level of like soul and heart and artistry".[17] However, in January 2016, in a Twitter reply message to a fan, Rihanna wrote that West is no longer executive producer of the album and both of them are working on different projects.[18]

Instead, Rihanna served as the executive producer of Anti and worked with several producers including, Jeff Bhasker, Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, Hit-Boy, Brian Kennedy, Timbaland and No I.D.. American producer and regular collaborator, Kuk Harrell produced all her vocals on the songs. The album was recorded at the Jungle City Studios in New York City, Westlake Recording Studios, Sandra Gale Studios and Windmark Recording Studios in Los Angeles, SOTA Studios in Toronto and Twin Studios in Paris.[19]

Writing and recording

On May 16, 2014, in an interview with VH1, Australian singer-songwriter Sia stated that she recently gave a new song to Rihanna, "Like as soon as I played it for her manager, he flipped over it and [when] he left the house I felt sick. I was like, 'F–k.' It was going to be on my record, but he was over and I was playing him loads of jams."[20] Canadian musician Grimes and her frequent collaborator Blood Diamonds, wrote a song for Rihanna which was turned down, so Grimes decided to perform the song herself.[21] On June 11, American rapper Big Sean posted a picture on his official Instagram account; the picture featured him and Rihanna in the studio with a caption "#2014". According to MTV News, the collaboration was recorded either for his third studio album or Anti.[22] In late June, the Roc Nation-signed songwriter, Alicia Renee, posted a photo on Instagram with her and Rihanna in the studio. Renee cried when she heard Rihanna performing one of the songs she wrote for her.[15]

Canadian producer Boi-1da was one of the contributors on Anti

In an interview with Digital Spy, on July 7, Canadian artist and songwriter, Kiesza, told that Rihanna recorded two or three songs she wrote, but was not sure whether they will make the final track listing. According to her, "The one that Rihanna has cut is one that I never in a million years expected her to pick out, so it was super interesting. It just shows that people want to evolve and try new things."[23] On September 15, record producer DJ Mustard confirmed that he and Rihanna collaborated on a song for Anti, "We haven't got our club record just yet but we have a ballad that I really like and that she likes too. I did a couple of songs with her, we're still working, we’re still in the early stages, trying to come together with a massive record."[15] Scottish DJ Calvin Harris, who previously penned Rihanna's 2011 single, "We Found Love", told UK's KISS FM that he and American singer Tinashe wrote a song for Anti which Rihanna later rejected.[15] English singer Natalia Kills, on December 12, posted on her official Twitter account that she has worked on a song for Rihanna.[15]

In the summer of 2015, Jamaican Canadian songwriter and producer Rupert Thomas together with Allen Ritter and Boi-1da among others, stayed at Canadian rapper's Drake house in Los Angeles for three-four days. During the time, creation of the lead single, "Work" came in to fruition. Thomas described the time spent at the home as a "beat factory, everyone was sitting there working and collaborating with each other."[24] Thomas created a beat which was dancehall-influenced; he later played it for Boi-1da to which he positively responded, "We’re both Jamaican-Canadian. It was just something in our DNA, so it woke him up, and we started remembering all these old dancehall songs from the '90s." Boi-1da came with up idea for sampling an "old school dancehall rhythm" and after that the chords were made with Ritter and past it, "everything went organically".[24] When the song's music was finished, Boi-1da sent it to Braithwaite (better known by his production name PartyNextDoor) who wrote the lyrics, "he’s an incredible writer, and he’s Jamaican as well I think so that’s how he’s able to come up with those vibes and feels," noted Thomas. After Drake heard the song he loved it and decided to write and record a verse on it.

Composition

Music and lyrics

On Anti, all of the focus is on that voice and her appealingly wayward personality, singing about sex, love, drugs, desire and frustration as if her life depends on it. Without all the practised song-craft that usually knock the wind out of listeners, what she has come up with is atmospheric, sexy and strangely disturbed, tapping into the kind of distorted beats and chilled tempos that burble through progressive hip hop.

