Rated R: Remixed is the second remix album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on May 8, 2010, in Brazil and Europe and on May 24, 2010, in the United States by Def Jam Recordings. It contains remixes from her fourth studio album, Rated R (2009). The songs were solely remixed by Chew Fu. The majority of the remixes were remastered to incorporate influences from the genre of house music, and incorporate heavy usage of synthesizers as part of their instrumentation.

Rated R: Remixed
Remix album by
ReleasedMay 24, 2010 (2010-05-24)
Recorded2009
Length52:51
Label
ProducerChew Fu
Rihanna chronology
Rated R
(2009)
Rated R: Remixed
(2010)
Loud
(2010)

Rated R: Remixed received a mixed review from Jean Goon for MSN Entertainment. She praised Fu for remixing some of the dark and sombre songs into upbeat dance songs, but criticized the album as it did not provide memorability. The album peaked at number four in Greece and number six on the US Dance/Electronic Albums chart; it peaked at number 33 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and number 158 on the US Billboard 200 chart. As of July 2010, Rated R: Remixed has sold 13,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Background and release

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Following the release and success of Rated R (2009) and its singles "Russian Roulette", "Hard" and "Rude Boy", it was confirmed on April 14, 2010, by Def Jam Recordings that Rihanna was going to release her second remix album entitled Rated R: Remixed.[1] The singer's first remix album was Good Girl Gone Bad: The Remixes in January 2009.[2] The project was announced as something for fans to bridge the gap while Rihanna was still on the Last Girl on Earth Tour (2010–11) and her fifth studio album, Loud, was not yet released.[1][3] Rated R: Remixed was exclusively remixed by New York-based electronic record producer, remixer and DJ, Chew Fu.[3] Although the track list on Rated R consists of 13 songs, Rated R: Remixed consists of 10 songs; "Cold Case Love", "The Last Song" and "Te Amo" were not remixed by Fu and were therefore not included.[1][3] Rated R: Remixed was released on May 8, 2010, in Brazil and various European territories in a digital download format.[4] It was released in the same format on May 24, in the United States.[5]

Composition and reception

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Rated R: Remixed includes elements of house music.[8] "Russian Roulette", "Photographs", "Rude Boy" and "Stupid in Love" feature "heavy electro and synth beats".[8] "Wait Your Turn", originally a dubstep and hip hop song,[6][7] was remastered to a house song.[8] "Stupid in Love", which was originally a pop[9] and R&B[10] power ballad,[9][11] was also changed to an uptempo house track.[8] Jean Goon for MSN Entertainment gave a mixed review for the album, and awarded it 2.5 stars out of five.[8] Goon was complimentary of how Fu changed some of the more sombre and downtempo songs to incorporate "catchy, upbeat touches."[8] She noted that Goon noted that "Photographs" had undergone a "groovy" transformation, and that the composition complemented Rihanna's vocal performance.[8] With regard to "Stupid in Love", Goon described the remix as "classy enough to be played in a trendy boutique or cafe."[8]

However, Goon was critical of "Russian Roulette"'s production, writing that Fu appeared to have "got a little carried away" and criticising him for applying electro beats to every song, not all of which may have needed them.[8] The critic noted that "Russian Roulette" was a "mess to listen to."[8] With regard to "Rude Boy", originally an uptempo dance song that incorporates elements of the dancehall, ragamuffin,[12][13] pop and R&B genres,[14] Goon stated that Fu's production was an attempt to try and "outdo the already upbeat original."[8] Goon concluded although she thought some of the remixes "weren't too bad on the ears," there were not any outstanding or memorable tracks.[8] Furthermore, Goon criticised the remixes for being too heavily distorted with electronic synths which "seemed to compete for our attention rather than complement Rihanna’s vocals."[8]

Commercial performance

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In Greece, Rated R: Remixed debuted at number 11 on May 17, 2010.[15] The following week, the album peaked at number four.[15] The album spent a total of two weeks on the album chart.[15] In the United States, the album debuted and peaked at number 158 on the Billboard 200 on June 12, 2010.[16] The album stayed on the chart for one week.[16] Rated R: Remixed debuted and peaked at number six on the US Dance/Electronic Albums on June 12, and stayed on the chart for 11 weeks.[16] It debuted and peaked at number 33 on the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums on June 12, and stayed on the chart for 13 weeks.[16] As of July 2010, Rated R: Remixed has sold 13,000 copies in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[17]

Track listing

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of Rated R: Remixed.

