“Talk that Talk” increases Rihanna’s bad-girl persona and fails to impress listeners

Amanda Newell
Staff Writer

While Rihanna’s look may be classy and less risque, the lyrics of her new album are nothing but raunchy. Rihanna fails to switch it up with her new album “Talk that Talk,” which demonstrates her unvarying pop sound. Its vulgarity, along with its predictable beats and explicit theme, make the album a complete rehash of her previous album “Rated R.”

Robyn “Rihanna” Fenty’s dreams of becoming an artist came true thanks to her idol Jay-Z, the president of Def Jam Records at the time, who signed her into the music industry when she was only sixteen years old. Just eight months later, she released her first album, “Music of the Sun.”

Rihanna’s first major hit, “Pon de Replay,” set off her career as a pop star and lead to her first number one single “SOS” in 2006. Not long after, Rihanna evolved from a teen sensation into a bad girl symbol with her bawdy albums like “Good Girl Gone Bad” and “Rated R.”

“Talk that Talk” furthermore displays Rihanna’s x-rated image. Its racy theme mirrors the same idea of “Rated R,” making it almost a continuation of it. These explicit themes produced in her albums are what shape her bad girl reputation.

“Talk that Talk” consists of two contrasting themes; one of the sweet side of romance and the other about the carnal side of it. Songs like “Love in a Hopeless Place,” which is upbeat and affectionate, counteracts with the dirty talk of songs like “Talk that Talk.”

One of the most bawdy tracks on her album is “Cockiness (Love it),” an upbeat dance song with a dirty theme and suggestive lyrics. The words, such as “Anything I desire/Set my body on fire,” make it one of the most explicit tracks.

Another lascivious song is “Talk that Talk” featuring Jay-Z. Lyrics like “You know what I like, now get it right/Boy talk to me all night” create its foul style. Jay-Z’s short, out of place appearance in the beginning, make Rihanna’s title track even more of a hit and miss.

Despite most of the racy songs on “Talk that Talk,” Rihanna slows it down for a few love ballads, like, “Farewell.” The song’s tear-jerking lyrics like “And even though it kills me that you have to go/I know it’ll be sadder if you never hit the road/ So farewell” portray the pain of letting a loved one go.

Rihanna’s new album “Talk that Talk” is altogether obscene with its sultry lyrics and dirty theme, which furthermore shapes Rihanna’s raunchy reputation as a bad girl. Its style shifts away from her reggae roots and towards a more upbeat top-40 sound. The album is available in stores nationwide as well as online.