USA ✨

Melaninmuse🍁🍀 / TSUNA🍀✨

09/07/2025

Artiste Pop🍀

Ariana Grande

Artist

Chris Brown

Chris Brown arrived in the mid-2000s as a squeaky-clean teen R&B artist with "Run It!," the first debut single by a male artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 in over a decade. While there was nowhere to go but down, at least in terms of chart positions, the singer and occasional rapper was only getting started, despite the swift decline of his wholesome image. By the end of the decade, he was one of the biggest active pop stars, with a clutch of Top Ten singles and platinum albums to his credit, along with constant comparisons to a young Michael Jackson and several acting roles on the side. His momentum slowed little despite pleading guilty to assaulting girlfriend Rihanna in 2009. His commercial clout remained, as his successive albums into the next decade topped the Billboard all-genre and R&B charts. Brown came from a small Virginia town called Tappahannock. Like a lot of kids born in the mid- to late '80s, he was initially into his parents' favorite music but eventually fell under the spell of hip-hop. Around the time he reached puberty, he discovered his singing ability and switched his focus away from MC'ing. A move to New York led to being discovered by Tina Davis, a Def Jam A&R executive who became the singer's manager shortly after losing her position in the Sony-BMG merger. The Jive label, due in part to its track record with younger artists who had established longevity (like Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake), won the bidding war for Brown and lined up several production and songwriting heavyweights, including Jermaine Dupri, Bryan-Michael Cox, Dre & Vidal, Sean Garrett, and Storch, for his self-titled first album. An immediate Top Ten hit when it was released in 2005, Chris Brown not only featured the number one "Run It!" but two other Top Ten singles in "Yo (Excuse Me Miss)" and "Say Goodbye." Exclusive, released in 2007 and a bit of a departure from the squeaky-clean image he displayed throughout his debut, was even more successful, featuring the number one single "Kiss Kiss" and two other Top Five hits. Yet another Top Five hit came with "No Air," a duet with Jordin Sparks that appeared on Sparks' own self-titled album. In March 2009, Brown was charged with felonious assault of Rihanna -- an altercation that had prevented his then-girlfriend from taking the stage at the Grammy Awards. Brown was scheduled to perform as well, but he did not appear and maintained a low profile for several months. A fairly substantial backlash resulted in Brown's songs being pulled from rotation on several radio stations. Ultimately, however, it had little bearing on the progress of his music and acting careers; the week prior to the December release of his third album, Graffiti, the single "I Can Transform Ya" was well on its way to reaching the Top 20 of the Hot 100, and his acting roles -- which had already included spots in Stomp the Yard and a recurring role on The O.C. -- hadn't shown any sign of drying up. Graffiti fell considerably short of gold-selling status, but it was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of Best Contemporary R&B Album, and the Tank collaboration, "Take My Time," was nominated for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. Weeks after the 2011 Grammy Awards ceremony, Brown released his fourth album, F.A.M.E., which already had four singles on the charts. That album topped the Billboard 200 and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts, and it also took the 2012 Grammy for Best R&B Album. During the ceremony, he performed a medley of "Beautiful People" (off F.A.M.E.) and "Turn Up the Music," the latter of which previewed Fortune, his fifth album, released in May 2012 and an immediate chart-topper in the U.S. Brown toured Asia, Europe, and Africa during the rest of the year, and prepped his sixth album. A sequence of several singles that began with "Fine China" preceded X, released in September 2014, two weeks after he pleaded guilty to simple assault (for an altercation with a man that had occurred the previous October). Less inspired by European dance-pop and more R&B-oriented than his previous release, the album included contributions from Lil Wayne, R. Kelly, Usher, Rick Ross, and Brandy, among many others. Four of its singles peaked within the R&B Top 10. Only five months after the release of X, Brown and Tyga, who had previously teamed up for one of those singles -- "Loyal," as well as the earlier "Deuces" -- teamed up for Fan of a Fan: The Album. By the end of 2015, Brown released Royalty, his seventh proper album, which was propped up by the Top 20 pop hit "Back to Sleep." The following year, Brown issued singles such as "Grass Ain't Greener" and "Party" as preludes to the 45-track Heartbreak on a Full Moon, released in October 2017. The following year, Brown appeared on a handful of high-profile collaborative singles including "Stranger Things" with Joyner Lucas, "Freaky Friday" with Lil Dicky, and "Overdose" with Agnez Mo. He returned to his solo work with 2019's "Undecided." ~ Andy Kellman

