Anti
by Rihanna
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 2154 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,714 out of 2154
  2. Mixed: 135 out of 2154
  3. Negative: 305 out of 2154

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  1. Max_Jornae
    Jul 23, 2016
    10
    Rihanna definitivamente demostro su capacidad en este album ademas de cambiar su estilo sin duda una de sus mejores eras que deja grandes canciones...este al bum merece mayor reconocimiento
  2. cocorlt98
    Jul 31, 2016
    9
    One of the best of Rihanna ! I love the mix of different genre like Dance with Work, Pop with Kiss it Better, RnB with Needed Me, and more all throughout the album ! The album also mix slow and soft songs with dance and catchy songs ! It's a real good album !
  3. mike13
    Aug 24, 2016
    10
    The reason I like this record beginning to end has zip to do with whether it documents her sexual mood swings more proudly or soulfully. The presentational Rihanna is so unlike anyone I know that she can say anything she wants about her musical punany as long as she leaves Chris Brown out of it--with this artist, sex is figurative, symbolic, the mark of a pleasure taker turned pleasureThe reason I like this record beginning to end has zip to do with whether it documents her sexual mood swings more proudly or soulfully. The presentational Rihanna is so unlike anyone I know that she can say anything she wants about her musical punany as long as she leaves Chris Brown out of it--with this artist, sex is figurative, symbolic, the mark of a pleasure taker turned pleasure provider. So Anti is her best album for a reason so simple it's tautological--despite its supposed rejection of track-and-hook mechanics, it features catchier songs. True, the main time they really make me go woo is when she breaks into gibberish at the end of "Work." But then some German hands her "Love on the Brain," the best new doowop song in decades, which segues perfectly to a power entreaty avec drunk violins, after which the album proper goes out on a piano-enhanced coda that adds a nice sweetness. Only instead of savoring this narrative arc, why don't you just proceed to the three bonus tracks, which top an M.I.A. move with none other than "Sex With Me"?… Expand
  4. Timi
    Aug 26, 2016
    7
    Disliking the whole album at the beginning, I think, there are some real gems in the end. "Higher", "Love on the Brain" and "Kiss it better" are timeless songs for me. "Consideration" and "Desperado" may be personal favourites just for now, still i cannot stop listening to them.
  5. fentyzami99
    Aug 26, 2016
    10
    yaaaaaaaaaaasss queen, ANTI is an amazing album , kiss it better is an underrated amazing song, buy anti on itunes , Rihanna surprises me every day ,the songs were very different from what I expected but still liked it good job rih
  6. NETMUSIC
    Jun 18, 2017
    10
    One the most interesting and original albums of this decade! An amazing album.

    Best Song(s):
    Work
    Needed Me
    Consideration
    Kiss It Better
    Love On the Brain
    Pose
    Sex with Me
    Desperado

    Worst Song(s):
    Never Ending
  7. amatus
    Oct 16, 2016
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Rihanna's most interesting body of work to date that shows her setting new highs for herself. A complicated listen that may not sit well with more pop oriented listeners on a first listen, but after giving it another chance, we learn more about Rihanna than we have from her other albums. The vocal power on Anti is enough to rival the likes of her previous albums that saw her exert her voice to its very limits (Rated R and certain highlights on Unapologetic ring to mind). If you were expecting a pop effort from the Rihanna that released repetitive pop albums every year since Loud all the way up to Unapologetic, skip Anti.

