Anti (album)

For the Autechre EP, see Anti EP.

Anti
File:Rihanna - Anti.png
Studio album by Rihanna
Released	January 29, 2016 (2016-01-29)
Studio	Jungle City Studios, (New York City) Westlake Recording Studios, (Los Angeles) Sandra Gale Studios, (Los Angeles) SOTA Studios, (Toronto) Twin Studios, (Paris) Windmark Recording Studios, (Santa Monica)
Genre	Pop R&B
Length	43:36
Label	Westbury Road Roc Nation
Producer	Robyn Fenty (exec.) Fred Ball Jeff Bhasker Boi-1da DJ Mustard Frank Dukes Fade Majah Glass John Kuk Harrell Hit-Boy Daniel Jones Brian Kennedy Mitus No I.D. Kevin Parker Chad Sabo Mick Schultz Travis Scott Scum Robert Shea Taylor Timbaland Twice as Nice Vinylz
Rihanna chronology
Unapologetic (2012)Unapologetic2012 Anti (2016)
Singles from Anti
"Work" Released: January 27, 2016 "Kiss It Better" Released: March 30, 2016 "Needed Me" Released: March 30, 2016

Anti is the eighth studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on January 28, 2016, through Westbury Road and Roc Nation. The singer began planning the record in 2014, at which time she left her previous label Def Jam and joined Roc Nation. Work continued into 2015, during which she released three singles, including the internationally acclaimed "FourFiveSeconds"; they were ultimately removed from the final track listing. Anti was made available for free digital download on January 28 through Tidal and was released to online music stores for paid purchase on January 29. The album was released to physical retailers on February 5.

As executive producer, Rihanna contributed to most of the album's lyrics and collaborated with producers including Jeff Bhasker, Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, Hit-Boy, Brian Kennedy, Timbaland and No I.D. to achieve her desired sound. The efforts resulted in a departure from Rihanna's previous dance and club music genres and created a primarily pop and R&B album, with elements of dancehall and soul. The producers incorporated dark, sparsely layered, minimalist song structures, while most of Anti's lyrics dealt with the complexities of romantic love and self-assurance. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics who praised Rihanna's vocals, confidence and the artistic freedom she presented on the record. However, some of them criticized it for lacking cohesion.

Anti peaked within the top-ten on over 25 national albums charts. Two days after its release, it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) as a result of Samsung purchasing one million copies of the album in advance that were then given away as a free download, copies which were not recognized by Nielsen and Billboard. However, Anti still peaked at number one in its second week on the US Billboard 200 chart with 166,000 equivalent-album units sold. The album also peaked at number one on the Norwegian Albums Chart and the Canadian Albums Chart where it was certified gold by Music Canada. "Work", featuring Canadian rapper Drake, was released as the lead single from Anti; it peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became Rihanna's 14th number one single on the chart. To further promote the album, she embarked on the Anti World Tour in March 2016.

Background

In November 2012, Rihanna released her seventh studio album, Unapologetic, a pop and R&B album that incorporates elements of dubstep and other electronic music. It received mixed reviews from music critics and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart with sales of over 238,000 copies. The album spawned seven singles, including the international hits, "Diamonds" and "Stay". To further promote it, in 2013, Rihanna embarked on her fifth concert tour, the Diamonds World Tour. From the start of her career in 2005 until 2012, Rihanna released or re-released at least one album annually.

In 2013, however, Rihanna took a step back from music and did not release a new album that year or the following. She instead opted to take part in other endeavours, starring in the 3D animated film Home, alongside Jim Parsons, Steve Martin and Jennifer Lopez, as well as executively producing its accompanying soundtrack. In May 2014, it was announced that Rihanna had left Def Jam to sign fully with her manager Jay Z's company Roc Nation, There was considerable confusion among music journalists and fans, with Rihanna avoiding discussing the album or its release. In October 2015, it was revealed that Rihanna had acquired the masters to all her recordings and would be releasing Anti jointly through her own record label Westbury Road and Roc Nation. Later that month it was announced that Rihanna had inked a $25 million contract with Samsung. The deal would see Rihanna promoting Samsung's Galaxy line of products whilst Samsung would sponsor the release of Anti and its supporting tour.

Development

In December 2014, Rihanna invited her fans to participate in a promotional video which she shot in Paris.

The span gap between Rihanna's last studio album, Unapologetic and Anti is the longest wait between records in her music career. On October 8, 2014, she posted a picture of herself in the studio, working on the album. After the release of Unapologetic and its accompanying tour, Rihanna aimed to take a hiatus from recording music stating; "I wanted to have a year to just do whatever I want artistically, creatively,” Rihanna went on to state that this hiatus lasted a week and she had returned to the studio. During the initial writing and development of the album, Rihanna recording a vast amount of songs that were up-tempo, but was unsure of what she wanted Anti to sound like. Following the albums initially recording Rihanna became bored with pop music stating that she gravitated towards music that was "honest" and represented her at that time. Rihanna also recognised that the music she was recording "might not be some automatic record that will be Top 40," but believes she had "earned the right to do that now.”

