Where "Pon de Replay" sounds like a standard pop dance song, "Umbrella" brings a hint of darkness.
Nash and Stewart are partially to credit. "Umbrella" sounded different from her previous songs. "I had a say in who I wanted to collaborate with and which songs I wanted to record, so there's more pressure there."įor More Stories Like This, Sign Up for Our Newsletter "It was very challenging, because I had more control over this one," she told the magazine. In 2007, Rihanna told Teen Vogue she had control over the songs on Good Girl Gone Bad unlike her previous albums, and she advocated for a "very edgy" vibe. Island Def Jam bought the song for Rihanna, believing it could boost her career. Her team bid on the song, but they couldn't finalize the deal without her permission since she was already an established performer. She was at the Grammys, so she didn't get a chance to hear the song. Coming off the triple platinum The Breakthrough, Blige was at the height of her career. MTV News reports they reached out to Mary J. I'll protect you.'" According to the New Yorker profile, Stewart produced a rough beat and keyboard line, and then Nash penned a chorus. "Like, God would say, 'I've got you under my umbrella. "At first I was thinking about God," Nash told Blender. In January 2007, they met at their Triangle Studios to write a song. In 2004, they teamed up for the hit Britney Spears/Madonna duet "Me Against the Music." Nash developed the hook, while Stewart worked on the beats-a process they have continued to use. Blender, one of the most influential music magazines of the aughts, reports that Stewart had previously written Mya's "Case of the Ex," while Nash had quit singing to write lyrics. "Umbrella," was written by Terius "The-Dream" Nash and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart. Read more: The Bizarre Life Paths of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford's Daughters "I'm showing people a different, darker side of me." "This time around, I'm being a bit more rebellious, as many teens are at around my age!" Rihanna told Teen Vogue. At age 19, Rihanna blossomed from safe, generic teeny-bopper to confident, leather-clad hitmaker. Born to Run saved Bruce Springsteen from cultural obscurity after two flops, and True Blue proved Madonna could match dance beats with political messages through the teenage pregnancy-themed second single "Papa Don't Preach." (Refrain: "I'm keeping my baby.") Similarly, "Umbrella" "doubled the magnitude of her career," according to a New Yorker profile by music critic Sasha Frere-Jones. Third albums tend to define the rest of artists' careers. Rihanna's peers were Mya and Christina Milian. Only one of her songs, the generic ballad "Unfaithful," had topped the Billboard Hot 100, and her first two albums, Music of the Sun and A Girl Like Me, failed to sell as many copies as the debut albums of Beyonce and Britney Spears. She sang island-infused dance pop like "Pon de Replay," which hit radio when Rihanna was only 17. She's the biggest superstar in her generation, but Rihanna was a middle-tier pop star in 2007. Rihanna is tied with the Beatles for second most weeks at number one. If that doesn’t get the attention of our grandparents, nothing will.Looking back, the song's success seems inevitable. (Don’t worry, there are English translations in the description.) Check out the Monkey King’s snazzy Pioneer card.įunnily enough, they’re also singing about being umbrellas - are they Rihanna fans? If you decide to watch the whole video, don’t be surprised if the song stays in your head for the rest of the day. Together, they sing a Hokkien ditty that sounds like something your Chinese grandmother would sing at karaoke night - which is perfect, since the song is about the medical benefits the Pioneer Generation can receive from having a Pioneer card. The video in question is an amazing spoof of the Chinese legend of Journey To The West, starring the Monkey King and a Spider Demon. Just as you thought Gov.SG videos were all boring and unremarkable, they come up with the perfect music video that serves as awesome throwback thursday entertainment. This article originally appeared on Vulcan Post.