Selena Gomez

Artist

Selena Gomez is a multi-talented performer with featured roles on the screen both small and large, and a musical career that reached the summit of the charts from its very beginning and stayed planted there for many years. Her group, <a href="spotify:artist:6dJeKm76NjfXBNTpHmOhfO">Selena Gomez & the Scene</a>, issued a trio of breezy modern pop albums from 2009 to 2011 that each hit the Top Ten. After going solo, she scored a pair of number ones with the more adult-oriented Stars Dance (2013) and Revival (2015), then branched out into new sounds on collaborations with <a href="spotify:artist:23fqKkggKUBHNkbKtXEls4">Kygo</a> ("It Ain't Me") and <a href="spotify:artist:64KEffDW9EtZ1y2vBYgq8T">Marshmello</a> ("Wolves"). Gomez reached the top of the singles chart for the first time with "Lose You to Love Me" (2019), a soul-searching ballad that delved into her real-life relationships and marked a new openness in her lyrical approach. In 2021, she took on Latin pop for the first time with the Revelación EP. Along with her starring role in Hulu's Only Murders in the Building, she was also the subject of the candid 2022 documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, for which she also released the title track, followed by 2023's electronic-tinged "Single Soon" and 2024's "Love On." Born in 1992, Gomez grew up in Texas and got her first break as a cast member on the kids' TV show Barney and Friends. She landed minor roles in several other TV programs, but it was her affiliation with the Disney Channel -- which discovered her during a nationwide talent search in 2004 -- that officially jump-started her acting career. Guest appearances on The Suite Life of Zach and Cody and Hannah Montana paved the way for Gomez's own show, The Wizards of Waverly Place, which premiered in October 2007 and quickly became one of the network's most popular programs. Gomez began juggling her commitment to The Wizards of Waverly Place with additional projects, including movie roles and a burgeoning singing career. She began branching out into pop music by recording songs for her own <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Disney%22">Disney</a> projects. She sang the theme song for The Wizards of Waverly Place, recorded several other tunes for the show's soundtrack, and performed on the soundtrack of the family film Another Cinderella Story. By 2009, she'd also assembled her own teen pop band, <a href="spotify:artist:6dJeKm76NjfXBNTpHmOhfO">Selena Gomez & the Scene</a>, and signed a contract with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Hollywood+Records%22">Hollywood Records</a>. The band's full-length debut, Kiss & Tell, was released that year and went gold, as did its 2010 follow-up, A Year Without Rain. Gomez continued filming The Wizards of Waverly Place and made her theatrical debut in the 2010 film adaptation of Ramona and Beezus, but her music garnered just as much attention. When The Wizards of Waverly Place started airing its final season in November 2010, Gomez shifted her attention back to her band, whose third album, When the Sun Goes Down, was recorded in early 2011 and released later that year. She then took a break from music to focus more on acting, with her first role in a decidedly adult movie in 2013's Spring Breakers showing she could stretch beyond teen stardom. Her return to music in 2013 with her fourth album -- but the first credited to her as a solo artist -- also showed some stretching as she added dubstep, R&B, and EDM to her sound. Stars Dance was released in July 2013 and debuted at number one on the Billboard 200. The rest of that year was a bit challenging for her, as she fired her management team and parted ways with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Hollywood+Records%22">Hollywood Records</a>. She soon bounced back and scored a deal with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Interscope%22">Interscope</a>. One last <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Hollywood%22">Hollywood</a> album, a contract-fulfilling hits collection titled For You, was released in late 2014 and featured the self-penned platinum single "The Heart Wants What It Wants." In early 2015, Gomez guested on <a href="spotify:artist:2qxJFvFYMEDqd7ui6kSAcq">Zedd</a>'s hit EDM single "I Want You to Know." On the heels of that success, she released her own single, the Sir Nolan- and Nick Monson-produced "Good for You," which featured a guest appearance by the song's co-writer, rapper <a href="spotify:artist:13ubrt8QOOCPljQ2FL1Kca">A$AP Rocky</a>. The song was featured on the 2015 album Revival, her first on <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Interscope%22">Interscope</a>. With production from Mattman & Robin, Hit-Boy, and Benny Blanco, among others, and songwriting credits for <a href="spotify:artist:25uiPmTg16RbhZWAqwLBy5">Charli XCX</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0ZED1XzwlLHW4ZaG4lOT6m">Julia Michaels</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:79A4RmgwxYGIDkqQDUHLXK">Chloe Angelides</a>, the album had many collaborators. Gomez executive produced and shared writing credits on six songs, making it her most personal effort to date. It entered the Billboard 200 at the top and spawned three singles that reached the Top Ten on the Top 40 chart. While touring in support of Revival, Gomez cut the trek short to address personal health problems stemming from her lupus, later revealing that during her time away from the spotlight she underwent a kidney transplant. Re-emerging at the end of 2016, she collaborated on singles with <a href="spotify:artist:23fqKkggKUBHNkbKtXEls4">Kygo</a> ("It Ain't Me") and <a href="spotify:artist:64KEffDW9EtZ1y2vBYgq8T">Marshmello</a> ("Wolves"), both charting in the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 in 2017. The next year was a busy one for Gomez as she acted in the movie A Rainy Day in New York, served as executive producer of the Netflix show 13 Reasons Why, and worked with <a href="spotify:artist:64KEffDW9EtZ1y2vBYgq8T">Marshmello</a> on the Top 20 single "Wolves." She also issued the solo singles "Bad Liar" and "Fetish," which featured rapper <a href="spotify:artist:13y7CgLHjMVRMDqxdx0Xdo">Gucci Mane</a>. In 2018, she contributed the song "Back to You" to the 13 Reasons Why: Season 2 soundtrack, joined with <a href="spotify:artist:540vIaP2JwjQb9dm3aArA4">DJ Snake</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:4kYSro6naA4h99UJvo89HB">Cardi B</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:1i8SpTcr7yvPOmcqrbnVXY">Ozuna</a> on "Taki Taki," and sang the hook on Benny Blanco's single "I Can't Get Enough." While working on an album in 2019, she also executive-produced the HBO series Living Undocumented and appeared in the <a href="spotify:artist:7uwCnAgRDUzftIAkJDFfdy">Jim Jarmusch</a> zombie comedy The Dead Don't Die. Near the end of the year, she released the confessional ballad "Lose You to Love Me," and it became her first single to reach the top of the Billboard charts. The song set the tone for her sixth album, Rare, a collection of tracks that explored aspects of Gomez's life in ways her previous work hadn't. It featured the usual crop of heavy hitters behind the scenes, including Mattman & Robin, Justin Tranter, and <a href="spotify:artist:0ZED1XzwlLHW4ZaG4lOT6m">Julia Michaels</a>, and entered the Billboard 200 at number one in January 2020. The following year saw Gomez issue her first full-length Spanish-language project, the Grammy-nominated Revelación EP, which featured contributions from <a href="spotify:artist:540vIaP2JwjQb9dm3aArA4">DJ Snake</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7iK8PXO48WeuP03g8YR51W">Myke Towers</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:1mcTU81TzQhprhouKaTkpq">Rauw Alejandro</a>. In 2021, she began starring in the Hulu mystery-comedy show Only Murders in the Building with <a href="spotify:artist:1Bd4UVlqlaKEXYRG3wgrCK">Steve Martin</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:0dV9xcjrW5YwkxG3gEBhRx">Martin Short</a>. She was also the subject of director Alek Keshishian's 2022 documentary Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me. The film followed Gomez over a six-year period and detailed her struggles with fame, as well as her physical and mental health issues in the wake of being diagnosed with lupus bipolar disorder. As part of the documentary, she released the single "My Mind & Me." The Benny Blanco and <a href="spotify:artist:2LZDXcxJWgsJfKXZv9a5eG">Cashmere Cat</a>-produced non-album track, "Single Soon," arrived in August 2023, followed in February 2024 by <a href="spotify:artist:2ra0AEgPRsClYf0zyk8RpK">the Monsters & Strangerz</a> and Isaiah Tejada-produced standalone track, "Love On." Both singles charted in the Hot 100. ~ Matt Collar & Andrew Leahey, Rovi