American singer Ne-Yo, and also her frequent collaborator, in an interview with Capital Xtra on November 11, regarding Anti said, "The stuff I've heard is absolutely incredible. I can’t speak on what it sounds like because I’ll get in trouble. But I definitely feel like people are gonna enjoy it. Anybody that's a Rihanna fan is gonna stay a Rihanna fan, and anybody that's not might become a Rihanna fan ... just gear up for it." On November 19, 2014, while on the red carpet for the premiere of director Andrew Jenks documentary, It's Not Over, Rihanna told Entertainment Tonight, that her album should come out "very soon". She further said, "I'm really excited about the music that we've been working on, so I can't wait for people to hear it."

Rihanna invited "hundreds" of her fans in Paris to participate in a promotional video shot on December 18, 2014. It was reported that the clip might be associated with the release of Anti. On February 8, 2015, during his Grammy Awards red carpet interview, Kanye West announced, that he will be the executive producer of Anti. West further compared Rihanna's vocals on the song to that of Scottish singer Annie Lennox: "I feel like she has this type of energy in her vocals. And she even brought it to another level of like soul and heart and artistry". However, in January 2016, in a Twitter reply message to a fan, Rihanna wrote that West is no longer executive producer of the album and both of them are working on different projects. Instead, Rihanna served as the executive producer of Anti and worked with several producers including, Jeff Bhasker, Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, Hit-Boy, Brian Kennedy, Timbaland and No I.D.. American producer and regular collaborator, Kuk Harrell produced all her vocals on the songs. The album was recorded at the Jungle City Studios in New York City, Westlake Recording Studios, Sandra Gale Studios and Windmark Recording Studios in Los Angeles, SOTA Studios in Toronto and Twin Studios in Paris.

Writing and recording

Released in 2016, the span gap between Rihanna's last studio album, Unapologetic and Anti is the longest wait between records in her music career. Beginning in 2013, Anti evolved from nearly three years of sessions and featured an extensive roster of R&B, hip hop, and pop musicians and recording technicians, the albums recording sessions began in 2013 and lasted through till 2015. The albums sessions took place at numerous recording studios including; Jungle City Studios in New York City, Westlake Recording Studios, Sandra Gale Studios and Windmark Recording Studios in Los Angeles, SOTA Studios in Toronto and Twin Studios in Paris. During the initial stages of recording it was reported that Rihanna was working with a range of people including Sia Furler, Grimes, Alicia Renee, Kiesza, Natalia Kills, DJ Mustard, Tinashe and Calvin Harris amongst others.

In June 2014, musician Chad Sabo, signed to the same label as Rihanna, Roc Nation. He later traveled to Los Angeles, were he began working on new music along with other songwriters and producers from Roc Nation. During his time in California, Sabo was playing with the band Basic Vacation. Sabo was in the bands van and began to write the intro riff that would become "Never Ending". Shortly after he took the song home and attempted to bring the song together using a digital 8-track studio. He later worked on the songs lyrics and posted it onto the internet. The writing process of "Never Ending" began in November 2013, and and started again in April 2014 at which time Rihanna became interested in the track and wanted to record it. The song also featured writing credits from British singer Dido, due to "Never Ending" having a similar pattern, although not a sample Dido's "Thankyou" was listed as an interpolation.

File:Rihanna, Omar, and Drake.jpg

Rihanna in the recording studio with Drake and Omar.

Songwriter Bibi Bourelly had been working with producer, Paperboy Fabe, who arranged a session with Kanye West, who isolated her in a booth. The result was "Higher". "Higher " was recorded in the early hours of the morning whilst Rihanna was under the influence of alcohol; “We just said, ‘You know what? Let’s just drink some whiskey and record this song.” The song was compared by Rihanna to a “a drunk voice mail” stating “You know he’s wrong, and then you get drunk and you’re like, ‘I could forgive him. I could call him. I could make up with him.’ Just, desperate.” Rihanna stated that when recording the albums opening track "Consideration", she felt a connection to it, stating that the song captured the sound and attitude she was aiming for.

During the albums recording, Rihanna's management Roc Nation contacted Tame Impala's management team Spinning Top, informing them that Rihanna loved Tame Impala's song 'New Person, Same Old Mistakes' and asked if she could re-record the track for Anti. The songs writer agreed and gave Rihanna permission, after hearing Rihanna's version Kevin stated "we’re all really happy with how the song turned out, love it!". "Desperado" was written by Mick Shultz and Rook Monroe, prior to being given to Rihanna. Following the songs writing Shultz met with Rihanna, at "a place that she was working on a bunch of music." After visiting Rihanna's home, Shultz was contacted a week later by Rihanna's team who stated "she really loves the record. Rihanna, Fauntleroy and Kuk Harrell, were all later involved in the songs development, production and recording.

