Here's how I see it.
Beyonce could have done what she did in Sasha Fierce; Create another album catchy dance music that would sure be a success, but she didn't (Besides Run The World).
The whole album was a risk to release in this time. We live in a world where R&B music does not sell very well, and dance music with repetitive lyrics and a good beat own the radio and digital sales.
I voted for 4, but now I feel like changing my vote to Rated R.
Rihanna changed her style up for Rated R. She took a lot more risks than Bey did. She created a new image and created music she had never done before. In the past, Rihanna had not created such a dark, eerie album like Rated R. I mean, the songs on their were just completely different from what we saw from Rihanna pre-Rated R. Russian Roulette, Photographs, Cold Case Love, Wait Your Turn & G4L were all songs that shocked most listeners coming from Rihanna. I remember opening my eyes wide when I heard Rihanna swear for the first time.
At least Beyonce felt comfortable doing 4, in which there were songs that sounded like things she has done before. The biggest risk 4 took was following the Beyonce formula in a time when R&B was dying. The biggest risk Rated R took was going the opposite direction of where GGGB should have taken Rihanna. Fortunately, LOUD adjusted this path, but Rated R was just extremely risky to do.
I mean, Rihanna went from:
to
Beyonce didn't really change in the 4 era. Rihanna went from being innocent Barbadian beauty, to sexy dominatrix in JUST ONE ALBUM.
That's the risk right there.