Top 35 Best Songs by Rihanna

Written by Sia, and you hear it in the melody. It's a mid-tempo song that radiates hope and strength. The production is dreamy and spatial, full of synths and heavy basses.nn"Shine bright like a diamond." Rihanna's voice has a raw edge ('vocal fry') that is full of emotion. It's not a dance banger, but an anthem of resilience.

Extremely popular in the Netherlands and a fixture in summer playlists. A return to her reggae roots. The groove is slow and heavy ("rum-pum-pum-pum").nnThe lyrics are grim: she shot a man. The contrast between the sunny, relaxed music and the heavy story is brilliant. Rihanna sounds here at her best: nonchalant, dangerous and Caribbean.

A fragile piano ballad that cuts right through you. There's no beat, just that bare piano and two voices. Rihanna sings here with rare openness and vulnerability.nnYou hear the doubt and pain in her voice. "Not really sure how to feel about it." It's intimate, as if you're listening to a private conversation in the bathroom.

The hit that transformed her from popstar to superstar. The "Ella, ella, eh, eh" hook is one of the most recognizable ever. The beat is heavy and industrial, the hi-hats are sharp.nnThe song has a dark, almost gothic edge, but the message is one of unconditional support. It rains hits, and this is the biggest storm of all.

Perhaps the definitive song of the early 2010s. The simple synth riff and the enormous drop provide total ecstasy. The lyrics "We found love in a hopeless place" are iconic.nnDespite the cheerful beat, there's a deep melancholy in the song. It captures the feeling of a destructive, but addictive love. An anthem for a lost generation of party-goers.

An explosion of euphoria. The production is grand and bombastic, typical of the EDM wave of that time. The chorus knocks in with a wall of sound.nnRihanna's voice has to fight against the violence of the synthesizers, creating intense energy. With her red hair in a flower field; the song is as lively and fierce as those images.

The sample of Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" gives this song immediate drive. It's a stamping house track made for the dance floor.nnThe bass line pumps and the synths are tight. Rihanna sounds hypnotic and compelling. It's a perfect example of her dominance in the clubs: tight pop with a dance heart.

Rihanna's fragile, emotional chorus about being trapped in a burning, violent relationship ("Just gonna stand there and watch me burn") cuts worldwide through bone and marrow and now tallies almost 2.4 billion streams.

Their second monumental collaboration after Love The Way You Lie. While Eminem fights his demons in fast raps, Rihanna provides crystal-clear, stadium-wide choruses about embracing her own madness with a worldwide number 1 hit.

The hypnotic dancehall jewel with which she proudly placed her Barbadian patois at the center of worldwide pop music. The minimalist beat and minimalist, almost enchanting chorus made Work into a gigantic streaming hit of nearly 1.8 billion plays.

The beginning of it all. A simple, effective dancehall song riding on a hand clap beat. You hear a very young Rihanna, full of Caribbean flair.nnThe energy is infectious and summery. "Mr. DJ, turn the music up." It's uncomplicated dancing, the essence of a sweaty night in the club where the rhythm is boss.

A shameless, stamping eurodance banger about the sensation of physical and mental provocation ("Sticks and stones may break my bones, but chains and whips excite me"). The song caused controversy and radio censorship, but dominated dance floors worldwide.

Her longest-charting hit in US charts ever. In this sluggish, dark trap ballad, Rihanna breaks with the classic victim role and points a man coolly to his place: "Didn't they tell you that I was a savage? Fuck your white horse and a carriage."

One of the most praised masterpieces from her album ANTI. Carried by a captivating 80s electric guitar riff by Nuno Bettencourt and dreamy synth production, Rihanna sings the irresistible urge to fall back into a destructive romance.

Dark electro-pop at its finest. With terrifying synths, a pumping beat and unsettling lyrics about mental chaos and paranoia, Rihanna pushed the boundaries of mainstream pop in 2008.

The summery-sounding but textually painful dancehall collab where Drake and Rihanna dissect each other's inability to truly appreciate each other. The smooth rhythm and bittersweet chorus made this a streaming giant with over 1.2 billion plays.

After We Found Love, Rihanna and producer Calvin Harris again proved to have a goldmine. What starts as a sultry search for true love explodes in the chorus into one of the hardest, most ruthless EDM drops of the early 2010s.