“
”

— Neil McCormick, discussing the album's musical and vocal style.[25]

Anti is a departure from Rihanna's previous material, leaving behind the club and dance genres of her previous releases for a predominantly pop[26] and R&B album,[27] with elements of dancehall and soul.[28] The album's production has been characterized as being, dark, sparsely layered,[29] bouncy, with lo-fi bass, old school styles,[28] downtempo moodiness and electro-soul minimalism.[30] Lindsay Zoladz of Vulture believed that "to neatly classify Anti by genre, you'd have to invent one," which she described as being "industrial dancehall".[31] Ben Rayner of The Toronto Star stated that Anti is divided into two halves; the first consisting of "futuristic robo-R&B", whilst the second half contains "a more organic breed of soul".[30]

The album's lyrical content predominantly touches upon themes of relationships, exploring what it means to be in love, to get hurt, to need someone, and to be true to yourself.[29] The theme of relationships is picked up in numerous songs; "Kiss It Better" sees Rihanna questioning how far an ex-lover will go to get her back; in "Woo", Rihanna turns spiteful, stating she does not care for her ex-partner, while "Never Ending" features Rihanna admitting she would like to be in love again.[29] The album's themes were also noted as being unapologetic, with an uncaring attitude, and self-assurance.[28]

During the album's recording Rihanna aimed to create an album that was both "soulful" and "aggressive", elaborating on this she stated that the aggressive and soulful themes would be heard in the musical, lyrical and vocal context.[32] During a press conference in early 2014, Rihanna told MTV News that she aimed to depart from the musical style of her pervious releases, which she described as being "big songs. From the jump, they just blow up." Rihanna continued to state that with Anti she would be focusing on music that "felt real" and soulful and would be timeless.[33] She also stated that she wanted to record songs that could be "timeless" and that she could perform 15 years later. "Not any songs that were burnt out. I find that when I get on stage now, I don't want to perform a lot of my songs. They don't feel like me."[33]

Songs

Anti opens with the dub-inspired song "Consideration". The song contains a "glitchy" production and features guest vocals from singer-songwriter SZA.[34] The song hears Rihanna turning her back on record labels and their expectations, opening with the line "I got to do things my own way darling," delivered in Rihanna's native Barbadian accent.[35] "James Joint" is a neo-soul song that contains "keyboards built over rising bass riffs that create a thickly textured groove." The song was compared to the work of Stevie Wonder, due to the use of a harmonica.[36] "Kiss It Better" is a pop and R&B power ballad inspired by the music of the '80s and '90s.[34] Built over deep synths the track features an electric guitar and lyrics that focus on a destructive relationship that the singer knows is wrong for her, but one she finds irresistible.[25][37] "Work", which features Canadian rapper Drake, is a reggae-pop song[38] and was described as "an understated midtempo jam in the vein of Janet Jackson's recent 'No Sleeep', with a percolating beat, sinuous synth lines, and vocal samples stretched and pulled in a way that recalls Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis's masterful production work on Janet's 1997 album The Velvet Rope."[39] "Desperado" contains a "mid-tempo groove, bell ringing and shuddering drums, along with deep synths and vocal samples."[25]

“Same Ol’ Mistakes” is a cover version of "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" (2015) performed by Tame Impala, written by Kevin Parker.

The sixth track "Woo" opens with "two jarring, atonal guitar chords repeated along with small, trap-influenced percussion, over a basic riff."[37] "Woo" was compared to the work of Kanye West due to its slow stomping, distortion and lack of melody and groove.[25] The following track "Needed Me" is a downtempo song, with small elements of electro bubble, synthetic sounds, and a loose, casual vocal that discusses romantic rejection, whilst the following song "Yeah, I Said It" continues the trend of containing a slowed down groove.[25] "Same Ol' Mistakes" is a cover version of "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" (2015) performed by Tame Impala. The song contains the same production as the original, featuring a "fluid sound, with elements of psychedelic, hip-hop and pop-rock genres, along with a slow, dreamy, psychedelic synth groove."[25] Rihanna's vocals on the track are "airy, echoing and underpinned" by the song's bass and percussion.[37] "Never Ending" is a guitar-led song, with elements of country music, organic melodies and backing vocals.[40]

"Love On the Brain" is a mid-tempo '50s inspired doo-wop ballad "that features a guitar arpeggio, swirling organ, simple chord progression and backing vocals," and was compared to the work of Amy Winehouse.[25][37] Rihanna's vocals on the track were noted as being acrobatic and ranging from her "trademark snarl", to high notes, with dark lyrics that depict a destructive, yet addictive relationship.[37][40] "Higher" is a love song that follows a similar chord sequence to "Love On the Brain", along with woozy production that contains lyrics about Rihanna's feelings towards her lover whilst she is under the influence of drugs and alcohol.[25] The standard edition of Anti closes with the slow piano ballad "Close to You", which is sung in a jazz style.[25] The deluxe version of Anti contains three more songs. The first is "Goodnight Gotham", which contains an interpolation of "Only If for a Night" (2011) performed by Florence and the Machine and hears Rihanna singing along with the "looping" sample.[41] The following track "Pose" features a grimy beat, along with the singer aggressively boasting about her riches, before a chant-heavy breakdown.[41] The final track on the deluxe version, "Sex with Me", contains dreamy production which hears Rihanna talking about her beauty, "before closing with a trippy blend of vocals."[41]