In the summer of 2015, Jamaican Canadian songwriter and producer Rupert Thomas together with Allen Ritter and Boi-1da among others, stayed at Canadian rapper's Drake house in Los Angeles for three-four days. During the time, creation of the lead single, "Work" came in to fruition. Thomas described the time spent at the home as a "beat factory, everyone was sitting there working and collaborating with each other." Thomas created a beat which was dancehall-influenced; he later played it for Boi-1da to which he positively responded, "We’re both Jamaican-Canadian. It was just something in our DNA, so it woke him up, and we started remembering all these old dancehall songs from the '90s." Boi-1da came with up idea for sampling an "old school dancehall rhythm" and after that the chords were made with Ritter and past it, "everything went organically". When the song's music was finished, Boi-1da sent it to Braithwaite (better known by his production name PartyNextDoor) who wrote the lyrics, "he’s an incredible writer, and he’s Jamaican as well I think so that’s how he’s able to come up with those vibes and feels," noted Thomas. After Drake heard the song he loved it and decided to write and record a verse on it.

Vocal production

American vocal producer Kuk Harrell did the complete vocal production on Anti

American vocal producer Kuk Harrell, who has been working with Rihanna since 2007 stated that for Anti Rihanna was creatively more involved in the making process. Harrell stated that Rihanna aimed to push the album in the direction she envisioned. The producer stated that he attempted to move away from mainstream pop music when producing the album's vocals, "Every record that everybody does is a record that somebody else could've done, if that makes sense. It's so awesome that she just stepped out and was courageous enough to stick to that and be that and do that."

Harrell noted that with the production of Anti Rihanna was far more meticulous about what she wanted each individual line to sound like. He stated that he attempted to work quickly when producing the album, however Rihanna wanted to constantly improve the album's quality stating "Listen, let's up the quality level. Let's make sure we have the emotion, and make sure it's a masterpiece." Harrell stated that when he and Rihanna had previously worked together they aimed to make a great body of work, however on Anti they aimed to create a "masterpiece". When discussing his and Rihanna's mindset during the album's production Harrell stated;

Rihanna album [Anti], because it is such a body of work. The whole mind-set. The records that stick out for me the most are when we went into it thinking, "Let's just do great work. Let's not chase radio. We're not trying to get radio hits. We're not trying to make sure that we can have a song that anybody could sing." So that's what Anti is. Let's just do good work, because we love doing what we do, and we get to make music to it.

Speaking of the album's production and style, Harrell stated that artists such as Rihanna, have been talking a stance and stepping away from the popular music of the time and the expectations of her label, directors and radio, stating; "I don't want to make what everybody else is making. I want to make what I want to make. I know my fans will love it because my fans are loyal to me, but if everybody else loves it, great. If they don't, at least I know, as an artist, I've done what I want to do." Anti was engineered by Nathaniel Alford, Chris Godbey, Kuk Harrell, Blake Mares, Daniela Rivera and Marcos Tovar. The album was finally mastered by Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound, in New York City.

Composition

Music and lyrics

On Anti, all of the focus is on that voice and her appealingly wayward personality, singing about sex, love, drugs, desire and frustration as if her life depends on it. Without all the practised song-craft that usually knock the wind out of listeners, what she has come up with is atmospheric, sexy and strangely disturbed, tapping into the kind of distorted beats and chilled tempos that burble through progressive hip hop.

 — Neil McCormick, discussing the album's musical and vocal style.

Anti is a departure from Rihanna's previous material, leaving behind the club and dance genres of her previous releases for a predominantly pop and R&B album with elements of dancehall and soul. The album's production has been characterized as being, dark, sparsely layered, bouncy, with lo-fi bass, old school styles, downtempo moodiness and electro-soul minimalism. Lindsay Zoladz of Vulture believed that "to neatly classify Anti by genre, you'd have to invent one," which she described as being "industrial dancehall". Ben Rayner of The Toronto Star stated that Anti is divided into two halves; the first consisting of "futuristic robo-R&B", whilst the second half contains "a more organic breed of soul".

The album's lyrical content predominantly touches upon themes of relationships, exploring what it means to be in love, to get hurt, to need someone, and to be true to yourself. The theme of relationships is picked up in numerous songs; "Kiss It Better" sees Rihanna questioning how far an ex-lover will go to get her back; in "Woo", Rihanna turns spiteful, stating she does not care for her ex-partner, while "Never Ending" features Rihanna admitting she would like to be in love again. The album's themes were also noted as being unapologetic, with an uncaring attitude, and self-assurance.

