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Posted by: Andrew. 2nd August 2019, 07:07 AM

We know we’re getting a new album this year, so since it’s August it can’t be too long until the lead single from R9 drops. For the time being (the wait we’ve had this lead single better be the best) what’s your fave?

Para mí:
1. Russian Roulette (so chilling, but what a beautiful song)
2. Diamonds (one of Rih’s best vocal performances, I would’ve called it my all time Rihanna fave a few years ago but as time goes on and I’ve fallen in love with/listened more to different parts of her music I can’t say I go back to it that much. her ad-libs are incred)
3. Only Girl (In The World) (it should be generic for the time it was out, but I just can’t imagine anyone else singing this. Nothing more than a huge bop for me, but what a f***ing bop)
4. Work (love the vibe, one of those songs you need to dance to.)
5. Umbrella (A classic! Admittedly not one I listen too all that often but it’s obviously loved as it’s her most popular on Spotify and the song I think marked her out as special to the GP. I always enjoy when I listen)
6. Pon De Replay (its really wormed its way up my affections. It’s amazing how (iirc) this single was given to her and she had no part in it yet she from her very first single gives it the Rihanna flavour and feel with her vocals.)
7. We Found Love (I must’ve said about 24 million times how overrated I find this but over time that feeling has shifted and I can just bop to it pretty occasionally. It annoys me how people go woop woop to this every time though lol)
8. SOS (this is really harsh lol as I do like it but it’s the one song here which is forgettable and not quintessentially ‘Rihanna’ to me)

Posted by: Jade 2nd August 2019, 07:51 AM

01. SOS
02. Work (feat Drake)
03. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
04. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
05. Diamonds
06. Pon De Replay
07. Only Girl (In The World)
08. Russian Roulette

Lmao at me and you having the opposite favourite and least favourite Andrew

Posted by: Andrew. 2nd August 2019, 08:15 AM

I was hoping you had your ranking back to front </3

Posted by: George.keh 2nd August 2019, 08:15 AM

1. Diamonds
2. Russian Roulette
3. We Found Love
4. Only Girl (In The World)
5. SOS
6. Work
7. Pon De Replay
8. Umbrella

Posted by: 365 2nd August 2019, 08:27 AM

SOS for me <3

Posted by: blacksquare 2nd August 2019, 11:27 AM

01 Work (feat. Drake)
02 Pon de Replay
03 We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
04 Umbrella
05 Russian Roulette
06 Diamonds
07 Only Girl (In the World)
08 SOS

It's ridiculous how much I have grown to love Pon de Replay over the years. I'm not entirely sure if I actually do think We Found Love is better than some of those, but it has so many special memories attached to it from that year.

Posted by: Liаm 2nd August 2019, 11:37 AM

01 SOS
02 Ony Girl (In The World)
03 Umbrella
04 Pon De Replay
05 Russian Roulette
06 Diamonds
07 Work
08 We Found Love

Oops at WFL being my last, it's very very overrated though. What a stellar lot of songs though!! The top 6 are all 10/10s and I still really love the bottom 2 I just don't go back to them so much.

Posted by: Jordan Lee 2nd August 2019, 11:37 AM

1. Umbrella

Umbrella is still one of the best songs of the millennium for me. So iconic and so so good! Everything you’d want in a song tbh. It’s the song I’d say what made her who she is today as well. 10 weeks at #1 (If the chart was sales only this would stlll have the record since 2000 too wouldn’t it!)

Umbrella is just that song for me when someone says Rihanna. I’ve always loved it and it’s never gotten old.

2. Diamonds

Simple but effective. I really wanted something like this from her as leading up to this she’d released many huge dance numbers so to do something opposite and lead the album with it was bold. I’ve always loved this though both her version and Sias. Definitely one of her signature hits and her vocals are great on this too.

3. Only Girl In The World

Probably her most generic lead but one what’s such a bop I had to rank it highly. I often go back to this and it still just soars. This is one of the best dance pop songs ever in my opinion. One of her most instant songs ever for me too instantly just got me sold.

4. Russian Roulette

Her most different sounding lead. Dark totally unlike she’d done before that point but it works. Love the production and this was the first time I’d been like wow girl can sing!!! At a Rihanna song. A big turning point in showing she wasn’t just a puppet in my opinion. Would love more songs like this on R9.

5. SOS

The first Rihanna song I properly loved! And still do. Just such a bop. So catchy. It feels a bit forgotten as she’s had so many monster hits since but I do love this.

6. We Found Love

For this being her biggest hit as lead artist in the UK I just don’t get it. I feel like she was just riding on a high at the time and whatever led TTT the album would’ve been huge. It’s OK but I definitely find it very overrated. The chorus is just one sentence over and over again. Both Rihanna and Calvin have had way better songs than this. I never got the huge feel of it. At the time it came out I did love it but i still preferred most of the singles from Loud.