Title and artwork

"I sometimes fear that I am misunderstood.
It is simply because what I want to say,
what I need to say, won't be heard.
Heard in a way I so rightfully deserve.
What I choose to say is of so much substance
That people just won't understand the depth of my message.
So my voice is not my weakness,
It is the opposite of what others are afraid of.
My voice is my suit and armor,
My shield, and all that I am.
I will comfortably breath in it, until I find the moment to be silent.
I live loudly in my mind, so many hours of the day.
The world is pin drop sound compared to the boom
That thumps and bumps against the walls of my cranium.
I live it and love it and despise it and I am entrapped in it.
So being misunderstood, I am not offended by the gesture, but honored.
If they let us..."

—A reading of the album's artwork poem If They Let Us.[42]

On October 7, 2015, Rihanna held a private viewing for fans and press at Los Angeles' MAMA Gallery, where she debuted the album's official artwork and title. Initially thought to have been entitled R8 by fans and critics alike, Rihanna announced the official title during the album's cover art release, revealing the album would be called ANTI, the exhibition included a piece of art which defined the album's title stating that anti is "a person opposed to a particular policy, activity or idea."[43] Following the exhibition, Rihanna took to social media to confirm the album's title along with an explanation of its meaning. The explanation stated, "By continuing to follow her own instincts, her work strives to make an impact by doing the very antithesis of what the public expects."[44]

The artwork was designed by Israeli artist Roy Nachum, and was described by Rihanna as her "favorite album cover".[45] The album's front cover shows an image of Rihanna, which was taken on her first day of day care,[46] holding a black balloon, with a gold crown covering her eyes; the majority of the artwork is black and white with a "smattering" of red paint.[45] Speaking about the cover art's concept, Nachum stated that he painted a young Rihanna to represent her "bringing something new" to music.[47]

Over the red, black and white canvas there is a poem written in Braille by poet Chloe Mitchell; the braille follows the theme of the album's singles artwork which also features the same technique. Speaking on her choice to use the language, Rihanna commented, "Sometimes the ones who have sight are the blindest."[45] During the cover's designing stage, Rihanna met with Mitchell, in which they "drank" and came up with a poem that would be used for the artwork and liner notes entitled If They Let Us.[42] Mitchell explained the poem and its meaning to Rolling Stone magazine, stating it was about being misunderstood, but still be able to stand out while doing what is right for you. She further said that the poem speaks about not conforming to society and being a leader as well as accepting that being misunderstood is a positive thing.[47]

At the gallery, the album's back cover, along with multiple inside album artworks were revealed. The album back cover features the same image this time from behind.[48] The seven pieces of artwork were all named and featured a poem written by Mitchell or Nachum, the front and back covers were titled "If They Let Us Part I" and "If They Let Us Part II" and featured a poem that was split over the front and back, another piece entitled "If They Let Us" was commissioned and featured the full reading of the poem.[49] The inside booklet contains a further five pieces entitled "Fire Part I", "Fire Part II", "Fire Part III" and "R".[49]

Singles

The lead single entitled "Work" featuring Canadian rapper Drake was released on January 27, 2016, hours before the Tidal release of Anti. Rihanna stated on Twitter that the song is the "first single" from her album.[50] "Work" debuted at number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It became Rihanna's 27th top ten hit. With this feat, Rihanna tied Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson and Elton John as the artists with fifth-most top ten songs on the chart.[51] The singer reached 27 top ten singles on the Hot 100 in a span of 10 years and eight months between her first song, "Pon de Replay" and "Work" and became the fastest solo artist to reach the plateau.[52]

Release and promotion

In November 2014, Rihanna announced, that her album should come out "very soon".[14] The following month Rihanna invited "hundreds" of her fans in Paris to participate in a promotional video which was thought to be associated with the release of the album.[53] Following the albums announcement Rihanna released three singles, various snippets of songs and performed at numerous award shows, but never announced the albums release or possible release date. What was then said to be the first single from the album, "FourFiveSeconds", featuring Kanye West and Paul McCartney, was released on January 24, 2015.[54] She later released what was called the second single, "Bitch Better Have My Money", performing it for the first time at the 2nd iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 29, 2015.[55] Another song entitled "American Oxygen" debuted on Tidal on April 5, 2015. The song was at one point reported to be featured on the album.[56][57] Rihanna also posted an interlude entitled "James Joint" in its entirety from the upcoming album on her website on April 21, 2015, as a "celebration of 420".[58]