Tate McRae

Beyoncé

About a half-hour into her 2019 concert documentary, HOMECOMING, Beyoncé Knowles says, “When I decided to do Coachella, instead of me pullin’ out my flower crown, it was more important that I brought our culture”—in this case, the homecoming rituals of historically Black colleges and universities in the American South. An incredible show, no doubt. But the real impact lay in realizing how few of the millions of people watching her had probably seen anything like it. Of course, this is what Beyoncé does. Few modern pop artists have worked as hard to put the culture and concerns of Black America in front of a broader audience, whether it’s civil rights (“Formation”), Black feminism (“***Flawless,” “Irreplaceable”), the collective pride of HBCU culture (HOMECOMING), or the liberations of disco and house music (RENAISSANCE). Entertainment, yes—but also a kind of ambassadorship. Born in 1981 and raised in Houston, she started singing and dancing as a child. (One teacher, Darlette Johnson, discovered she could sing when she started humming a song and Knowles finished it—a performance the shy Knowles wouldn’t reproduce until Johnson offered her a dollar.) In 1990, she joined Girl’s Tyme, which evolved into Destiny’s Child. Under the management of Knowles’ father, Mathew, they became one of the biggest forces in pop, blending the familiar comforts of the all-girl vocal group with notions of female empowerment, sisterhood, and a refreshingly contemporary mix of pop, R&B, and hip-hop (“Bills, Bills, Bills,” “Say My Name,” “Survivor,” “Soldier”). Her first solo feature was on a track by her future husband, JAY-Z (“’03 Bonnie & Clyde”), marking the beginning of a fertile partnership and a point of enduring public fascination. (The song was also helmed by a rising Chicago producer named Kanye West, who flipped a 2Pac sample—“Me and My Girlfriend”—into a desperado set piece.) From there, Knowles has been more or less unstoppable. As her fame has grown, her sound and approach have only gotten bolder, spawning intimate, relatively experimental albums like BEYONCÉ and Lemonade alongside celebrations like the JAY-Z collaboration EVERYTHING IS LOVE (credited to THE CARTERS) and 2022’s RENAISSANCE, which celebrated the liberated sound of queer disco and house. It isn’t just the music—which has crisscrossed from dancehall to soul ballads to New Orleans bounce to the chopped-and-screwed sound of her native Houston—but also the figure she cuts in the culture. Here’s a woman who sang at a presidential inauguration (2009, the Obamas, Etta James’ “At Last”), revealed her pregnancy in front of an audience of millions (2011, the MTV Video Music Awards, “Love on Top”), and joined ranks with Black Lives Matter (“Formation”) and feminism (“***Flawless”) when her high-profile status had all but exempted her; who name-checked figures like Jean-Michel Basquiat, Audre Lorde, and Cornel West for people who might otherwise not have encountered them. In 2017, she spoke on behalf of transgender rights, and later that year she gave former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick the Sports Illustrated Muhammad Ali Legacy Award, cementing her role as both pop star and public figure. “It was important to me that everyone that had never seen themselves represented felt like they were on that stage with us,” she said in HOMECOMING. “As a Black woman, I used to feel like the world wanted me to stay in my little box. And Black women often feel underestimated,” she explained in the movie. “I wanted everyone to feel thankful for their curves, their sass, their honesty—thankful for their freedom.”

Tyga

With a rangy set of friends from Fall Out Boy to Lil Wayne, it was clear from the start that Tyga was not your everyday rapper from Compton. After recording a mixtape and promoting it around the city, Tyga ran into his cousin, Gym Class Heroes member Travis McCoy, in the Flight Club L.A. sneaker shop. Their conversation went from shoes to rappers, and as Travis' group went from unknowns to MTV stars, he would always remember that talk and his cousin's unique style. Travis signed Tyga to his Bad Squad label and then invited him along when the punk-pop group Fall Out Boy came calling. Travis and Tyga would appear on the remix to Fall Out Boy's "Arms Race," which also featured Kanye West, Paul Wall, Skinhead Rob, Lupe Fiasco, and Lil Wayne. When the remix became a hit, Tyga found himself performing the track on MTV's Video Music Awards in 2007. He soon entered the studio to do some guest shots for his new friend Lil Wayne before shifting the focus to his solo career. His first single became the hooky "Coconut Juice," a S*A*M & Sluggo production that borrowed a bit of Harry Nilsson's hit "Coconut." As the club track was climbing the charts in the spring of 2008, Tyga was hard at work on his debut album, No Introduction, which was officially released that June. He returned in 2012 with Careless World, an album that featured Game, Snoop Dogg, and Drake among its guests. Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, Rick Ross, and 2 Chainz landed on his 2013 effort, Hotel California -- his second straight Top Ten album. Among his many guest verses were a pair of hit collaborations with Chris Brown, namely "Deuces" and "Loyal." The two opted to take their success to another level with Fan of a Fan: The Album, issued in 2015. Later in the year, Tyga followed up with his fourth proper album, The Gold Album: 18th Dynasty, as well as the mixtape Fuk What They Talkin Bout. Another tape, Rawwest Nigga Alive, arrived in 2016. The effort featured appearances by Goapele, Chris Brown, Rick Ross, and 2 Chainz. At the end of the year, Tyga signed to Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music imprint. In 2017, he released a series of high-profile collaborative singles, including "Feel Me" with Kanye West, "Act Ghetto" with Lil Wayne, and "100's" with Chief Keef and A.E. His fifth official album, BitchI'mTheShit2 (the sequel to a 2011 mixtape), appeared in July, containing the singles featuring West and Keef as well as additional features by Vince Staples, Young Thug, Pusha T, and others. Tyga's prolific run continued a few months later with the Bugatti Raww mixtape, followed in early 2018 by his sixth album, Kyoto. While the album failed to make a splash, Tyga scored a hit that summer with standalone single, "Taste," featuring Migos' Offset. The slinky track broke into the Top 10 of the Hot 100, one of his highest showings to date. ~ David Jeffries

