Comments on: Quick Thoughts on Rihanna’s New Single…

By: Mark Blankenship

Mark Blankenship — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 13:35:09 +0000

Hey everyone! I’m rushing to an interview right now, but I will see if I can post another version of the song later today. I am in New York, so I don’t understand why other American readers are getting the “wrong country” message.

@Jackalpants — I had never thought of that. It’s certainly giving me something to think about for the future.

By: Jackalpants

Jackalpants — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:13:53 +0000

Mark! Hate to comment just to call you out, because I love the blog as a rule, but “lame” is a pretty bad pejorative to use- it smacks of ableism, and it kinda sucks to see it used to describe terrible things when it’s a word people use to describe you.

I know it’s not one a lot of people are aware of, but it is Not Cool to use “lame” that way.

Still love the blog, mind!

By: Teev

Teev — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:17:59 +0000

Yeah I got the wrong country message too, which is weird because I thought you were in New York, and I am also in the States, so we are in the same country, yes? Or are you in Canadia?

By: Mark Blankenship

Mark Blankenship — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 22:09:00 +0000

Seriously? LAME!

By: Anne

Anne — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:52:02 +0000

Ok, now I’m bummed…’unable to view in your country due to copyright restrictions’? Gah.

By: Mark Blankenship

Mark Blankenship — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:03:02 +0000

I agree, Joe, about Rihanna’s new authority. After having so many hits, she’s in a position where she can create trends instead of follow them. “Russian Roulette” doesn’t sound like anything else on the radio right now—and it certainly doesn’t sound like anything that Rihanna’s female pop contemporaries are doing—and other than Beyonce, no other female singer currently has the status to gain traction with such a departure. People are going to listen to this song because it’s by Rihanna, and even if they don’t like it right away, her name will make them listen at least one more time.

Granted, Ne-Yo wrote the song, not Rihanna, so she’s not entirely responsible for dropping an oddly structured ballad on the world, but I think you’re right that she IS bringing something to the table. I utterly dismissed her at first, but with every song, she develops more and more personality. No, she’s not a great vocalist, but there is a gravity to her performances that’s striking. “Russian Roulette’ would sound less spiky and dark without her.

Case in point: Listen to the “Glee” version of “Take a Bow” compared to Rihanna’s. Lea Michele does a great job, but Rihanna does, too. There’s a rough-edged anger in her take on the song that it makes it sound “real,” for lack of a better word.

I think that’s part of Rihanna’s ongoing appeal. She’s talented enough to be interesting, but not so talented that she seems unapproachable.

It’s interesting that I think this, since I know almost nothing about her. Really, the Chris Brown thing is my only connection to her “personal life.”

By: Roommate Joe

Roommate Joe — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 16:42:32 +0000

This kind of further bolsters my belief that though her voice isn’t amazing, she definitely brings…something to the table. It’s not just that she’s the lucky lotto winner who got handed “Umbrella” and “Please Don’t Stop the Music.” This is a pretty boring song, and she makes it listenable.

She brings an odd gravitas to her songs now. Partly because of Chris Brown, yes (obviously the woundedness in this song hits much harder now). But also? I think because of all the hits she’s notched under her belt. It feels like she’s not trying to prove anything. That she’s not trying to sell you on herself, like a lot of younger, less established aspiring pop ladies (Katy Perry, Gaga even). There’s an odd authority to her now.