During the album's recording Rihanna aimed to create an album that was both "soulful" and "aggressive", elaborating on this she stated that the aggressive and soulful themes would be heard in the musical, lyrical and vocal context. During a press conference in early 2014, Rihanna told MTV News that she aimed to depart from the musical style of her previous releases, which she described as being "big songs. From the jump, they just blow up." Rihanna continued to state that with Anti she would be focusing on music that "felt real" and soulful and would be timeless. She also stated that she wanted to record songs that could be "timeless" and that she could perform 15 years later. "Not any songs that were burnt out. I find that when I get on stage now, I don't want to perform a lot of my songs. They don't feel like me."

Songs

Anti opens with the dub-inspired song "Consideration". The song contains a "glitchy" production and features guest vocals from singer-songwriter SZA. The song hears Rihanna turning her back on record labels and their expectations, opening with the line "I got to do things my own way darling," delivered in Rihanna's native Barbadian accent. "James Joint" is a neo-soul song that contains "keyboards built over rising bass riffs that create a thickly textured groove." The song was compared to the work of Stevie Wonder, due to the use of a harmonica. "Kiss It Better" is a pop power ballad inspired by the music of the '80s and '90s. Built over deep synths the track features an electric guitar and lyrics that focus on a destructive relationship that the singer knows is wrong for her, but one she finds irresistible. "Work", which features Canadian rapper Drake, is a reggae-pop song and was described as "an understated midtempo jam in the vein of Janet Jackson's recent 'No Sleeep', with a percolating beat, sinuous synth lines, and vocal samples stretched and pulled in a way that recalls Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis's masterful production work on Jackson's 1997 album The Velvet Rope." "Desperado" contains a "mid-tempo groove, bell ringing and shuddering drums, along with deep synths and vocal samples."

“Same Ol’ Mistakes” is a cover version of "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" (2015) performed by Tame Impala, written by Kevin Parker.

The sixth track "Woo" opens with "two jarring, atonal guitar chords repeated along with small, trap-influenced percussion, over a basic riff." "Woo" was compared to the work of Kanye West due to its slow stomping, distortion and lack of melody and groove. The following track "Needed Me" is a downtempo song, with small elements of electro bubble, synthetic sounds, and a loose, casual vocal that discusses romantic rejection, whilst the following song "Yeah, I Said It" continues the trend of containing a slowed down groove. "Same Ol' Mistakes" is a cover version of "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" (2015) performed by Tame Impala. The song contains the same production as the original, featuring a "fluid sound, with elements of psychedelic, hip-hop and pop-rock genres, along with a slow, dreamy, psychedelic synth groove." Rihanna's vocals on the track are "airy, echoing and underpinned" by the song's bass and percussion. "Never Ending" is a guitar-led song, with elements of country music, organic melodies and backing vocals.

"Love On the Brain" is a mid-tempo '50s inspired doo-wop ballad "that features a guitar arpeggio, swirling organ, simple chord progression and backing vocals," and was compared to the work of Amy Winehouse. Rihanna's vocals on the track were noted as being acrobatic and ranging from her "trademark snarl", to high notes, with dark lyrics that depict a destructive, yet addictive relationship. "Higher" is a love song that follows a similar chord sequence to "Love On the Brain", along with woozy production that contains lyrics about Rihanna's feelings towards her lover whilst she is under the influence of drugs and alcohol. The standard edition of Anti closes with the slow piano ballad "Close to You", which is sung in a jazz style. The deluxe version of Anti contains three more songs. The first is "Goodnight Gotham", which contains an interpolation of "Only If for a Night" (2011) performed by Florence and the Machine and hears Rihanna singing along with the "looping" sample. The following track "Pose" features a grimy beat, along with the singer aggressively boasting about her riches, before a chant-heavy breakdown. The final track on the deluxe version, "Sex with Me", contains dreamy production which hears Rihanna talking about her beauty, "before closing with a trippy blend of vocals."

Title and artwork

	"I sometimes fear that I am misunderstood. It is simply because what I want to say, what I need to say, won't be heard. Heard in a way I so rightfully deserve. What I choose to say is of so much substance That people just won't understand the depth of my message. So my voice is not my weakness, It is the opposite of what others are afraid of. My voice is my suit and armor, My shield, and all that I am. I will comfortably breath in it, until I find the moment to be silent. I live loudly in my mind, so many hours of the day. The world is pin drop sound compared to the boom That thumps and bumps against the walls of my cranium. I live it and love it and despise it and I am entrapped in it. So being misunderstood, I am not offended by the gesture, but honored. If they let us..."
—A reading of the album's artwork poem If They Let Us.

On October 7, 2015, Rihanna held a private viewing for fans and press at Los Angeles' MAMA Gallery, where she debuted the album's official artwork and title. Initially thought to have been entitled R8 by fans and critics alike, Rihanna announced the official title during the album's cover art release, revealing the album would be called ANTI, the exhibition included a piece of art which defined the album's title stating that anti is "a person opposed to a particular policy, activity or idea." Following the exhibition, Rihanna took to social media to confirm the album's title along with an explanation of its meaning. The explanation stated, "By continuing to follow her own instincts, her work strives to make an impact by doing the very antithesis of what the public expects."