    Consideration - A fantastic way to open the album. Rihanna's vocal grit combined with SZA's soothing interludes set the scene for Anti. [9/10]

    James' Joint - Essentially a soothing 2 minute interlude, giving an impression that Anti is sort of a stoner album, targeted towards those who are meant to sit back and relax. Look at it any other way than that and you wont find anything special. [5/10]

    Kiss It Better - This song had the Navy in arms when snippets were released, and the full song does not disappoint. [9/10]

    Work - We've all heard it, we all like it. Rihanna delivers, yet Drake appears more annoying this year in his painfully droll Views era than ever before. [6/10]

    Desperado - This song, along with Consideration and Kiss It Better prove to set a new standard for a Rihanna album. An interestingly unique song that sees Rihanna as some western vigilante on the run. [7/10]

    Woo - This is a song that would serve excellently as a mainstream single; it suits the listening standards of today's radio audience, you can dance to it, sing along to it, and relate to it if you're that type of Rihanna fan. [8/10]

    Needed Me - Spotify USA's highest streamed song by a female artist and who can blame the US? It's catchy, strong, and along with 'Woo', it depicts Rihanna as a strong figure who doesn't need a man. [7/10]

    Yeah, I Said It - The album's strongest R&B soothing sensation. We hear backing vocals from Rihanna that can send chills down your spine, why it wasn't on the setlist for her tour, we'll never know. [9/10]

    Same Ol' Mistakes - A Tame Impala cover that has its own Rihanna flavour incorporated. [7/10]

    Never Ending - A song I struggle with. Does it bore me, or does it evoke a more indie vibe on Rihanna's behalf? [5/10]

    Love On The Brain - If 'Never Ending' bored you to sleep, Rihanna's extraordinary vocal prowess on track 11 will have DRAGGED you out of that sleep. By far the strongest song on the album. [10/10]

    Higher - Along with Love on the Brain, another emotional song that sees Rihanna hit new highs that most pop girls struggle to meet. [9/10]

    Close To You - By the time we reach this song, we reach a conclusion; Rihanna is sad. She may appear to be a booming presence on the dance floor when songs like 'Work', 'Woo', and 'Needed Me' make themselves apparent, but like she said on Unapologetic's strongest point 'Mother Mary', she swears she wants to change, and here is where the change shows. [8/10]

    BONUS TRACKS

    Goodnight Gotham - Like James Joint, it does nothing very spectacular. If anything it serves as an opener to the album's biggest club bangers. [5/10]

    Pose - The 'Pour It Up' of the Anti era. The Rihanna we all know and love stomps triumphantly onto the dance floor after wiping her tears away in the bathroom thanks to the last three tracks of the standard edition. The song serves no lyrical brilliance, but as a guilty pleasure, it's highly favorable. [7/10]

    Sex With Me - This finishing track has a love/hate relationship with the Billboard 100. It appears for a while, disappears, and reappears again, despite not being a single. It is everything that 'Needed Me' strives to be, and that is a good, well rounded Rihanna club song. [9/10]

