Pon de Replay

Rihanna is from Barbados, and accordingly, this song is heavy on Caribbean dance rhythms. The song takes place in a dance club; "pon de replay" translates to "play it again" in the local Barbados dialect Bajan. Rihanna sings about wanting more of her favorite song when she's on the dance floor, and she wants it louder.

"Pon De Replay" was Rihanna's first single. It was included on the demo tape that got her an audition with Jay-Z's record label, Def Jam. At that audition, Jay was so impressed, he signed her on the spot. Rihanna was discovered in 2003 by an American record producer/songwriter named Evan Rogers, who spotted the 15-year-old singer on a trip to Barbados, where his wife is from. Rogers' wife had a friend whose daughter was in a girl group there, so Evan agreed to audition them. One of the girls in the group was Rihanna (known as Robyn Fenty), who impressed Rogers when she sang Beyoncé's "Dangerously in Love." Rogers arranged for Rihanna and her mom to come to America, where they made the demo tape that got the attention of Def Jam. She signed with Rogers' production company and moved in with Rogers and his wife at their home in Connecticut. Rogers and his partner, Carl Sturken, had the experience and connections to develop Rihanna and get her into an office with Jay-Z. They had been writing and producing hits since the '80s - Donny Osmond's "Soldier Of Love," 'N Sync's "God Must Have Spent A Little More Time On You," and Karyn White's "Facts Of Love" are among their credits. Rogers released two solo albums in the '80s, and in the '90s, the pair led a group called Rythm Syndicate, which had a hit with "P.A.S.S.I.O.N." They formed a bond with Rihanna and ended up writing and producing most of the tracks on her first album. They also delivered her 2007 hit "Shut Up And Drive."

The song started out as a dancehall track the songwriter-producer Vada Nobles wrote for a Jamaican artist named Malica. He ended up submitting the track for a different artist, and it was forwarded to the songwriter Alisha "M'Jestie" Brooks to work on. She put together the lyrics and vocal melody, then Nobles presented the song to Sturken and Rogers, who made some tweaks and had Rihanna record it. Brooks, Nobles, Sturken and Rogers share the songwriting credits on the track.