The artwork was designed by Israeli artist Roy Nachum, and was described by Rihanna as her "favorite album cover". The album's front cover shows an image of Rihanna, which was taken on her first day of day care, holding a black balloon, with a gold crown covering her eyes; the majority of the artwork is black and white with a "smattering" of red paint. Speaking about the cover art's concept, Nachum stated that he painted a young Rihanna to represent her "bringing something new" to music.

Over the red, black and white canvas there is a poem written in Braille by poet Chloe Mitchell; the braille follows the theme of the album's singles artwork which also features the same technique. Speaking on her choice to use the language, Rihanna commented, "Sometimes the ones who have sight are the blindest." During the cover's designing stage, Rihanna met with Mitchell, in which they "drank" and came up with a poem that would be used for the artwork and liner notes entitled If They Let Us. Mitchell explained the poem and its meaning to Rolling Stone magazine, stating it was about being misunderstood, but still be able to stand out while doing what is right for you. She further said that the poem speaks about not conforming to society and being a leader as well as accepting that being misunderstood is a positive thing.

At the gallery, the album's back cover, along with multiple inside album artworks were revealed. The album back cover features the same image this time from behind. The seven pieces of artwork were all named and featured a poem written by Mitchell or Nachum, the front and back covers were titled "If They Let Us Part I" and "If They Let Us Part II" and featured a poem that was split over the front and back, another piece entitled "If They Let Us" was commissioned and featured the full reading of the poem. The inside booklet contains a further five pieces entitled "Fire Part I", "Fire Part II", "Fire Part III" and "R".

Singles

The lead single "Work" featuring Canadian rapper Drake was released on January 27, 2016, hours before the Tidal release of Anti. Rihanna stated on Twitter that the song is the "first single" from her album. "Work" debuted at number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It became Rihanna's 27th top ten hit. With this feat, Rihanna tied Mariah Carey, Janet Jackson and Elton John as the artists with fifth-most top ten songs on the chart. The singer reached 27 top ten singles on the Hot 100 in a span of 10 years and eight months between her first song, "Pon de Replay" and "Work" and became the fastest solo artist to reach the plateau. In its fourth week, "Work" peaked at number one on the Hot 100 chart and became Rihanna's fourteenth number-one song in the United States and the 1,052nd number-one single on the chart overall. Subsequently, she became the artist with the third-most number-one songs on the chart following The Beatles with 20 and Carey with 18. She broke a tie with Michael Jackson, who had reached 13 chart-toppers on the Billboard Hot 100.

On March 29, 2016, Rihanna announced that "Kiss It Better" and "Needed Me" would both be serviced to radio the following day as the album's second and third singles. "Needed Me" became Rihanna's 29th top ten hit on the Hot 100, making her the artist with the third most amount of top tens in Billboard history.

Release and promotion

In November 2014, Rihanna announced, that her album should come out "very soon". The following month Rihanna invited "hundreds" of her fans in Paris to participate in a promotional video which was thought to be associated with the release of the album. Following the album's announcement Rihanna released three singles, various snippets of songs and performed at numerous award shows, but never announced the album's release or possible release date. What was then said to be the first single from the album, "FourFiveSeconds", featuring Kanye West and Paul McCartney, was released on January 24, 2015. She later released what was called the second single, "Bitch Better Have My Money", performing it for the first time at the 2nd iHeartRadio Music Awards on March 29, 2015. Another song entitled "American Oxygen" debuted on Tidal on April 5, 2015. The song was at one point reported to be featured on the album. Rihanna also posted an interlude entitled "James Joint" in its entirety from the upcoming album on her website on April 21, 2015, as a "celebration of 420".

In November 2015, it was announced that Rihanna had inked a $25 million contract with Samsung to not only promote Samsung's Galaxy line of products, but to also sponsor the release of Anti and its supporting tour. On November 19, 2015, Rihanna and Samsung released a 16-second cryptic video for Anti, launching a website for Rihanna's forthcoming album entitled "ANTIdiaRy". Upon launch, the mobile-only site gave messages, such as "She's waiting for you. Are you in?" and "Be patient and keep your eyes open". The website then proceeded to launch eight "rooms" over the following 9 weeks, each loosely corresponding to her previous albums, detailing her personal life over the course of her career and including clues from Anti. In the same month, she canceled her performance at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show to finish work on Anti.

The album leaked onto the internet in its entirety on January 27, 2016, after it was released prematurely on music streaming service Tidal. Anti will be exclusive to Tidal for its first full week of availability. Also through Tidal, the album was made available for free download, regardless of whether a listener is a Tidal subscriber or not.