Camila Cabello

Latto

Bruno Mars

Artist

Dua Lipa

Zara Larsson

Swedish hitmaking singer/songwriter Zara Larsson crafts R&B- and club-influenced dance-pop influenced by artists like <a href="spotify:artist:6vWDO969PvNqNYHIOW5v0m">Beyoncé</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5pKCCKE2ajJHZ9KAiaK11H">Rihanna</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:6UE7nl9mha6s8z0wFQFIZ2">Robyn</a>. After winning a Swedish singing competition at the age of eight, Larsson crashed the mainstream in the mid-2010s with a string of Swedish number ones like "Lush Life" and "Never Forget You," which were certified multi-platinum around the world. Those tracks landed on her 2017 chart-topping, multi-platinum breakthrough So Good, a Top Ten hit across Europe and Australasia. Her third album, Poster Girl, arrived in 2021 and again brought her to the Top Ten in Sweden with the hit "Ruin My Life." In 2023, she cracked the top 30 of the Pop 100 with the '80s-influenced "Can't Tame Her" from 2024's Venus. Born in the Stockholm suburb of Solna, Larsson first caught the public's eyes and ears in 2008 as the winner of the popular Swedish talent show Talang Sverige (the regional version of Got Talent). Following the success of the show, she inked a deal with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Ten+Music+Group%22">Ten Music Group</a> and issued her debut EP, Introducing, which featured the hit single "Uncover" in 2013. The song was certified triple platinum in her home country, and after another EP, Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself, Larsson began work on her official debut long-player. The resulting 1 arrived in 2014 via <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Record+Company+Ten%22">Record Company Ten</a> and <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Universal+Music%22">Universal Music</a>. Three additional singles reached the Swedish Top Ten: "She's Not Me," "Carry You Home," and "Rooftop." A pair of 2015 singles proved to be Larsson's international breakthrough. First, the multi-platinum smash hit "Lush Life" reached the Top Ten across Europe, then "Never Forget You" (featuring <a href="spotify:artist:7uMh23xWiuR7zsNkuNcm2G">MNEK</a>) hit the Top Ten in Great Britain and went platinum in the United States. Those tracks would eventually appear on her sophomore LP. Before the release of that album, she collaborated with <a href="spotify:artist:0Tob4H0FLtEONHU1MjpUEp">Tinie Tempah</a> on "Girls Like" and <a href="spotify:artist:1Cs0zKBU1kc0i8ypK3B9ai">David Guetta</a> for the 2016 UEFA Euro Cup theme "This One's for You." By the time So Good was released in early 2017, four additional singles had been issued, including the <a href="spotify:artist:6VuMaDnrHyPL1p4EHjYLi7">Charlie Puth</a>-penned "So Good" with <a href="spotify:artist:7c0XG5cIJTrrAgEC3ULPiq">Ty Dolla $ign</a>, "Symphony" with <a href="spotify:artist:6MDME20pz9RveH9rEXvrOM">Clean Bandit</a>, and the <a href="spotify:artist:7uMh23xWiuR7zsNkuNcm2G">MNEK</a>-produced "Ain't My Fault." The set debuted atop the charts in Sweden and marked her chart debut across the world, including in the U.S., where it reached the Top 30. The following year, Larsson released the platinum-certified single "Ruin My Life" -- the first offering from what would become her third album -- and entered 2019 with "Don't Worry Bout Me," "All the Time," and "Wow." She also collaborated with K-pop superstars <a href="spotify:artist:3Nrfpe0tUJi4K4DXYWgMUX">BTS</a> on "A Brand New Day," provided "Invisible," the theme song for the animated film Klaus, and teamed with <a href="spotify:artist:5LHRHt1k9lMyONurDHEdrp">Tyga</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:23fqKkggKUBHNkbKtXEls4">Kygo</a> for the latter's tropical club anthem "Like It Is," which became a Top Five hit in Sweden, New Zealand, and Norway. Later that year, she released "Love Me Land," the official lead single from her third album, 2021's Poster Girl. Collecting singles from as early as 2018 ("Ruin My Life"), the R&B-influenced pop set also included "Talk About Love" with <a href="spotify:artist:50co4Is1HCEo8bhOyUWKpn">Young Thug</a>. Poster Girl hit number three in Sweden, 11 in Norway, and cracked the Billboard 200. She promoted the album into the next year, when she teamed up with <a href="spotify:artist:4AVFqumd2ogHFlRbKIjp1t">Alesso</a> for the European hit "Words." Larsson returned in early 2023 with the '80s-influenced "Can't Tame Her," co-written with <a href="spotify:artist:7uMh23xWiuR7zsNkuNcm2G">MNEK</a> and MTHR and released on her own record label, Sommer House. It hit number 28 on the Pop 100. A collaboration with <a href="spotify:artist:1Cs0zKBU1kc0i8ypK3B9ai">David Guetta</a>, "On My Love," became a chart-topping hit in Sweden. She closed the year with the release of the holiday EP, Honor the Light, a six-track effort that included the track "Memory Lane." After a year of single releases, Larsson's fourth studio album finally arrived in February 2024. Venus included her <a href="spotify:artist:7uMh23xWiuR7zsNkuNcm2G">MNEK</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:1Cs0zKBU1kc0i8ypK3B9ai">Guetta</a> collaborations, as well as "You Love Who You Love" and "End of Time." ~ Neil Z. Yeung & James Christopher Monger

