Drake here is a bit outmatched by RiRi, compared to their other duets, but he still gets the chance to pick her over her hypothetical twin. The layered production work from Boi-1da is a revelation, moving lightly from quietly intimate to deep and resonant. That one-word chorus is so perfectly Rihanna it channels the bittersweet joy of surrendering to the moment, in life and on the dancefloor, without discounting the incredible savvy it takes to stay on top. If “Replay” achieved infectious catchiness at the expense of lyrical depth, “Work” manages to be both instantly hummable and emotionally subtle it captures the small triumphs and heartbreaks of real relationships (“You took my heart and my keys and my patience”) and the energy required to maintain them (“Recognize I’m trying, baby/I have to work, work, work”). If “Replay” appealed by stressing Rihanna’s natural Bajan cadence, “Work” finds her feeling out a faded, diasporic patois that screws together rap and Kingstonian slang into a voice that is distinctively hers. Where “Pon De Replay,” her introduction to the world stage, rode heavily on Afro-Caribbean trends, “Work” has spawned its own imitators in dancehall and pop spheres. In many ways, “Work” feels like the song Rihanna has been feeling her way towards throughout her career.
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