2014: The year without Rihanna

   This year we saw Beyonce and Taylor Swift wherever we looked. But Rihanna's absence felt like a statement in itself.

 

It’s notable mostly because the singer herself has made it notable: Rihanna produced seven studio albums in as many years. Her debut, “Music From The Sun,” came out in 2005, when the singer was just 17; six more albums followed suit, up until November 2012, when Rihanna released “Unapologetic.” Ever since then, gossip sites are eager to report that Rihanna has been on the verge of releasing her eighth, “R8.” But as of yet, no album. She’s languishing at 47th on the Billboard top 100—hardly a failure, but definitely not at the prominence she developed after the single “Umbrella,” her biggest hit to date. 2014 belonged to other artists. Rihanna yielded the floor—she even, for six months or so, deactivated her Instagram account. Pop music had to go on without her.

Out of earshot does not mean out of mind, though. Her singles from 2013—“Stay,” “The Monster,” with Eminem, and “Pour It Up,” among others—are still in regular radio play. The last single from “Unapologetic,” “Jump,” was released in January of this year, as was her collaboration with Shakira for that artist’s single “Can’t Remember To Forget You.” Rihanna’s appearances at the Met Gala, the CFDA Fashion Awards, and Paris Fashion Week were red-carpet rag must-covers. She toured briefly with Eminem in August for the Monster Tour, including an unannounced appearance at Lollapallooza in Chicago.