Amaarae

The Weeknd

Artist

Megan Thee Stallion

Artist

Justin Bieber

Artist

Sabrina Carpenter

Favorites

Gangsta

Let the World Burn

Fat Juicy & Wet

Candy

Track · Doja Cat

It's ok I'm ok

São Paulo with Anitta

PUSH 2 START

All The Stars (with SZA)

Track · Kendrick Lamar, SZA

Girl You Loud

Folded

Unforgettable

After Hours

dandelion

Fill The Void

Fetish

This Is What You Came For (feat. Rihanna)

Lean On

Track · Major Lazer, DJ Snake, MØ

Let Me Love You

Track · DJ Snake, Justin Bieber

KEHLANI

Song

Artiste favorit 🇺🇸

Ariana Grande

Chris Grey

Rihanna

Among the most popular and acclaimed artists in postmillennial contemporary music, Rihanna is also uncommonly dynamic, having mixed and matched pure pop, dancehall, R&B, EDM, and adult contemporary material throughout her career. She went supernova in 2005 with her boisterous debut single, "Pon de Replay," a worldwide hit, and was a near-constant presence in the upper reaches of global pop charts until she took a break from releasing music in the late 2010s. Through 2017, the native Barbadian headlined 11 number one hits, including "Umbrella" and "Only Girl (In the World)," singles that earned her two of her nine Grammy Awards. More than just a singles artist, Rihanna continually pushed ahead stylistically with her LPs, highlighted by the bold Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), the steely Rated R (2009), and the composed Anti (2016), all of which confounded expectations and placed within the Top Ten of the Billboard 200 with eventual multi-platinum certifications. Rihanna studded her secondary discography as a featured artist during this period with major crossover pop hits headlined by the likes of <a href="spotify:artist:3nFkdlSjzX9mRTtwJOzDYB">Jay-Z</a> ("Run This Town"), <a href="spotify:artist:7dGJo4pcD2V6oG8kP0tJRR">Eminem</a> ("Love the Way You Lie"), and <a href="spotify:artist:2YZyLoL8N0Wb9xBt1NhZWg">Kendrick Lamar</a> ("LOYALTY."). She returned to the Top Ten in 2022 with the understated ballad "Lift Me Up," her first solo release in six years, recorded for the soundtrack of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Born Robyn Rihanna Fenty in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna exhibited star quality as a child, often winning beauty and talent contests. Because she lived on a fairly remote island in the West Indies, however, she didn't foresee the global stardom she later attained. Her break came courtesy of a fateful meeting with <a href="spotify:artist:0kbIz7wAczMyXXs9tfdDNE">Evan Rogers</a>, writer and producer of pop hits for such big names as <a href="spotify:artist:6Ff53KvcvAj5U7Z1vojB5o">*NSYNC</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1l7ZsJRRS8wlW3WfJfPfNS">Christina Aguilera</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:2tFN9ubMXEhdAQvdQxcsma">Jessica Simpson</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2y8Jo9CKhJvtfeKOsYzRdT">Rod Stewart</a>. The New Yorker was vacationing in Barbados with his wife, an island native, when he was introduced to an aspiring singing group that featured Rihanna. The trio performed for <a href="spotify:artist:0kbIz7wAczMyXXs9tfdDNE">Rogers</a>, who was then eager to work with Rihanna as a solo artist. After the fledgling singer recorded material with <a href="spotify:artist:0kbIz7wAczMyXXs9tfdDNE">Rogers</a> in the U.S. and signed with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22SRP%22">SRP</a> (Syndicated Rhythm Productions), operated by <a href="spotify:artist:0kbIz7wAczMyXXs9tfdDNE">Rogers</a> and partner Carl Sturken, she sparked the interest of the Carter Administration -- that is, the newly appointed <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Def+Jam%22">Def Jam</a> president <a href="spotify:artist:3nFkdlSjzX9mRTtwJOzDYB">Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter</a>. Following an audition, Rihanna accepted an on-the-spot offer to sign with the major label. Come May 2005, <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Def+Jam%22">Def Jam</a> rolled out "Pon de Replay," Rihanna's first single and the lively introduction to the full-length Music of the Sun. Produced almost entirely by <a