Rihanna - You Da One

This posts makes the fifth song by Rihanna that I've done, putting her two above everyone else. Is it because she's such a talented artist that I can't help but talk about her? No, sadly, it's not. It's because while most artists give us a bit of a grace period between singles and albums, Rihanna doesn't. I'm really getting sick of her, but "You Da One" has me really conflicted.

Let's start with the good: she's not doing the same old stuff. "You Da One" is really different and quite shocking on the first listen. The song offers a sing-songy island sound complete with an electronic breakdown at the end. This shows a new side of Rihanna which will give us a break from the repetitive dance music she's been shoving at us.

Now, onto the bad. This song has got to be the most annoying song Rihanna has ever released. Most of her songs I could listen to for a bit before I started to get bored; not this one. If the nonstop repetition of, "Oh na na, what's my name," or, "Na na na na c'mon," didn't drive you crazy, this will. The song's chorus is catchy enough to get stuck in your head even after the first listen. Which could be a good thing, but the problem is that it's more of a whiny chant than actual music.

Trying something new was a good idea, but it was a bad idea to release a song that will get old before it even ends its first play. Sadly this seems to be a theme this year, both Lady Gaga and Beyonce tried to go a little crazy to attract attention with "Judas" and "Countdown" and both songs failed. I could see that some people could like this song, but I'm not sure if it's going to be enough and, more importantly, if it's going to last. This song could be another hit, or it could flop and will hopefully be a wakeup call that Rihanna needs to take a little more time with her music.