In November 2015, it was announced that Rihanna had inked a $25 million contract with Samsung to not only promote Samsung's Galaxy line of products, but to also sponsor the release of Anti and its supporting tour.[59] On November 19, 2015, Rihanna and Samsung released a 16-second cryptic video for Anti, launching a website for Rihanna's forthcoming album entitled "ANTIdiaRy". Upon launch, the mobile-only site gave messages, such as "She's waiting for you. Are you in?" and "Be patient and keep your eyes open".[60] The website then proceeded to launch eight "rooms" over the following 9 weeks, each loosely corresponding to her previous albums, detailing her personal life over the course of her career and including clues from Anti.[61] In the same month, she canceled her performance at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show to finish work on Anti.[62]

The album leaked onto the internet in its entirety on January 27, 2016, after it was released prematurely on music streaming service Tidal.[63] Anti will be exclusive to Tidal for its first full week of availability.[64] Also through Tidal, the album was made available for free download, regardless of whether a listener is a Tidal subscriber or not.[64][65]

Tour

Main article: Anti World Tour

The Anti World Tour was announced on November 23, 2015.[66] The Samsung-sponsored[59] tour will start in February 2016, with Travis Scott supporting in North America, and The Weeknd and Big Sean supporting at selected European dates.[67]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[68]
The A.V. ClubB+[29]
Billboard[69]
Entertainment WeeklyA−[70]
The Guardian[71]
The Independent[28]
Pitchfork Media7.7/10[26]
Rolling Stone[72]
Slant Magazine[73]
Spin7/10[74]

Anti received generally favorable reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 73, based on 26 reviews.[75] Caroline Framke of Vox described it as an album meant for a "more intimate afterparty", which breaks expectations and deemed it Rihanna's "best album yet".[76] Writing for the Toronto Sun, Darryl Sterdan called the album "an eclectic menu of styles and genres, from electro-laced dancehall and reggae" and commended its "variety and trend avoidance."[77] Praising its production and engineering, The Plain Dealer's Troy L. Smith noted Anti "is the tale of two albums, an attempt by an ever-growing artist to marry the two sides of her musical personality with, at times, mesmerizing results."[78] Sarah Rodman from The Boston Globe considered it "an interesting artistic curveball in her heretofore hits-driven career."[79] Time critic Nolan Feeney thought that Rihanna showed artistic growth through the album and called it "a work of unexpected subtlety from an artist rarely associated with that word." He highlighted "Love on the Brain" and "Higher" as career vocal performances. Writing that the point of view is depressing, he concluded: "In exploring her unhappiness at the top, Rihanna finds her most compelling voice yet."[80]

Maura Jonhston from Rolling Stone found the album "banger-free", noting its most part is "brooding and at times claustrophobic, made for those lonely stretched-out moments in the aftermath of highs and thrills."[81] In The Telegraph, Neil McCormick wrote the album "for better or worse, is clearly the music Rihanna likes: leftfield, stoned and strange. It is Rihanna without hits. This strange album may well be a reflection of the fact that not even her own backers really expects this to be a commercial blockbuster. It is more an exercise in rebranding, transforming the hit girl into a serious artist."[35] BET's Jon Reyes concluded his review saying although "there's something about the album that makes it clear that she wasn't quite finished finding what she exactly wanted on it", the album "was made to grow on you and, among Rihanna's discography, it's her most subtle work."[82]

In a mixed review, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times described Anti as a "chaotic and scattershot album, not the product of a committed artistic vision, or even an appealingly freeform aesthetic, but rather an amalgam of approaches, tones, styles and moods. Depending on the moment, she is an electric vocalist or an indifferent one, an emotional savant or a naif, a singer who understands what her voice is best at and one who sounds like she's merely following directions." He concluded his review stating "At this stage of her career, music may be the least essential brick in her house."[83] The Guardian editor Alexis Petridis gave the album three-out-of-five stars, writing "Sprawling, uneven and opaque – Rihanna's eighth album sounds as uncertain as its botched launch. But, in a risk-averse world, there's something brave about Anti, and at its best, its daring pays off."[71] In a less favorable review, Amy Davidson of Digital Spy thought "there's filler, there's flashes of genius, there's an attempt at that classic album, but ultimately, we can't help but feel it's a slight Anti-climax."[84] Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine felt that "the ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place."[73]

