She has attained fourteen Billboard Hot 100 number ones thus far and is the second Barbadian artist to win a Grammy Award. She is also a cultural ambassador for Barbados. In 2021 Rihanna was named a "National Hero" in her home country, earning her the title "The Right Excellent."
Rihanna was born in Saint Michael, Barbados to Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor, and Monica Fenty, an accountant. Her mother, a native of Guyana, is Afro-Guyanese and her father is Bajan and Irish. She is the oldest of three siblings; two younger brothers, Rorrey and Rajad Fenty. She began singing at around the age of seven. Her childhood was deeply affected by her father's addiction to crack cocaine and parent's rocky marriage, which ended when she was fourteen years old. Rihanna attended Charles F. Broome Memorial School, a primary school in Barbados, and then the Combermere School, where she formed a musical trio with two of her classmates at the age of fifteen. In 2004 she won the Miss Combermere Beauty Pageant. She was an army cadet in a sub-military programme that trained with the military of Barbados and Shontelle was her drill sergeant.
At the age of 15, she formed a girl group with two of her classmates. In 2003, friends introduced Rihanna and her two bandmates to record producer Evan Rogers, who was vacationing in Barbados with his wife. The group auditioned for Rogers, who said that "the minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist." While auditioning for Rogers, Rihanna sang Destiny's Child's cover of "Emotion". Over the next year, Rihanna and her mom shuttled back and forth to Rogers home in Stamford, Connecticut. Then, shortly after turning 16, she relocated in the United States and moved in with Rogers and his wife. Carl Sturken helped Rihanna record a four-song demo, which included the ballad "The Last Time," a cover of Whitney Houston’s hit "For the Love of You" and what would become her first hit, "Pon de Replay" to send to various recording companies. It took a year to record the demos, because she was going to school and would only record during summer and Christmas school breaks. Rihanna's demo made its way to Def Jam, which invited her to audition for the label's then-president, Jay-Z, who quickly signed her.
Rihanna broke into the recording industry in 2005 with the release of her debut album Music of the Sun, which features the number 2 hit single "Pon de Replay". Less than a year later, Rihanna released album artist=Rihanna]A Girl Like Me and earned her first number-one single, "SOS, which sampled the popular 80s track "Tainted Love". "Unfaithful" was also released and was fairly successful.
Rihanna released her third album Good Girl Gone Bad in June 2007. Prior to the release of the album, she spent the week of the Grammys writing songs for the album with Ne-Yo. She adopted a more sexual image while recording the album, eventually dying her hair black and cutting it short. Rihanna worked with Timbaland and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, as well as previous musical collaborators such as Stargate, Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers to re-imagine her album compositions with uptempo dance tracks. Rihanna commented, "I want to keep people dancing but still be soulful at the same time. You feel different every album, and [at] this stage I feel like I want to do a lot of uptempo [songs]."
The album topped the charts in countries like the United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Russia and Ireland, and peaked at number two in the United States and Australia. Unlike previous work, the album featured a more dance-pop sound instead of the dancehall, reggae and ballad styles. The album received positive reviews by critics, becoming her most critically acclaimed album at that time compared to her previous efforts.
It yielded eight hit singles - "Umbrella" "Shut Up and Drive", "Don't Stop The Music" "Hate That I Love You" "Rehab" "Disturbia" "Take A Bow" "If I Never See Your Face Again" - all singles reaching the top twenty on the Billboard Hot 100 — including the worldwide number-one hit "Umbrella," featuring Jay-Z.
In addition to reaching number one in various countries, "Umbrella" was the number one single in the United Kingdom for ten consecutive weeks, making it the longest-running number-one single since Wet Wet Wet's single "Love Is All Around" spent fifteen weeks at the top in 1994. The song is listed number three on the 100 Best Songs of 2007 published by Rolling Stone magazine. In 2008, "Umbrella" earned Rihanna and Jay-Z a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration in addition to receiving nominations for Record of the Year and Song of the Year. It managed to stay at number one in the United Kingdom for 10 weeks, the longest time spent by a female and in the 21st century, on this chart.