Tour

Main article: Anti World Tour

The Anti World Tour was announced on November 23, 2015. The Samsung-sponsored tour will start in March 2016, with Travis Scott supporting in North America, and Big Sean supporting at selected European dates.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic
The A.V. Club	B+
Billboard
Entertainment Weekly	A−
The Guardian
The Independent
Pitchfork Media	7.7/10
Rolling Stone
Slant Magazine
Spin	7/10

Anti received generally favorable reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 73, based on 31 reviews. Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic gave the album four out of five stars and described it as a "subdued, simmering affair". He stated that by the end of the album, Rihanna doesn't give a definite conclusion about her artistry, but the singer showcases that she can be "unguarded and anti-commercial, resulting in her most compelling record to date". Rolling Stone's Brittany Spanos remarked that on Anti, Rihanna is in charge of her own sound and remakes the pop music on her own terms further describing it as a "a sprawling masterpiece of psychedelic soul that's far more straightforward than its tangled rollout". Eric Renner Brown of Entertainment Weekly gave the album "A-" grade and wrote that the "only true carryover" on the record are her vocals which he described as "stronger than ever".

Writing for The Independent, Emily Jupp wrote that the album is full with Rihanna's self-confidence and shows that her voice is not limited as previously noted, "anyone who ever said her voice could only do certain things and showing them she can do anything she wants to." Pitchfork Media's Amanda Petrusich called Anti a "rich and conflicted record at its most interesting when it’s at its most idiosyncratic." Regarding the lack of commercial songs, she thought it is a result of Rihanna's will for "spiritual stock-taking" with her fans. Jia Tolentino of Spin magazine stated that it's the singer's first "aesthetically personal album" and thought that although it's a musical step sideways it represents a step forward in the her artistry. Further, she praised Harrell's vocal production and labeled Rihanna's voice as "extraordinary" further highlighting her falsetto, tone and roundness of the vocals. Corbin Reiff of The A.V. Club wrote that, "in the end, Anti’s tracks combine to create a picture of Rihanna at her most relatable and enthralling." Robert Christgau gave the album's deluxe edition an "A" in his review for Noisey, highlighting "Work", "Love on the Brain", and the bonus tracks while calling Anti "her best album for a reason so simple it's tautological—despite its supposed rejection of track-and-hook mechanics, it features catchier songs."

In a mixed review, Jon Caramanica of The New York Times described Anti as a "chaotic and scattershot album, not the product of a committed artistic vision, or even an appealingly freeform aesthetic, but rather an amalgam of approaches, tones, styles and moods. The Guardian editor Alexis Petridis gave the album three-out-of-five stars, writing "Sprawling, uneven and opaque – Rihanna's eighth album sounds as uncertain as its botched launch. But, in a risk-averse world, there's something brave about Anti, and at its best, its daring pays off." Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine felt that "the ultimate impression the album leaves isn't just that of an artist who failed to follow through on her vision, but who never bothered to conceive one in the first place."

In their mid-year report, Entertainment Weekly placed Anti at number four on the list of The 25 best albums of 2016. For the publication, Leah Greenblatt wrote, "Anti's wild, woozy R&B easily earned 24-karat status all on its own."

Commercial performance

In the United States, Anti received a platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) two days after its release as a result of Samsung purchasing one million copies of the album in advance that were then given away as a free download, part of the $25 million deal signed by Rihanna in 2015. The album debuted at number 27 on the Billboard 200 on February 1, 2016. Although over 1.4 million copies were downloaded from Tidal, Billboard and Nielsen Music did not recognize the count of the sales, because they were distributed by Samsung. According to Nielsen's figures, 460 is the number of actual albums sold in the United States, but the album had 4.7 million streams and 126,000 sales of individual tracks, making a total of 15,896 equivalent units. The low actual album sales represented only 20 minutes of sales after the free giveaway period ended. The next week, Anti topped the chart with 166,000 equivalent album units, 124,000 of which were pure sales. The record scored the biggest jump on the Billboard 200 chart in eight years and also became Rihanna's second number one and the eighth top ten album on it. Subsequently, it also debuted at number one on the US R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

Seven weeks following the release of Anti, the album has been streamed over 275 million times on music platform Spotify only and sold over 279,000 copies in the United States. According to Patrick Ryan of USA Today the sales are "impressive", considering the one million copies Rihanna gave away through the Samsung deal and the album being only available for streaming on Tidal in its first week. According to the Yahoo Music managing editor Lyndsey Parker, the reception of the release, "speaks a lot to the loyalty and patience of her fans. It also speaks to her savviness in marketing herself." For the week dated April 2, Anti re-peaked at number one on the Billboard 200 chart while its lead single, "Work" topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart at the same time. It became Rihanna's second time to have a number-one single and album at the same time; Unapologetic together with the lead single, "Diamonds" topped the charts for the issue dating December 8, 2012. On May 5, Anti was certified double platinum by the RIAA, becoming the first multi-platinum album of 2016.

