Rihanna’s Lyrics Taken From TV, Magazines

Rihanna’s songs are created how??

If you ever wondered what sort of inspiration goes into making a song like “Rude Boy”, or any other pop songs Rihanna gives life to, Ester Dean would be the perfect person to ask.

Dean is a 24-year-old professional songwriter who has penned hits for many successful singers, including Katy Perry, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, Mary J. Blige, and of course Rihanna (she actually wrote Rihanna’s “Rude Boy”, “S&M,” and “What’s My Name?”).

The New Yorker recently met up with Dean to find more about her writing process, and to tell you the truth, it’s nothing like I imagined. Dean reveals that the songwriting process for Rihanna begins on her BlackBerry. This is where she can test out words and melodies over pre-recorded beats in the studio (this time without Rihanna present). With some practice, arranging, re-arranging and rephrasing of the words and melodies, eventually she produces a song, and if it makes the cut, Rihanna might sing it on one of her albums.

As for the actual words themselves, they can come from inanimate objects, like the television or magazine, no joke. The New Yorker reports, “Dean carried her iced coffee into the recording booth… She took out her BlackBerry, and as the track began to play she surfed through lists of phrases she had copied from magazines and television programs. She showed [the reporter] a few: ‘life in the fast lane,’ ‘crying shame,’ ‘high and mighty,’ ‘mirrors don’t lie,’ ‘don’t let them see you cry.’”

Who freakin’ knew that a song that eventually becomes as successful as something like “Rude Boy” could begin with something as trivial as the tube or a glossy? Art has to start somewhere I suppose.