Rated R: Remixed track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Mad House" (Chew Fu Straight Jacket Fix)2:12
2."Russian Roulette" (Chew Fu Black Russian Fix)
5:55
3."Rockstar 101" (Chew Fu Teachers Pet Fix)
  • Stewart
  • Nash
  • Riddick[a]
  • Chew Fu[b]
4:27
4."Wait Your Turn" (Chew Fu Can't Wait No More Fix)
5:09
5."Photographs" (featuring will.i.am) (Chew Fu 35mm Fix)
  • will.i.am
  • Free School[d]
  • Chew Fu[b]
5:59
6."Rude Boy" (Chew Fu Vitamin S Fix)
  • StarGate
  • Swire
  • Riddick[a]
  • Chew Fu[b]
5:41
7."Hard" (featuring Jeezy) (Chew Fu Granite Fix)
  • Stewart
  • Nash
  • Riddick[a]
  • Chew Fu[b]
5:28
8."G4L" (Chew Fu Guns in the Air Fix)
  • Kennard
  • Milton
  • Fauntleroy II
  • Fenty
  • Chase & Status
  • Riddick[a]
  • Chew Fu[b]
5:26
9."Fire Bomb" (Chew Fu Molotov Fix)
6:58
10."Stupid in Love" (Chew Fu Small Room Fix)
  • Smith
  • Eriksen
  • Hermansen
5:32
Total length:52:51
Notes
  • ^a signifies a vocal producer
  • ^b signifies a remixer
  • ^c signifies a co-producer
  • ^d signifies an additional producer
  • The Hong Kong version replaces track 6 with "Rude Boy" (Chew Fu Bumbaclot Fix).[18]

Personnel

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Credits for Rated R: Remixed adapted from Allmusic.[19]

  • Mykael Alexander – assistant
  • Beardyman – vocals
  • Jessie Bonds – guitar
  • Jay Brown – A&R
  • Bobby Campbell – assistant
  • Chase & Status – producer, musician
  • Chew Fu – Programming, Remix Producer, Remixing
  • James J. Cooper III – celli, soloist
  • Cédric Culnaërt – assistant engineer
  • Tyler Van Dalen – assistant engineer
  • Kevin "KD" Davis – mixing
  • Steven Dennis – assistant engineer
  • Dylan Dresdow – mixing
  • Mikkel S. Eriksen – engineer, vocal producer, musician
  • James Fauntleroy II – background vocals
  • Glenn Fischbach – celli
  • Paul Foley – engineer
  • Rick Friedrich – assistant engineer
  • Future Cut – keyboards
  • Mariel Haenn – stylist
  • Alex Haldi – design
  • Kevin Hanson – assistant
  • Chuck Harmony – producer
  • Keith Harris – strings
  • Ben Harrison – guitar, additional production
  • Karl Heilbron – vocal engineer
  • Simon Henwood – art direction, design, photography, stylist
  • Tor Erik Hermansen – musician
  • Jean-Marie Horvat – mixing
  • Ghazi Hourani – mixing assistant
  • Jaycen Joshua – mixing
  • Mike Johnson – engineer
  • JP Robinson – art direction, design, photography
  • Brian Kennedy – keyboards, programming, producer
  • Padraic Kerin – engineer
  • Olga Konopelsky – violin
  • Emma Kummrow – violin
  • Giancarlo Lino – mixing assistant
  • Pater Martinez – assistant
  • Luigi Mazzocchi – violin, soloist
  • Monte Neuble – keyboards
  • Terius Nash – producer
  • Luis Navarro – assistant engineer
  • Shaffer Smith – producer
  • Jared Newcomb – mixing assistant
  • Peter Nocella – viola
  • Chris "Tek" O'Ryan – engineer
  • Anthony Palazzole – mixing assistant
  • Paper-Boy – additional production
  • Ciarra Pardo – art direction, design
  • Charles Parker – violin
  • Ross "Dights" Parkin – assistant engineer
  • Daniel Parry – assistant
  • Kevin Porter – assistant
  • Antonio Reid – executive producer
  • Antonio Resendiz – assistant
  • Makeba Riddick – background vocals, vocal producer
  • Rihanna – executive producer, art direction, design
  • Montez Roberts – assistant engineer
  • Evan Rogers – executive producer
  • Sébastien Salis – assistant engineer
  • Jason Sherwood – assistant engineer
  • Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith – A&R
  • Caleb Speir – bass
  • Stargate – producer
  • Status – producer
  • Xavier Stephenson – assistant
  • Christopher "Tricky" Stewart – producer
  • Tim Stewart – guitar
  • Bernt Rune – stray guitar
  • Carl Styrken – executive producer
  • Rob Swire – musician
  • Igor Szwec – violin
  • Sean Tallman – engineer
  • Marcos Taylor – engineer
  • Gregory Teperman – violin
  • Brian "B-Luv" Thomas – engineer
  • Pat Thrall – engineer
  • Marcos Tovar – engineer
  • Neil Tucker – assistant, guitar engineer
  • Ellen Von Unwerth – photography
  • Alain Whyte – acoustic guitar
  • Andrew Wuepper – engineer
  • Ys – producer