Anti debuted at number 19 on the Canadian Albums Chart. The following week, it topped the chart and became Rihanna's fifth number one album in Canada, following A Girl like Me in 2006, Good Girl Gone Bad in 2007, Loud in 2010 and Unapologetic in 2012. It was certified gold by Music Canada, denoting shipments of over 40,000 copies in the country.

Track listing

Credits adapted from Rihanna's official website.

Anti — Standard edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Consideration" (featuring SZA)	Solana Rowe Tyran Donaldson Robyn Fenty	Scum Kuk Harrell	2:41
2.	"James Joint"	Robert Shea Taylor James Fauntleroy Fenty	Taylor Harrell	1:12
3.	"Kiss It Better"	Jeff Bhasker John Glass Teddy Sinclair Fenty	Bhasker Glass John Harrell	4:13
4.	"Work" (featuring Drake)	Jahron Braithwaite Matthew Samuels Allen Ritter Rupert Thomas Aubrey Graham Fenty Monte Moir	Boi-1da Harrell Noah "40" Shebib	3:39
5.	"Desperado"	Krystin "Rook Monroe" Watkins Mick Schultz Fenty Fauntleroy Derrus Rachel	Schultz Harrell	3:06
6.	"Woo"	Chauncey Hollis Jacques Webster Jeremih Felton Abel Tesfaye Fenty Terius Nash Rachel Jean Baptist	Hit-Boy Travis Scott Harrell	3:55
7.	"Needed Me"	Dijon McFarlane Fenty Nick Audino Lewis Hughes Khaled Rohaim Te Warbrick Adam Feeney Brittany Hazard Alicia Reneé Charles Hinshaw Rachel	DJ Mustard Twice as Nice Frank Dukes Harrell	3:11
8.	"Yeah, I Said It"	Tim Mosley Bibi Bourelly Evon Barnes Daniel Jones Chris Godbey Jean-Paul Bourelly Fenty	Timbaland Fade Majah Jones Harrell	2:13
9.	"Same Ol' Mistakes"	Kevin Parker	Parker Harrell	6:37
10.	"Never Ending"	Chad Sabo Fenty Paul Herman Dido Armstrong	Sabo Harrell	3:22
11.	"Love on the Brain"	Fred Ball Joseph Angel Fenty	Ball Harrell	3:44
12.	"Higher"	Ernest Wilson B. Bourelly Fenty Fauntleroy Jerry Butler Kenny Gamble Leon Huff	No I.D Harrell	2:00
13.	"Close to You"	Brian Seals Fauntleroy Fenty	Brian Kennedy Harrell	3:43
Total length:				43:36

Anti — Deluxe edition (bonus tracks)
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
14.	"Goodnight Gotham"	Paul Epworth Florence Welch Fenty C. Boggs	Mitus Harrell	1:29
15.	"Pose"	Hollis B. Bourelly Fenty Webster	Hit-Boy Scott Harrell	2:24
16.	"Sex with Me"	Braithwaite Samuels Feeney Anderson Hernandez Chester Hansen Fenty	Boi-1da Dukes Vinylz Harrell	3:27
Total length:				50:56

Notes

• ^{^a} signifies a co-producer
• ^{^b} signifies an additional producer
• ^{^c} signifies a vocal producer
• "Work" features additional vocals by PartyNextDoor.
• "Desperado" features additional background vocals by James Fauntleroy.
• "Woo" features additional vocals by Travis Scott.

Sample credits

• "Work" contains an interpolation of "If You Were Here Tonight" (1985) performed by Alexander O'Neal, written by Monte Moir.
• "Same Ol' Mistakes" is a cover version of "New Person, Same Old Mistakes" (2015) performed by Tame Impala, written by Kevin Parker.
• "Never Ending" contains interpolations from the composition "Thank You" (2000) performed by Dido, written by Dido Armstrong and Paul Herman.
• "Higher" contains elements from "Beside You" (1970) performed by The Soulful Strings, written by Jerry Butler, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff.
• "Goodnight Gotham" contains an interpolation of "Only If for a Night" (2011) performed by Florence and the Machine, written by Paul Epworth and Florence Welch.