Built on the sultry acoustic guitar riff of Santana's Maria Maria, this song breathes pure Caribbean heat. Rihanna opens with her unmistakable swagger and immediately takes command of the track in a summer anthem full of sexual tension.

Her most outspoken ode to her Caribbean dance roots. Rude Boy is a brutal, rhythmically bouncing dancehall track brimming with self-confidence where Rihanna takes the reins with a seductive wink.

Written by Ne-Yo and Stargate, this is the ultimate settlement with an unfaithful partner. Rihanna wraps her icy contempt in a melodic R&B ballad and mockingly compares her ex's excuses to a mediocre theatrical performance.

A compromiseless, grim trap sledgehammer where Rihanna takes no prisoners. Driven by ripping synths and a leaden bass, she demands her money and respect with pure gangster attitude; a cultural phenomenon now tallying over a billion streams.

Inspired by classic 60s doo-wop and soul à la Otis Redding and Etta James, Rihanna opens all her vocal registers: from raw grunting and dark chest voice to crystal-clear falsetto breaths about a heartbreaking love.

An unexpected acoustic collaboration with Paul McCartney and Kanye West. Without drums or electronics, purely carried by guitar and organ. The atmosphere is campfire-like and raw.nnRihanna's voice sounds here unpolished and soulful. She sings about frustration and being on the edge. It shows her growth as a vocalist needing no embellishment to convince.

A dark, cinematic ballad. The tempo is slow and the atmosphere is oppressive, with a heartbeat as rhythm. The lyrics are about a toxic relationship as a deadly game.nnThe outburst in the chorus is powerful and desperate. It ends with a gunshot, which caused controversy at the time. It's Rihanna at her most dramatic and theatrical point.

Although never officially launched as a worldwide single, this venomous pop-rock banger from Good Girl Gone Bad became a billion-hit thanks to the streaming generation. A furious and energetic track about smashing dishes out of pure jealousy.

A sizzling meeting between two of the biggest pop icons in the world. This energetic mix of pop rock, new wave and ska rhythms bursts from the speakers thanks to sharp guitars and a duet where both singers vocally challenge each other.

Built around a melancholic Jamie xx sample of Gil Scott-Heron, Take Care is a masterpiece of intimate club music. Rihanna sings with unprecedented tenderness about healing each other's wounds after traumatic relationships.

A sun-soaked crossover between Caribbean dancehall and smooth R&B. Carried by a relaxed ska organ groove and irresistible vocal chemistry with Drake, What's My Name? became one of the most playful and contagious songs on her album Loud.

A Grammy-winning stadium smash where hip-hop royalty joined forces. Rihanna resolutely claims the spotlight with a menacing, military hook ("Life's a game but it's not fair, I break the rules so I don't care") that lifts the entire track to an epic level.

A sultry, atmospheric slow jam from her album Unapologetic. The combination of Future's autotune-drenched rap and Rihanna's sensual, soft vocals produces an intimate R&B favorite that managed to rack up over 800 million streams.

A monumental hip-hop banger where Rihanna borrows the famous chorus from O-Zone's Dragostea Din Tei. Her triumphant outbursts form the euphoric heart of the track, which dominated hit lists worldwide.

Her very first number 1 hit in the US Billboard Hot 100. Smartly built around the iconic synthesizer loop from Soft Cell's 80s classic Tainted Love, this upbeat dance-pop track officially launched her from teenage promise to world superstar.

Produced by Mike WiLL Made-It, Pour It Up is the ultimate minimalist trap banger. Rihanna celebrates her financial independence with a laidback, ice-cold flow and rumbling 808 basslines that made it a fixed club favorite.

A timeless acoustic R&B ballad from her Good Girl Gone Bad era. Over soft guitar patterns, Rihanna and Ne-Yo fill each other in flawlessly with a duet about the frustration of a love so deep that you are helplessly surrendered to it.

Grammy-winning best Rap/Sung Performance. Over a backwards played Bruno Mars sample, Kendrick and Rihanna exchange razor-sharp observations about loyalty and greed, with Rihanna proving she effortlessly impresses with a hip-hop flow.