Commercial performance

In the United States, Anti received a platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) two days after its release as a result of Samsung purchasing one million copies of the album in advance that were then given away as a free download, part of the $25 million deal signed by Rihanna in 2015.[85] The album debuted at number 27 on the Billboard 200 on February 1, 2016.[86] Although over 1.4 million copies were downloaded from Tidal, Billboard and Nielsen Music did not recognize the count of the sales, because they were distributed by Samsung.[87] According to Nielsen's figures, 460 is the number of actual albums sold in the United States,[88] but the album had 4.7 million streams and 126,000 sales of individual tracks, making a total of 15,896 equivalent units.[88][89] The low actual album sales represented only a few hours of sales after the free giveaway period ended.[90] The next week, Anti topped the chart with 166,000 equivalent album units, 124,000 of which were pure sales. The record scored the biggest jump on the Billboard 200 chart in eight years and also became Rihanna's second number one and the eighth top ten album on it. Subsequently, it also debuted at number one on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[91]

Anti debuted at number 19 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The following week, it topped the chart and became Rihanna's fifth number one album on it following A Girl like Me in 2006, Good Girl Gone Bad in 2007, Loud in 2010 and Unapologetic in 2012.[92]

Track listing

Credits adapted from Rihanna's official website.[19]

Anti — Standard edition
No. TitleWriter(s)Producer(s) Length
1. "Consideration" (featuring SZA)
 2:41
2. "James Joint"  
  • Taylor
  • Harrell[a]
 1:12
3. "Kiss It Better"  
  • Bhasker
  • Glass John[b]
  • Harrell[a]
 4:13
4. "Work" (featuring Drake)
 3:39
5. "Desperado"  
  • Krystin "Rook Monroe" Watkins
  • Mick Schultz
  • Fenty
  • Fauntleroy
  • D. Rachel
  • Schultz
  • Harrell[a]
 3:06
6. "Woo"  
 3:55
7. "Needed Me"  
 3:11
8. "Yeah, I Said It"  
 2:13
9. "Same Ol' Mistakes"  Kevin Parker
  • Parker
  • Harrell[a]
 6:37
10. "Never Ending"  
  • Sabo
  • Harrell[a]
 3:22
11. "Love on the Brain"  
  • Fred Ball
  • Joseph Angel
  • Fenty
  • Ball
  • Harrell[a]
 3:44
12. "Higher"  
  • Ernest Wilson
  • B. Bourelly
  • Fenty
  • Fauntleroy
  • Jerry Butler
  • Kenny Gamble
  • Leon Huff
 2:00
13. "Close to You"  
 3:43
Total length:
 43:36
Notes
Sample credits

Personnel

Credits are adapted from AllMusic.[94]

