Rihanna - Umbrella

Rihanna feat. Jay-Z, "Umbrella" (YSI link)

Rihanna feat. Jay-Z, "Umbrella (Jody Den Broeder Destruction Club mix)" (YSI link)

Rihanna feat. Jay-Z, "Umbrella (The Lindbergh Palace remix)" (YSI link)

Rihanna feat. Jay-Z, "Umbrella (Steve Angello remix)" (YSI link)

Here's our next lady, pretty much the lady of the moment in hi-hop/r&b, Rihanna. She's got a new album, Good Girl Gone Bad, and it's dominating the summer radio (and the walls of South Williamsburg) and really doesn't have any competitors. I never have a good sense of these things, but I feel like she's a superstar in the making, like first post-Beyonce r&b/pop/hip-hop crossover star.

Fittingly, the first big single from the new album features Mr. Beyonce, Jay-Z. "Umbrella" features the Jigga man, which seems to back up my contention that she's playing in the big leagues now. Anyway, Jay drops a pretty average track for him now, which isn't a compliment. I mean, seriously, what's the deal, dude? Can't you just go away for good and spend your money? I'm torn with the rest of the song. Rihanna has this sort of cold, detached singing style (or maybe it's lack of a style) that works for me. I like the idea of that, but it doesn't work when the lyrics are the complete opposite, traditional, love-y r&b ones. The music has a nice, slow, unhurried sound, background synths, dominating drums, it seems better for a more cynical or heartbroken song. I need to sit with this one more, let me know what you think.

Can't say I'm a huge fan of the remixes, as they mainly tend to make them more dance-floor friendly. All of them would work for a big room, They throw a more 4/4 beat under the proceedings, which is nice. I guess I just hoped that someone would take this into more robotic, even minimalist territory. That's not fair, as I should judge this on what's happened not on what I wished happened. I'd go withe Lindbergh Palace club remix as my favorite; ironically it's a beautiful, upbeat affair, the complete opposite of what I just wrote. I contain multitudes, people, I contain multitudes!