I’m all about a good weekend anthem, and Rihanna‘s “Cheers (Drink To That)” is definitely that. The song is the sixth single to be lifted from Rihanna‘s fifth studio album, Loud and was written by Andrew Harr, Jermaine Jackson, Stacey Barthe, Laura Pergolizzi, Corey Gibson, Chris Ivery, Lauren Christy, Graham Edwards, Avril Lavigne and Scott Spock and produced by Harr & Jackson under the name ‘The Runners.’ Featuring a heavy sample of Avril Lavigne‘s 2002 Grammy nominated, Billboard Hot 100 top 5 single “I’m With You,” “Cheers (Drink To That)” becomes the third slow tempo single in a row that Rihanna has released. Since the January release of the clubby, party-friendly “S&M” RiRi has released 3 SEVERELY down-tempo tracks starting with “California King Bed,” in May, “Man Down” in July and now with “Cheers (Drink To That)” in August. While I’m all for the occasional ballad, I think it’s probably a better idea to mix things up rather than fire off three club tracks followed by three slow jams.
One can’t help but notice that since “S&M,” Rihanna hasn’t had a single #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and this after having three #1s in a row with “Only Girl (In The World),” “What’s My Name” and “S&M.” While “What’s My Name” doesn’t necessarily have a thumping bass line, it’s got Drake which makes it ripe for both the urban club market as well as top 40 radio. I might be jumping to conclusions here, but I absolutely see a correlation between the tempo and the chart position. The faster the tempo…the higher the chart position. “California King Bed” nearly didn’t make the top 40 while “Man Down” charted one space down from 60 on the Billboard Hot 100. Rihanna did manage to turn things around with “Cheers (Drink To That),” as the song pulled off a top 10 spot, likely due to the song’s pre-weekend shout out.
Check out documentary-style video for “Cheers (Drink To That)” directed by Evan Rogers, below. The video, which premiered on iTunes and VEVO August 26th features a small cameo by Avril Lavigne herself and appearances from both Cee-Lo Green and Jay-Z. Download “Cheers” on U.S. iTunes HERE! Cheers to the freakin’ weekend!
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