"Umbrella" has also been recognised in various forms of accolades by the music press. The song is listed number three on the 100 Best Songs of 2007, published by the music magazine Rolling Stone. Time magazine also listed the song number three on their Top 10 Songs of 2007. The song is listed number one on Entertainment Weekly magazine's list of the 10 Best Singles of 2007, while topping the magazine's poll for the best single of 2007. Blender magazine awarded the song Song of the Year in their Readers' Poll 2007. The music press has considered "Umbrella" as 2007's Song of the Summer, while The New York Times writer Kelefa Sanneh regarded it as "arguably 2007's signature slow jam".
In August 2009, Rihanna collaborated with Jay-Z and Kanye West on "Run This Town." The song peaked at number two on Billboard Hot 100 and also reached the top ten in five other countries. She appeared on the cover of Vogue Italia for the September 2009 Issue. The shoot was influenced by Rihanna's hair, which she had cut for the shoot into a mohawk-like style. The style of the shoot was Extreme Couture and very dark, and in one shot she appeared semi-nude. Rihanna performed "Run This Town" along with Jay-Z and West for the "Answer the Call" concert at Madison Square Garden in September 2009, making it her first musical performance since the altercation with Brown. The trio also performed "Run This Town," on the premiere of The Jay Leno Show on September 14, 2009.
In November of 2009, Rated R was released in the wake of a physical altercation with romantic interest Chris Brown, who pled guilty to felony assault. The album's lead single, "Russian Roulette" -- written with Ne-Yo - was one of the year's most controversial singles. The album also includes collaborations with Tricky, The-Dream, Stargate, and SRP.
One year later, Rihanna released her fifth studio album called Loud. It's lead single, "Only Girl (In the World)", reached number one in more than ten countries. The song also won a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording.
Talk That Talk was released one year after Loud. With the song "We Found Love", Rihanna became the fastest solo artist in the chart's history to achieve twenty Hot 100 top-ten singles, breaking the previous record set by Madonna. The song later became her eleventh number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100. "You Da One" became the second single from the album but was not as successful as "We Found Love". The third single from the album, "Talk That Talk" featuring Jay-Z, was announced on Rihanna's Twitter. The fourth single, "Where Have You Been", peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100.
On February 20, 2012, Rihanna and Chris Brown released 2 remixes, one featuring the "Talk That Talk" album track "Birthday Cake" and the other featuring Chris Brown's "Turn Up The Music"
In April 2012, the singer appeared in the movie "Battleship", which is based on the game of the same name.
Rihanna's seventh album Unapologetic was released on November 19, 2012; it was preceded by the lead single Diamonds, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 becoming Rihanna's twelfth number one single on the chart and tying her with Madonna and The Supremes for the fourth-most number ones in the chart's history.
On January 28, 2016, Rihanna released her eighth studio album ANTI exclusively through streaming service Tidal. The album peaked at number one on the US Billboard 200, becoming Rihanna's second number one and eighth top ten album on the chart. The album was supported by the release of four singles including the lead single "Work" featuring Drake, which topped the Billboard Hot 100. Further platinum singles "Needed Me" and "Love on the Brain" both peaked inside the top ten of the Hot 100. In 2016, Rihanna was featured on several singles. The first collaboration was Calvin Harris' "This Is What You Came For," which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two in the United Kingdom. Rihanna was also featured on Drake's "Too Good" from his album Views and Mike Will Made It's single, "Nothing Is Promised". On June 27, 2016, Rihanna released "Sledgehammer", the lead single from the Star Trek Beyond soundtrack. On August 28, Rihanna was honored with the MTV Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. Rihanna was elected artist of the decade of 2010 by Pitchfork, Insider, Lofficiel among other major music magazines.