    OVERALL SCORE - 75%

    SUMMARY - Rihanna is back, and with music like this, she better not leave again.    … Expand
  8. vic-thesinner
    Jun 1, 2020
    6
    I like the uniqueness of this album, way different from anything that Rihanna have ever released. Favourite tracks: Work, Kiss it Better, Needed Me and Love on the Brain.
  9. samwich21
    Jun 10, 2017
    10
    The production on this album is absolutely gorgeous. The DJ Mustard-produced "Needed Me" is a standout. Rihanna's vocals are at their best. I like this new and improved RiRi. It's much better than Unapologetic.
  10. diegoll16
    Nov 20, 2016
    10
    O álbum mais diversificado e autoral da barbadiana, letras cheias de personalidade e melodias que ficam na cabeça, mascantes e sempre presentes, esse é o ANTI, cd duma artista que se reinventa. parabéns rihanna.
  11. victorcarter
    Nov 21, 2016
    7
    easily the best rihanna has given us yet. there was some really dark and heavy production on this LP that was matched very well with rihanna's voice. some songs were really well done, went hard and are well rounded.
  12. kennyrichie94
    Nov 25, 2016
    7
    This is the best Rihanna album in terms of concept and fillers... but that's not saying much if you really compare talent with pairs like Alicia Keys, Beyonce or even Gaga herself, nonetheless it is a 7/10 effort worth listening and working to it but that's about it.
  13. popstyle
    Dec 18, 2016
    10
    The album is amazing Rihanna shows who she's really is in the tracks. She stopped doing music just for hits she stars doing music based in what she feels. I think she need more albums like Anti
  14. OVO_Nate
    May 14, 2017
    10
    Easily one of Rihanna's best projects! It is so different from her previous albums, this is not really an album to dance to. There is no dubstep or electro-pop songs on here, a lot of it is very personal, which I love. The production on this album is amazing, and there are only 2 features, which means there is more of Rihanna! My personal favorites are "Yeah, I Said It" "Needed Me" "LoveEasily one of Rihanna's best projects! It is so different from her previous albums, this is not really an album to dance to. There is no dubstep or electro-pop songs on here, a lot of it is very personal, which I love. The production on this album is amazing, and there are only 2 features, which means there is more of Rihanna! My personal favorites are "Yeah, I Said It" "Needed Me" "Love On The Brain" "Pose" and "Sex With Me". The weakest song on the album is "Woo", but it grew on me. One of my top favorite albums of 2016! Buy this!… Expand
  15. migue_jd
    Jan 19, 2017
    10
    Este álbum es uno de los mejores álbumes que pueda tener Rihanna. La canción Love On The Brain la salva. Posteriormente los ritmos te hacen sentir bien al igual que las letras en cada una de sus canciones. Este álbum se merece esas nominaciones en los Grammy y estoy seguro que va a ganar cada uno de ellos. Rihanna se ha reinventado al sacar este álbum
  16. kevindouglas
    Jun 12, 2018
    9
    Um grande salto de qualidade em sua carreira que deve permanecer em seus próximos trabalhos.

    Consideration: 10
    James Joint: 10
    Kiss It Better: 10
    Work: 9
    Desperado: 8
    Woo: 9
    Needed Me: 7
    Yeah, I Said It: 10
    Same Ol' Mistakes: 9
    Never Ending: 10
    Love on the Brain: 9
    Higher: 10
    Close to You: 10
    Goodnight Gotham: ?
    Pose: 6
    Sex With Me: 8

    Total: 9
  17. gonzilo
    Feb 24, 2017
    9
    Anti es una declaración de intenciones que, tras una larguísima espera por parte de fans y medios, ha llegado en forma de un proyecto arriesgado y que no ha salido del todo mal.
    Alejado de la radiofórmula habitual en Rihanna, Anti profundiza nuevos ámbitos en su música y sobretodo nos deja ver una faceta alternativa suya que estábamos deseando conocer.
  18. libr
    Mar 16, 2017
    8
    Every artist, the great one, should have an album that reflects their experimental and artistry of their musicality. 'Anti' probably Rihanna experimental artistry one, and her best to date.

    A beautiful mess LP, it contains Consideration, a solid dub-hip hop opener with a bold statement, "I can do whatever I want (and people will like whatever I do)". Kiss It Better shows her rock-R&B    Every artist, the great one, should have an album that reflects their experimental and artistry of their musicality. 'Anti' probably Rihanna experimental artistry one, and her best to date.

    A beautiful mess LP, it contains Consideration, a solid dub-hip hop opener with a bold statement, "I can do whatever I want (and people will like whatever I do)". Kiss It Better shows her rock-R&B style with gleaming electric guitar plays. Same Ol' Mistakes shows us if she is a great karaoke singer. But her magical moment is Love on the Brain and Higher, both are doo-wop inspired songs with great vocal delivers that make us like, "finally she can sing!"

    Lyrically, his songs revolves around today's pop themes. Similar themes with previous Rihanna's albums, which is a downside of 'Anti'.