Credits and personnel

• Nathaniel Alford – engineer
• J. Angel – composer
• Joseph Angel – arranger, composer, drums, keyboards
• Dido Armstrong – composer
• Nick Audino – composer
• Fred Ball – composer, drums, keyboards, producer
• Jean Baptiste – composer
• Evon Barnes – composer
• Nuno Bettencourt – guitar
• Jeff Bhasker – composer, producer
• Bibi Bourelly – composer
• Jean-Paul Bourelly – composer
• Jahron Braithwaite – composer
• Jay Brown – A&R
• Ray Brown – assistant
• Jerry Butler – composer
• Noel "Gadget" Campbell – mixing
• Karen Console – A&R
• DJ Mustard – composer, producer
• Tyran Donaldson – composer
• Drake – composer, featured artist
• James Fauntleroy – composer, vocal arrangement, vocals (Background)
• Adam Feeney – composer, producer
• Jeremih Felton – composer
• Robyn "Rihanna" Fenty – composer, creative Director, executive Producer, primary artist, poetry
• Chris Galland – assistant, mixing assistant
• Kenny Gamble – composer
• Chris Gehringer – mastering
• Glass John – additional production, composer
• Chris Godbey – composer, engineer, mixing
• Omar Grant – A&R
• Kuk Harrell – engineer, vocal engineer, vocal producer
• Brittany Hazard – composer
• Paul Herman – composer
• Charles Hinshaw, Jr. – composer
• Chauncey Hollis – composer, producer
• Leon Huff – composer
• Lewis Hughes – composer
• Jeff Jackson – mixing assistant
• Daniel Jones – composer, producer
• Brian Kennedy – composer, keyboards, producer
• Carter Lang – organ, synthesizer bass
• Etienne Macor – assistant
• Fade Majah – producer
• Blake Mares – assistant, engineer
• Manny Marroquin – mixing
• Chloe Mitchell – poetry
• Monte Moir – composer
• Rook Monroe – composer, vocal arrangement
• Brendan Morawski – assistant
• Tim "Timbaland" Mosley – composer, producer
• Roy Nachum – artwork, poetry
• Terius Nash – composer
• Ciarra Pardo – creative director
• Kevin Parker – composer, instrumentation, mixing, producer
• Allen Ritter – composer
• Daniela Rivera – engineer
• Khaled Rohaim – composer
• Jennifer Rosales – A&R
• Chad Sabo – composer, producer
• Matthew Samuels – composer
• Ike Schultz – mixing assistant
• Mick Schultz – composer, guitar, producer
• Travis Scott – additional production, vocals, composer
• S.C.U.M. – producer
• Teddy Sinclair – composer
• Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith – A&R
• Solana "SZA" Rowe – composer, featured artist
• Phil Tan – mixing
• Shea Taylor – composer, keyboards, producer
• Abel Tesfaye – composer
• Rupert Thomas – composer
• Marcos Tovar – engineer, vocal engineer
• Te Whiti Warbrick – composer
• Thomas Warren – assistant
• Krystin Watkins – composer, vocal arrangement
• Chad Wilson – assistant
• Ernest Wilson – composer

Credits are adapted from AllMusic.

Charts

Chart (2016)	Peak position
Argentine Monthly Albums (CAPIF)	5
Australian Albums (ARIA)	5
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)	7
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)	8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)	8
Brazilian Albums (ABPD)	8
Canadian Albums (Billboard)	1
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)	5
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)	3
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)	3
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)	5
French Albums (SNEP)	6
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)	3
Greek Albums (IFPI)	4
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)	16
Irish Albums (IRMA)	4
Italian Albums (FIMI)	10
Japanese Albums (Oricon)	10
Korean Albums (Gaon) (Deluxe edition)	2
Mexican Albums (AMPROFON)	16
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)	5
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)	1
Polish Albums (ZPAV)	6
Portuguese Albums (AFP)	11
Russian Albums (Russian Music Charts)	2
Scottish Albums (OCC)	7
South African Albums (RISA)	8
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)	4
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)	2
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)	2
Taiwanese Albums (Five Music)	1
UK Albums (OCC)	7
UK R&B Albums (OCC)	1
US Billboard 200	1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)	1

Certifications

Region	Certification	Sales/shipments
Austria (IFPI Austria)	Gold	7,500
Canada (Music Canada)	Gold	40,000
Denmark (IFPI Denmark)	Gold	10,000
Sweden (GLF)	Gold	20,000
United Kingdom (BPI)	Gold	100,000
United States (RIAA)	2× Platinum	2,000,000
^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

List of release dates, showing region, formats, label, editions and reference

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label	Edition(s)	Ref.
Tidal (selected countries)	January 28, 2016 (2016-01-28)	Limited-release digital download streaming	Westbury Road Roc Nation	Standard
Various	January 29, 2016 (2016-01-29)	Digital download
				Deluxe
United Kingdom	February 5, 2016 (2016-02-05)	CD
Japan	February 10, 2016			Limited
Turkey	February 23, 2016			Standard deluxe
Brazil	March 11, 2016		Universal Music Brazil	Standard deluxe

See also

• List of UK R&B Albums Chart number ones of 2016
• List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 2016
• List of Billboard number-one R&B/hip-hop albums of 2016
• List of number-one albums of 2016 (Canada)
• List of number-one albums of 2016 (Norway)

External links

• Promotional website
• Official website