href="spotify:artist:0kbIz7wAczMyXXs9tfdDNE">Rogers</a> and Sturken, the song synthesized Caribbean rhythms with pop-R&B songwriting. "Pon de Replay" caught fire almost immediately and peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100, denied the top spot by <a href="spotify:artist:4iHNK0tOyZPYnBU7nGAgpQ">Mariah Carey</a>'s "We Belong Together." Music of the Sun, released that August, spawned a Top 40 placement with "If It's Lovin' That You Want" and ranged stylistically from a remake of <a href="spotify:artist:6mLXvSt7Xxy2r9uBba1O6Z">Dawn Penn</a>'s rocksteady-styled crossover hit "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" (featuring dancehall star <a href="spotify:artist:2NUz5P42WqkxilbI8ocN76">Vybz Kartel</a>) to the <a href="spotify:artist:6vWDO969PvNqNYHIOW5v0m">Beyoncé</a>-like "Let Me" (co-produced by emergent duo <a href="spotify:artist:7KUri7klyLaIFXLcuuOMCd">Stargate</a>). Music of the Sun was only eight months old when Rihanna followed up in April 2006 with A Girl Like Me. It showed that the singer wasn't a fluke success and could also stretch out, laced with three dissimilar hits. "SOS," high-gloss dance-pop with a sample of <a href="spotify:artist:6aq8T2RcspxVOGgMrTzjWc">Soft Cell</a>'s version of "Tainted Love," topped the Hot 100. "Unfaithful," her first big ballad, and "Break It Off," an electro-dancehall hybrid (with <a href="spotify:artist:3Isy6kedDrgPYoTS1dazA9">Sean Paul</a>), became her third and fourth Top Ten pop singles. Superstar status was attained with Good Girl Gone Bad, an album that built on Rihanna's commercial momentum and developed into a blockbuster. Released in May 2007 and "reloaded" with additional material the following June, its lengthy promotional campaign yielded several chart-topping singles and boasted collaborations with A-listers such as <a href="spotify:artist:3nFkdlSjzX9mRTtwJOzDYB">Jay-Z</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:21E3waRsmPlU7jZsS13rcj">Ne-Yo</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:5Y5TRrQiqgUO4S36tzjIRZ">Timbaland</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:31TPClRtHm23RisEBtV3X7">Justin Timberlake</a>. Lead single "Umbrella," co-written by <a href="spotify:artist:1W3FSF1BLpY3hlVIgvenLz">the-Dream</a> and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, sounded like nothing else on the airwaves and shot to number one, as did "Take a Bow" and "Disturbia," while "Hate That I Love You" and "Don't Stop the Music" added to the tally of Top Ten entries. "Umbrella" gave Rihanna her first Grammy win for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. The album was on its way to triple-platinum status by October 2009, when Rihanna set the dark and provocative tone for fourth album Rated R with "Russian Roulette," another <a href="spotify:artist:21E3waRsmPlU7jZsS13rcj">Ne-Yo</a> collaboration and Top Ten single. Abused lover, dominatrix, and murderer were among the perspectives Rihanna offered throughout the album, released that November. Even the additional Top Ten hits "Hard" and "Rude Boy" -- the latter her fifth number one -- were stern in demeanor, making the early hits sound like the work of a significantly more complex artist. While Rated R was riding high, <a href="spotify:artist:3nFkdlSjzX9mRTtwJOzDYB">Jay-Z</a>'s "Run This Town," with Rihanna on the intro and hook, won Grammys for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. Annual studio albums, each one with a November release date and a broad range of light and dark material covering EDM, contemporary R&B, adult contemporary, dancehall, and straight-up pop, continued well into the following decade. In 2010, just after <a href="spotify:artist:7dGJo4pcD2V6oG8kP0tJRR">Eminem</a> featured her on the diamond platinum "Love the Way You Lie," there was Loud. Led by the <a href="spotify:artist:7KUri7klyLaIFXLcuuOMCd">Stargate</a>-produced "Only Girl (In the World)," eventually a Grammy winner for Best Dance Recording, it was sustained with additional Hot 100 toppers "What's My Name?" (featuring <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>) and "S&M." Talk That Talk was heralded in 2011 with Rihanna's most triumphant single, "We Found Love," on which she collaborated with <a href="spotify:artist:7CajNmpbOovFoOoasH2HaY">Calvin Harris</a>. After she nabbed yet another Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Grammy, this time for her role on <a href="spotify:artist:5K4W6rqBFWDnAN6FQUkS6x">Kanye West</a>'s "All of the Lights," the streak concluded, and culminated, with the 2012 set Unapologetic. Her first LP to top the Billboard 200 (after all of the previous six had gone Top Ten), it also became her first to win a Grammy for Best Urban Contemporary Album. "Diamonds," the anthemic and inspirational standout among some of Rihanna's brashest moments, became her tenth number one pop hit and 18th to peak within the Top Ten. Within a span of three years, Rihanna had released her fourth through seventh albums. An equal amount of time passed prior to the release of her eighth full-length. In 2013, she lengthened her list of chart accolades as a featured artist with an assist on <a href="spotify:artist:7dGJo4pcD2V6oG8kP0tJRR">Eminem</a>'s "The Monster," which became her 25th Top Ten hit as a lead or featured artist, went to number one, and led to her fourth Best Rap/Sung Collaboration Grammy. No longer with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Def+Jam%22">Def Jam</a> -- a deal had been signed with <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Roc+Nation%22">Roc Nation</a> via <a href="spotify:artist:3nFkdlSjzX9mRTtwJOzDYB">Jay-Z</a>, who left <a href="spotify:search:label%3A%22Def+Jam%22">Def Jam</a> several years earlier -- Rihanna released non-album singles throughout 2015, beginning with the unembellished "FourFiveSeconds," an unlikely matchup with <a href="spotify:artist:4STHEaNw4mPZ2tzheohgXB">Paul McCartney</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:5K4W6rqBFWDnAN6FQUkS6x">Kanye West</a> that reached number four. "American Oxygen" didn't flourish as much from a commercial standpoint but upon release became one of her most remarkable recordings, a dignified ballad with a personal, pro-immigration theme. Album eight, the strikingly composed Anti, became Rihanna's second consecutive number one album following its January 2016 arrival. She partnered again with <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, resulting in another number one hit with "Work." "Needed Me," a buzzing slow jam cooked up with a production team including <a href="spotify:artist:0YinUQ50QDB7ZxSCLyQ40k">DJ Mustard</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:6cKkRS7JwVT2K3rCCnOHyk">Kuk Harrell</a>, and "Love on the Brain," a throwback soul belter involving <a href="spotify:artist:6cKkRS7JwVT2K3rCCnOHyk">Harrell</a> and Fred Ball, entered the Top Ten as well. Those who missed the comparative lack of high-spirited exuberance in Anti were placated across 2016 and 2017 with Rihanna's guest appearances on <a href="spotify:artist:7CajNmpbOovFoOoasH2HaY">Calvin Harris</a>' "This Is What You Came For" and <a href="spotify:artist:5wPoxI5si3eJsYYwyXV4Wi">N.E.R.D.</a>'s "Lemon." Meanwhile, <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1RyvyyTE3xzB2ZywiAwp0i">Future</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0QHgL1lAIqAw0HtD7YldmP">DJ Khaled</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2YZyLoL8N0Wb9xBt1NhZWg">Kendrick Lamar</a> likewise profited from Rihanna's featured spots. <a href="spotify:artist:2YZyLoL8N0Wb9xBt1NhZWg">Lamar</a>'s "LOYALTY." made Rihanna a five-time winner of the Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, setting a record for women artists in that category. Apart from a featured appearance on <a href="spotify:artist:2HPaUgqeutzr3jx5a9WyDV">PartyNextDoor</a>'s 2020 single "Believe It," Rihanna wasn't behind any new music for several years, as she focused her efforts on her Fenty cosmetics and fashion empire and started a family. She returned in October 2022 with "Lift Me Up" from the soundtrack of Ryan Coogler's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The ballad, written by Rihanna with producer <a href="spotify:artist:24eDfi2MSYo3A87hCcgpIL">Ludwig Göransson</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:687cZJR45JO7jhk1LHIbgq">Tems</a>, and Coogler, entered the Hot 100 at number two. ~ Andy Kellman & Jason Birchmeier, Rovi