Charts

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Chart (2010) Peak
position
Greek Albums Chart[15] 4
US Billboard 200[16] 158
US Dance/Electronic Albums[16] 6
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[16] 33

Release history

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Region Date Format Label
Brazil[4] May 8, 2010 Digital download Def Jam Recordings
Finland[20]
Germany[21]
Hungary[22]
The Netherlands[23]
Portugal[24]
Spain[25]
Sweden[26]
Switzerland[27]
United States[5] May 24, 2010

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Rihanna sets date for Rated R Remixed". Rap-Up. Devin Lazerine. April 14, 2010. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  2. ^ "Rihanna Kicks Off '09 with a Bang". Rap-Up. Devin Lazerine. December 31, 2008. Archived from the original on November 2, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2012.
  3. ^ a b c Daw, Robbie (April 29, 2010). "Rihanna's 'Rated R' Gets Remixed". Idolator. Buzz Media. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  4. ^ a b "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna" (in Spanish). iTunes Store (Brazil). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  5. ^ a b "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna". iTunes Store (United States). Apple. May 24, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  6. ^ a b "Rihanna Song Leaks, Interview Set For This Week". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. November 2, 2009. Retrieved December 1, 2009.
  7. ^ a b Levine, Nick (October 23, 2009). "Rihanna: 'Rated R'". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi (UK) Ltd. Retrieved August 3, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Goon, Jean (June 7, 2010). "Music Review: Rihanna – Rated R Remixed". MSN, Microsoft. Archived from the original on September 22, 2010. Retrieved February 13, 2012.
  9. ^ a b Harvilla, Rob (October 24, 2009). "Review: Rated R". The Village Voice. Michael Cohen. Archived from the original on March 7, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2009.
  10. ^ Hines, Will (October 19, 2009). "Album Review: Rihanna – Rated R". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  11. ^ Slavik, Nathan. "Rihanna – Rated R". DJ Booth. Archived from the original on January 7, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  12. ^ Levine, Nick (March 18, 2010). "Rihanna: 'Rude Boy'". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi (UK) Ltd. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  13. ^ Powers, Ann (November 23, 2009). "Album review: Rihanna's 'Rated R'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  14. ^ "Rude Boy – Rihanna Digital Music Sheet". Musicnotes.com. Peer International Music Publishing. 2009. MN0083266 (Product Number). {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  15. ^ a b c d "Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna (2010)". greekcharts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on October 24, 2012. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g "Rihanna Album & Song Chart History – Rated R: Remixed". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. June 12, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  17. ^ Trust, Gary (July 23, 2010). "Ask Billboard: Rating Rihanna". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved February 15, 2012.
  18. ^ "YESASIA: Rated R - Remixed CD - Rihanna, Universal Music Hong Kong - Western / World Music - Free Shipping". YesAsia.
  19. ^ "Rated R: Remixed » Credits". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
  20. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna". iTunes Store (Finland). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  21. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna" (in German). iTunes Store (Germany). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  22. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna". iTunes Store (Hungary). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  23. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna" (in Dutch). iTunes Store (The Netherlands). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  24. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna". iTunes Store (Portugal). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  25. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna" (in Spanish). iTunes Store (Spain). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  26. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna". iTunes Store (Sweden). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.
  27. ^ "iTunes – Music – Rated R: Remixed – Rihanna" (in German). iTunes Store (Switzerland). Apple. May 8, 2010. Retrieved February 11, 2012.