7. Pon De Replay

This has grown over the past year or so. I hear it all the time on nights out. It’s very Rihanna esque too. One of her least generic hits and it hasn’t really aged. I do feel like vocally she’s way better now.

8. Work

Just not for me . I love both Rihanna and Drake but this song is absolutely awful. Never liked it from first listen and it’s never grown on me so I definitely don’t go back to listen to it. Even when I play ANTI I skip this most of the time. One of her worst ever singles for me.

Posted by: pippa 2nd August 2019, 01:09 PM

We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris).

Posted by: Cremey 2nd August 2019, 01:25 PM

01 Work
02 We Found Love
03 Umbrella
04 Pon De Replay
05 Russian Roulette
06 Diamonds
07 SOS
08 Only Girl (in the World)

Posted by: Jonjo 2nd August 2019, 01:33 PM

01. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
02. Russian Roulette
---
03. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
04. SOS
05. Diamonds
06. Work (feat Drake)
07. Pon De Replay
08. Only Girl (In The World)

She has great lead singles. I don't even hate or dislike OG(ITW) I just find it very overrated and basic/generic compared to everything else. The top 2 are practically tied for completely different reasons. RR is one of my favourite RiRi songs just down to how serious it is etc.. and Umbrella is an all out pop classic.

Posted by: JosephAvery 2nd August 2019, 02:13 PM

1. Umbrella
2. SOS
3. Diamonds
4. Only Girl (In the World)
5. We Found Love
6. Pon de Replay
7. Work
8. Russian Roulette

A good selection here tbh!!

Posted by: Jαsє 2nd August 2019, 04:02 PM

01. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
02. Only Girl (In The World)
03. Diamonds
04. SOS
05. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
06. Russian Roulette
07. Pon de Replay
08. Work (feat. Drake)

She certainly knows how to release an absolutely brilliant lead single

Posted by: Jordan Lee 2nd August 2019, 05:25 PM

Yesss! At the bottom two of your poll. Definitely the right decision

She does have some amazing leads though one of the best artists for lead singles.

Posted by: SLlewellyn 12th August 2019, 10:41 PM

Her lead singles always seem to be JUST what we need musically at the time. I really wasn't sure on "Work" at first, but it gets my vote here!

Posted by: Mikal 13th August 2019, 10:38 AM

I feel like her lead singles are all very much "of the time" and don't necessarily fit the current state of pop. I'd probably rate them as follows:

01. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
02. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
03. Only Girl (In The World)
04. Work (feat. Drake)
05. Diamonds
06. Russian Roulette
07. SOS
08. Pon de Replay

None are BAD but Only Girl and especially PDR are really dated and can't imagine her ever releasing anything like that nowadays.

Posted by: Atonement 13th August 2019, 03:31 PM

Listen up EVERYBODY. There is only one song that is worthy of the title Rihanna's best lead and that song is called 'Díámónds'.

01. Díámónds
02. Úmbréllá
03. Ónlý Gírl ín thé wórld
04. Wé fóúnd lóvé
05. Wórk
06. Pón dé répláý
07. Rússíán Róúlétté
08. SÓS

Posted by: troublepink 13th August 2019, 04:02 PM

Diamonds
Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
Only Girl (In The World)
SOS
Pon De Replay
Russian Roulette
Work (feat. Drake)

Posted by: Mixxer 15th August 2019, 07:43 AM

This just reminded me how bad of a lead single RR was....like what was she thinking when she had Rude Boy on that album!

Posted by: Lukuzz 15th August 2019, 07:54 AM

I love them all tbh but I think I'd go -

1. Russian Roulette
2. We Found Love
3. Only Girl (In The World)
4. Diamonds
5. Umbrella
6. SOS
7. Pon De Replay
8. Work

Posted by: danG 15th August 2019, 07:59 AM

01. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
02. Diamonds
03. Only Girl (In The World)
04. Work (feat. Drake)
05. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
06. Pon de Replay
07. SOS
08. Russian Roulette

Posted by: Jordan Lee 16th August 2019, 12:20 AM

Rude Boy sounds so out of place on that album though don’t you think?

I love Russian Roulette. Her most risky lead single and one of the most daring choices of lead singles by a female top tier artist in history but I do feel it helped her out more critically than commercially.

Love The Way You Lie pt2 and Rude Boy should’ve switched albums in my opinion. They both stick out and sound out of place in the context of the album that they’re on.

Posted by: Theonix 16th August 2019, 09:53 AM

1. We Found Love (feat. Calvin Harris)
2. Diamonds
3. Work (feat. Drake)
4. Only Girl (In The World)
5. Umbrella (feat. Jay-Z)
6. SOS
7. Pon de Replay
8. Russian Roulette

This is so difficult - the top four are all amongst my top 50 songs of this decade!