![]() ![]() >Read More/Stream ‘Sail Away’ Riddim (via LargeUp) Write-ups on the track, such as this one in Rolling Stone, have more often identified the song with terms like “tropical house-flavored.” ![]() However, the similarities between “Work” and Sail Away (which itself was based on a melody from Alexander O’Neal’s “If You Were Hear Tonight”) -as well as the patois (“yuhzeeme”) and Caribbean intonation sprinkled throughout the song by both Rihanna and dancehall super-fan Drake (who slyly drops the term forward into his verse) - are likely lost on most who heard “Work” this morning, including music experts. He’s been adding dancehall influences into his sound more recently, having last year produced Kendrick Lamar’s “The Blacker The Berry,” the To Pimp A Butterfly single which featured an unexpected cameo from dancehall star Assassin. (Though he only lived there til age three, and has said he’s never been back). “Work” producer and long-time Drake collaborator Boi-1da is himself a product of Kingston. (She probably knows the words to this one, too.) A soca-loving daughter of Barbados who knows how to do the Puppy Tail dance, Rihanna is better versed in Caribbean music and culture than any other pop star (including Nicki Minaj) and, likely, anyone on her production and management teams. ![]() Not that she can’t find the links between pop and dancehall herself. It’s no secret that the Bajan singer’s team has been soliciting input from dancehall producers and artists in Jamaica. We were already anticipating a dancehall influence on Rihanna’s upcoming album, Anti(which is reportedly about to drop this week, too). That “Work” bears an undeniable resemblance to a mid-level, late-’90s dancehall instrumental is not something one could have predicted, yet it is not surprising. Vegas collaboration “Badman Nuh Flee” and Sean Paul’s “Fit and Legit” in 1998. LargeUp editor Jesse Serwer stepped up yesterday with this dead-on analysis in his semi-regular Check It Deeply column, tracing the song’s paternity definitively to a specific late ’90s Jamaican riddim:ĭancehall listeners have noted the similarities between producer Boi-1da’s beat and Richie Stephens’ Sail Away riddim, which spawned the Beenie Man and Mr. Yet, in describing it the mainstream music press seems to be bending over backwards in limbo-like contortions to avoid using the term, in one notable case even reaching for the not-really-a-thing genre term ‘Tropical House’ as preferable to noting the song’s (and Rihanna’s) undeniable Caribbean influence. “Work”continues the trend–but having been made by two artists who have made no secret of their love for reggae, you might think it might be the track that connected the dots for the general listening public. Dancehall seems to have taken over the world (again)–but in the absence of any actual crossover artists (Exhibit A Justin Bieber‘s Diplo/Skrillex-produced dancehall ballad “Sorry”). Rihanna seems to be saying in her "Work" lyrics that she is in no position to act judgmental towards him, so perhaps it's time for something deeper.Rihanna‘s long-awaited Drake collabo “Work” (the dancehall-inflected slow-winder that served as the trumpet announcing the arrival of her long-awaited new LP ANTI–listen here) is emblematic of a disturbing trend in pop music. In the end, the "Work" lyrics show Rihanna's love once again on her sleeve - or more rightly, all over the net for people to decipher - begging a man who could be Drake not to leave her, but to give Rihanna another chance to love him deeper. You mistaken my love I brought for you for foundationĪll that I wanted from you was to give meīut I wake up and act like nothing's wrong You took my heart on my sleeve for decoration You took my heart and my keys and my patience ![]()
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