- published: 16 Apr 2015
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Robyn Rihanna Fenty (/riˈænə/ ree-AN-ə), (born February 20, 1988), known mononymously as Rihanna, is a Barbadian singer and songwriter. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, she first entered the music industry by recording demo tapes under the direction of record producer Evan Rogers in 2003. She ultimately signed a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings after auditioning for its then-president, hip-hop producer and rapper Jay Z.
With sales exceeding 200 million records worldwide, Rihanna is one of the best-selling artists of all time. Her studio albums include Music of the Sun (2005); the Recording Industry Association of America platinum-certified records A Girl like Me (2006), Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), Rated R (2009), Loud (2010), Talk That Talk (2011); and the Billboard 200 number-one albums Unapologetic (2012) and Anti (2016). Rihanna is the youngest and fastest solo artist to earn thirteen number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100, and was named the Digital Songs Artist of the 2000s decade and the top Hot 100 artist of the 2010s decade by Billboard. Many of her songs rank among the world's best-selling singles of all time, including the singles "Umbrella", "Take a Bow", "Disturbia", "Only Girl (In the World)", "S&M", "We Found Love", "Diamonds" and "Stay" in which she is the lead artist, and her collaborations "Live Your Life" (with T.I.), "Love the Way You Lie" and "The Monster" (both with Eminem).
Albums of recorded music were developed in the early 20th century, first as books of individual 78rpm records, then from 1948 as vinyl LP records played at 33 1⁄3 rpm. Vinyl LPs are still issued, though in the 21st century albums sales have mostly focused on compact disc (CD) and MP3 formats. The audio cassette was a format used in the late 1970s through to the 1990s alongside vinyl.
An album may be recorded in a recording studio (fixed or mobile), in a concert venue, at home, in the field, or a mix of places. Recording may take a few hours to several years to complete, usually in several takes with different parts recorded separately, and then brought or "mixed" together. Recordings that are done in one take without overdubbing are termed "live", even when done in a studio. Studios are built to absorb sound, eliminating reverberation, so as to assist in mixing different takes; other locations, such as concert venues and some "live rooms", allow for reverberation, which creates a "live" sound. The majority of studio recordings contain an abundance of editing, sound effects, voice adjustments, etc. With modern recording technology, musicians can be recorded in separate rooms or at separate times while listening to the other parts using headphones; with each part recorded as a separate track.