  • Nathaniel Alford – engineer
  • J. Angel – composer
  • Joseph Angel – arranger, composer, drums, keyboards
  • Dido Armstrong – composer
  • Nick Audino – composer
  • Fred Ball – composer, drums, keyboards, producer
  • Jean Baptiste – composer
  • Evon Barnes – composer
  • Nuno Bettencourt – guitar
  • Jeff Bhasker – composer, producer
  • Bibi Bourelly – composer
  • Jean-Paul Bourelly – composer
  • Jahron Braithwaite – composer
  • Jay Brown – A&R
  • Ray Brown – assistant
  • Jerry Butler – composer
  • Noel "Gadget" Campbell – mixing
  • Karen Console – A&R
  • DJ Mustard – composer, producer
  • Tyran Donaldson – composer
  • Drake – composer, featured artist
  • James Fauntleroy – composer, vocal arrangement, vocals (Background)
  • Adam Feeney – composer, producer
  • Jeremih Felton – composer
  • Robyn "Rihanna" Fenty – composer, creative Director, executive Producer, primary artist, poetry
  • Chris Galland – assistant, mixing assistant
  • Kenny Gamble – composer
  • Chris Gehringer – mastering
  • Glass John – additional production, composer
  • Chris Godbey – composer, engineer, mixing
  • Omar Grant – A&R
  • Kuk Harrell – engineer, vocal engineer, vocal producer
  • Brittany Hazard – composer
  • Paul Herman – composer
  • Charles Hinshaw, Jr. – composer
  • Chauncey Hollis – composer, producer
  • Leon Huff – composer
  • Lewis Hughes – composer
  • Jeff Jackson – mixing assistant
  • Daniel Jones – composer, producer
  • Brian Kennedy – composer, keyboards, producer
  • Carter Lang – organ, synthesizer bass
  • Etienne Macor – assistant
  • Fade Majah – producer
  • Blake Mares – assistant, engineer
  • Manny Marroquin – mixing
  • Chloe Mitchell – poetry
  • Monte Moir – composer
  • Rook Monroe – composer, vocal arrangement
  • Brendan Morawski – assistant
  • Tim "Timbaland" Mosley – composer, producer
  • Roy Nachum – artwork, poetry
  • Terius Nash – composer
  • Ciarra Pardo – creative director
  • Kevin Parker – composer, instrumentation, mixing, producer
  • Allen Ritter – composer
  • Daniela Rivera – engineer
  • Khaled Rohaim – composer
  • Jennifer Rosales – A&R
  • Chad Sabo – composer, producer
  • Matthew Samuels – composer
  • Ike Schultz – mixing assistant
  • Mick Schultz – composer, guitar, producer
  • Travis Scott – additional production, vocals, composer
  • S.C.U.M. – producer
  • Teddy Sinclair – composer
  • Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith – A&R
  • Solana "SZA" Rowe – composer, featured artist
  • Phil Tan – mixing
  • Shea Taylor – composer, keyboards, producer
  • Abel Tesfaye – composer
  • Rupert Thomas – composer
  • Marcos Tovar – engineer, vocal engineer
  • Te Whiti Warbrick – composer
  • Thomas Warren – assistant
  • Krystin Watkins – composer, vocal arrangement
  • Chad Wilson – assistant
  • Ernest Wilson – composer

Charts

Chart (2016) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[95] 5
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[96] 13
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[97] 8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[98] 8
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[92] 1
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[99] 14
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[100] 3
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[101] 11
French Albums (SNEP)[102] 6
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[103] 3
Irish Albums (IRMA)[104] 4
Italian Albums (FIMI)[105] 10
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[106] 5
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[107] 1
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[108] 28
Russian Albums (Russian Music Charts)[109] 2
Scottish Albums (OCC)[110] 7
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[111] 17
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[112] 2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[113] 9
UK Albums (OCC)[114] 7
UK R&B Albums (OCC)[115] 1
US Billboard 200[116] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[117] 1

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
United States (RIAA)[118] Platinum 124,000[91]

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

List of release dates, showing region, formats, label, editions, catalog number and reference
Region Date Format(s) Label Edition(s) Ref.
Tidal (selected countries) January 27, 2016
Standard [119]
Various January 29, 2016 Digital download [120]
Deluxe [121]
February 5, 2016 CD [122]
Japan February 10, 2016 Limited [123]

See also

References

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  2. ↑ Ellis, Stacy-Ann (November 19, 2012). "'Unapologetic' Review: Rihanna Is Sorry She's Not Sorry". Vibe. Archived from the original on October 23, 2013. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
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  4. ↑ Roberts, Randall (November 16, 2012). "Review: Rihanna's 'Unapologetic' shines light on past drama". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on March 27, 2013. Retrieved November 16, 2012.
  5. ↑ Sinha-Roy, Piya (November 23, 2012). "Rihanna's "Diamonds" tops Hot 100, "Unapologetic" to debut big". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on March 16, 2013. Retrieved March 16, 2013.
  6. ↑ Caulfield, Keith (November 27, 2012). "Rihanna Earns First No. 1 Album on Billboard 200 Chart". Billboard. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved November 27, 2012.
  7. 1 2 "NME interview". NME. Retrieved October 8, 2015.
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  11. ↑ "Rihanna inks $25M sponsorship deal with Samsung". New York Post. October 29, 2015.
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  115. ↑ "2016-02-05 Top 40 R&B Albums Archive . Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
  116. ↑ "Rihanna – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Rihanna. Retrieved February 6, 2016.
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  118. ↑ "American album certifications – Rihanna – Anti". Recording Industry Association of America. January 29, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
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  120. ↑ Issues of Anti:
  121. ↑ Issues of Anti (Deluxe):
  122. ↑ "Anti [Deluxe]". Amazon.com (UK). January 29, 2016. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
  123. ↑ "アンチ(初回生産限定価格盤) Limited Edition" (in Japanese). Amazon.com (JP). Retrieved January 31, 2016.

External links

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