    But still, when everyone hoping bangers, she gave us her raw inner side R&B which delightful as you play it more and more. [81/100]    … Expand
  19. manu_carnevale
    Apr 5, 2017
    7
    I like it but I think this is not the best Rihanna could do.

    vocals: 6.5/10 (she should study the technique a little bit more)
    lyrics: 6/10 (nothing special)
    singles: 8/10 (loved Love on the brain)
  20. LaloSoto
    Apr 11, 2017
    10
    Totalmente inesperado, es un album muy bien elaborado y con muy buenas canciones como Love on the brein, Kiss it better, Needed me, Higher, tiene sonidos muy diferentes y es algo muy diferente a lo que ha hecho Rihanna, con este album no queda duda de que Rihanna puede cantar todo tipo de genero.
  21. H_m
    Apr 15, 2017
    10
    Amazing album! It's without a doubt her best album!
    There's a variety of different songs that she offers on this album, including; Dancehall, R'n'B, Ballad etc.
    This album truly expresses her true vocal ability, especially 'Love on the brain'.
  22. fifi3
    Jan 17, 2020
    9
    Very few albums establish an aesthetic as well as this one. There is a tender, eclectic and soulful palette that shifts endlessly from track to track, making it one of the more entertaining, easiest and in-depth listens of the decade.
  23. ultimatemusic
    Jun 6, 2017
    7
    So after 3 years and 2 months, do I really feel this album was worth waiting that long? Unfortunately not. Unapologetic still holds reign over best Rihanna album, and this falls closely to the bottom, if not, THE bottom. It’s hard to tell if Rihanna had something else up her sleeve when releasing the previous three singles, but listening to those made me sure that ANTi was going to be anSo after 3 years and 2 months, do I really feel this album was worth waiting that long? Unfortunately not. Unapologetic still holds reign over best Rihanna album, and this falls closely to the bottom, if not, THE bottom. It’s hard to tell if Rihanna had something else up her sleeve when releasing the previous three singles, but listening to those made me sure that ANTi was going to be an album that wasn’t going to be forgotten in the world of Rihanna. Well, it won’t, but not for the right reasons. Rihanna has either taken a completely different new move in her career, or she’s having one of those crisis albums where it’s just not as good as the rest, which is ok, every artist has one of those, so I guess Rihanna having her first one can be forgiven right? I mean Madonna had that with a few albums, American Lifebeing her main example, or Britney Jean for Miss Spears, or even ARTPOP for Gaga. So for Rihanna to be having one of these situations 8 albums in, I guess that can be forgotten over time, but right now, it’s a problem, especially when you’ve had to wait 3.2 years.

    A few songs are great, a few ‘meh’, and the odd couple that really just lacked in everything we had been waiting for. FourFiveSeconds, **** Better Have My Money and American Oxygen still should have made the final cut in my eyes, but hey, what can you do? It’s Rihanna we’re talking about here.    … Expand
  24. IgorM
    Jun 12, 2017
    8
    Anti was the moment Rihanna finally asserted herself as an album artist, after reigning as queen of the singles charts for so many years.

    Becoming bored with pop music, she took a week’s hiatus (it was supposed to be a year) before heading into the studio and producing her eighth, long-awaited EP. The build-up to this was ridiculous – there were three singles that didn't actually    Anti was the moment Rihanna finally asserted herself as an album artist, after reigning as queen of the singles charts for so many years.

    Becoming bored with pop music, she took a week’s hiatus (it was supposed to be a year) before heading into the studio and producing her eighth, long-awaited EP.

    The build-up to this was ridiculous – there were three singles that didn't actually make it onto the album, teasing social media account – but the arrival of the record itself seemed remarkably low-key.