In October 2022, Rihanna released "Lift Me Up" from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, marking her first solo single since 2016's "Love On The Brain". It reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #3 in the UK. The song was nominated for a Golden Globe and Academy Award, making it Rihanna's first nomination in both awards. On February 12, 2023, she performed at the Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show, marking her first performance since the 2018 Grammy Awards. Her Halftime show became the second most watched Halftime show of all time with 118.7 million viewers, just after Lady Gaga’s (117.5 million), but behind Katy Perry’s (121 million).
Emergency Room
Rihanna Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
oooh oooh
oooh eh
i was picking up your clothes in the closet
i was bout to throw your jeans in the washer
till i saw a piece of paper saying Tasha
i gotta say ,i found this a bit shocking
you bought some nike shoes but why you buyin stockings
boy ,how could you lie to me
thought you would die for me
im not accepting
another apology
after 3 years imma let it go
cant stand around crying no more
got your bags packed sitting by the door
imma leave your heart broken on the floor
you gon be in the emergency room
im standing by your bed and
so tempted to pull out your IV
you gon be in the emergency room
im fighting with myself,
i cant hurt you even tho you hurt me
you gon be in the emergency room
tryin to call a nurse but nobody can help you now
let me see you try to live without me,
now wheres your heartbeat, flat line on the EKG
well i was home late at night watching tv,
got a call from a girl saying Riri,
saw your man at the club ,
i thought he was outta town doing business
and that hed be back in 3 weeks
now im mad, sittin in the kitchen,
gettin sad, looking at your pictures
boy, how could you lie to me
thought you would die for me
im not accepting
another apology
after 3 years imma let it go
cant stand around crying no more
got your bags packed sitting by the door
imma leave your heart broken on the floor
you gon be in the emergency room
im standing by your bed
so tempted to pull out your IV
you gon be in the emergency room
im fighting with myself, i cant hurt you even tho you hurt me
you gon be in the emergency room
tryin to call a nurse but nobody can help you now
let me see you try to live without me,
now wheres your heartbeat, flat line on the EKG
I did you wrong girl, had a bunch of numbers in my phone girl
but we been in this relationship too long girl
for you to be listening to your silly homegirls
better go on girl.
now baby think about it
everything we gon do they gonna read about it
put it on the radio or tv outlet
do you wanna see your picture in that paper
you know them haters
you hear that 808?
the drum, thats my heartbeat, im goin numb
i said Rihanna, im feeling stress, im going under cardiac arrest
you gon be in the emergency room
im standing by your bed
so tempted to pull out your IV
you gon be in the emergency room
im fighting with myself, i cant hurt you even tho you hurt me
you gon be in the emergency room
tryin to call a nurse but nobody can help you now
let me see you try to live without me,
now wheres your heartbeat, flat line on the EKG
uh uh
uh uh
flat line on the EKG
The song Emergency Room by Rihanna tells the story of a woman who has just discovered that her partner has been cheating on her. She finds a piece of paper with the name "Tasha" on it and soon realizes that he has been lying to her. She finds receipts for women's clothing and shoes and is angry that he has been spending their money on another woman. The chorus of the song describes how the woman wants to hurt the man and make him feel the pain that he has caused her. She imagines him in the emergency room, fighting for his life, and she is tempted to pull out his IV.
The second verse of the song describes how the woman found out about the cheating. She received a call from another woman who had seen her partner at a club. This revelation makes her even more angry and hurt. The third verse is sung from the perspective of the man. He admits that he has done wrong and apologizes, but the woman is not interested in hearing it. The song ends with the woman imagining the man in the emergency room, flatlining on the EKG machine.
Overall, the song is about heartbreak and betrayal. It explores the emotions that come with discovering that someone you love has been unfaithful. The woman in the song is angry and hurt, but she also wants to make the man feel her pain.
Line by Line Meaning
i was picking up your clothes in the closet
The song starts with Rihanna picking up her partner's clothes from the closet.
i was bout to throw your jeans in the washer
She was about to wash his jeans.
till i saw a piece of paper saying Tasha
But she found a paper in his pocket with someone's name, which was shocking for her.
i gotta say ,i found this a bit shocking
She was surprised to find evidence of her partner cheating on her.
theres some receipts here that say you went shoppin
She found receipts of his shopping, which confirms his cheating.
you bought some nike shoes but why you buyin stockings
She wondered why he was buying women's stockings when he already bought Nike shoes.
boy ,how could you lie to me
Rihanna is angry at her partner for lying to her.
thought you would die for me
She trusted her partner blindly and thought he loved her deeply.
im not accepting another apology
But she has reached the limit and is not willing to accept another apology.
after 3 years imma let it go
After being in a relationship for 3 years, she decides to end it.
cant stand around crying no more
She is tired of crying and hurting over his infidelity.
got your bags packed sitting by the door
She has already packed his bags and is waiting for him to leave.
imma leave your heart broken on the floor
She wants to break his heart just like he broke hers.
you gon be in the emergency room
Rihanna says that her partner will end up in the emergency room.
im standing by your bed and
She envisions herself standing by his hospital bed.
so tempted to pull out your IV
She has the urge to pull out his IV and hurt him emotionally.
im fighting with myself, i cant hurt you even tho you hurt me
Despite her anger, she is hesitant to cause him any physical harm.
tryin to call a nurse but nobody can help you now
She imagines him in pain but no one is there to help him.
let me see you try to live without me, now wheres your heartbeat, flat line on the EKG
She wants to see how he will survive without her, and the metaphorical flat line suggests that he won't.
well i was home late at night watching tv
Rihanna recalls the night she found out about the cheating.
got a call from a girl saying Riri
She received a call from a girl who knew her and told her about the infidelity.
saw your man at the club , i thought he was outta town doing business
She saw her partner at a club when he supposedly was on a business trip.
and that hed be back in 3 weeks
She had no reason to doubt her partner's claims of being out of town for three weeks.
now im mad, sittin in the kitchen
She expresses her anger while sitting in the kitchen.
gettin sad, looking at your pictures
She reminisces while looking at their old pictures and feels sad.
I did you wrong girl, had a bunch of numbers in my phone girl
Her partner finally confesses that he cheated on her and had other women's numbers in his phone.
but we been in this relationship too long girl
He pleads that they've been together for too long to end things now.
for you to be listening to your silly homegirls
He tries to convince her not to listen to her friends' advice to end the relationship.
better go on girl.
He tells her to leave if she wants to.
now baby think about it
He urges her to think clearly about their relationship.
everything we gon do they gonna read about it
He warns her that their every move will be scrutinized and gossiped about.
put it on the radio or tv outlet
He speculates that their story will be reported and discussed on various media outlets.
do you wanna see your picture in that paper
He tries to make her realize that the negative publicity will be bad for her reputation.
you know them haters
He refers to the haters who will relish their misfortune and criticize them.
you hear that 808?
He draws attention to the music and beat of the song.
the drum, thats my heartbeat, im goin numb
He admits that the beat of the song matches his racing heartbeat as he realizes he might lose her.
i said Rihanna, im feeling stress, im going under cardiac arrest
He expresses his stress and helplessness at the current situation by comparing it to a cardiac arrest.
uh uh
He expresses a negative response.
uh uh
He expresses a negative response.
flat line on the EKG
The flat line on the EKG symbolizes the end of the relationship and the death of their love.
Contributed by Zoe P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Maya kristyLou.
2023 and still hits hard!!
Nitzay Lopez
2023and still hits hard!!!😮
Premium Clipz
2023 and still hits hard!
Paulo C.
14 years later still singing this like someone just cheated on me 🤣😫
tasha mangwiro
😅😅😅😅
Nicole A Brukwe
same 😂
Life With 4 Girls
2023 here cleaning my house blasting this song and my kids looking at me like I’m crazy 🤣🤣
Kelebogile Rispar
⁴
Courtney James
Used to sing this song like I got my heart broken 😂😭
PiRU’BABY
Still do knowin dayuum well im Inlove asf lmaaoo