    On Anti you can hear how she moves away from pop and towards a more reflective R&B sound – and there's a braveness to all of this as though, while she hasn't quite worked out who she wants to be as an artist; she's definitely worked out who she isn't.    … Expand
  25. napoleon5432
    Jun 10, 2017
    10
    HER BEST ALBUM SO FAR!!
    I am very happy and above all, proud that Rihanna has created this album. It is a work of art from the beginning, with the best song opening until the last. His best vocals are on this record, great quality and with a versatility throughout the 50 minutes of duration.
    It's going to be very difficult to get over this album because she've taken care of every detail.    HER BEST ALBUM SO FAR!!
    I am very happy and above all, proud that Rihanna has created this album. It is a work of art from the beginning, with the best song opening until the last. His best vocals are on this record, great quality and with a versatility throughout the 50 minutes of duration.
    It's going to be very difficult to get over this album because she've taken care of every detail. The production is impeccable, the voice is in everything in its splendor.
    It is very different from everything she has done before, she has been more involved and has put a lot of effort and enthusiasm in this project.
    CONGRATIS FOR THIS WONDERFUL ALBUM, RIH!
    Without a doubt, my favorite album. Everyone must have it    … Expand
  26. Jmcl4d
    Jun 16, 2017
    10
    La versatilidad en el pop, como tantos discos han demostrado siempre, varios de ellos, de hecho, de Rihanna (pienso en ‘Rated R’), puede ser su mayor aliado; el problema es el modo en que la aborda Rihanna en algunos de sus trabajos y particularmente en este disco y en el anterior. En definitiva, muy pocas veces las canciones de ‘ANTI’, aunque sólidas por sí solas, giran alrededor de unaLa versatilidad en el pop, como tantos discos han demostrado siempre, varios de ellos, de hecho, de Rihanna (pienso en ‘Rated R’), puede ser su mayor aliado; el problema es el modo en que la aborda Rihanna en algunos de sus trabajos y particularmente en este disco y en el anterior. En definitiva, muy pocas veces las canciones de ‘ANTI’, aunque sólidas por sí solas, giran alrededor de una órbita común, lo que hace que este disco suene como un proyecto subdesarrollado lanzado con prisas.… Expand
  27. IconicStick
    Jun 16, 2017
    10
    ANTI empieza firme, decididísimo, convencido de que éstos son sus principios y con ellos hasta la muerte. Adiós al polígono, al dance, al petardeo, a la música de y para tronistas: esto es el disco-protesta de Rihanna, su canto de madurez.
  28. ManuelContreras
    Apr 8, 2018
    6
    Work, work, work, work, work, work He said me haffi Work, work, work, work, work, work! He see me do mi Dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt, dirt!
  29. groupie
    Aug 17, 2017
    10
    Es de ese tipo de musica que te hace sentir cool y el mejor a donde quiera que vayas, Rihanna hizo un buen trabajo, claro, sin ayuda de sus cientos de escritores esta biblia no pudo haber sido mas que perfecta. Rihanna demostró que puede hacer un álbum con calidad de principio a fin, sin necesidad de relleno y canciones con baja producción, es por eso que "Anti" es de sus mejores trabajos.Es de ese tipo de musica que te hace sentir cool y el mejor a donde quiera que vayas, Rihanna hizo un buen trabajo, claro, sin ayuda de sus cientos de escritores esta biblia no pudo haber sido mas que perfecta. Rihanna demostró que puede hacer un álbum con calidad de principio a fin, sin necesidad de relleno y canciones con baja producción, es por eso que "Anti" es de sus mejores trabajos. Grande Rihanna.… Expand
  30. ANTILEMONADE
    Jul 23, 2017
    10
    THIS IS BEST RIHANNA ALBUM! She has evolved and grown an artist, this is visible in the work. May it continue to evolve and grow as an artist. I love this album, for me is the second best album of 2016.
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Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Most Discussed Album of 2016
10
#10 Most Shared Album of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
73

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
  1. Uncut
    Feb 29, 2016
    80
    One of the most coherent and surprising big-ticket pop albums in years. [Apr 2016, p.79]
  2. HipHopDX
    Feb 23, 2016
    72
    In many ways, ANTI is a step in the right direction for Rihanna, creatively.
    Read full review
  3. Mojo
    Feb 22, 2016
    80
    It's confusing, with flaky endings and mood swings, and an utterly compelling mix of not caring at all and desperately caring. [Apr 2016, p.87]
See all critic reviews »