Ciara's problem is her insistence of sticking to a purely urban sound. Like that's not fun for people. Madonna had one or two urban albums, Bey did the same before IASF, and Miley will probably switch sounds with her next record.
People don't want to hear the same repetitive album from one artist. It's not interesting.
She tried to switch it up during Fantasy Ride but pop fans didn't want it and she lost her urban fans with it.
It is impressive. She doesn't flop. She doesn't have any missteps. She hasn't shown any significant signs of decline or fading.
And yes, she doesn't ever have the biggest era during a calendar year (except mebbe GGGB); however, she's always there.
The ideology of a single pop girl dominating in all areas 100% of the time is flawed and virtually impossible now. This is a new generation and the viewpoint on dominance needs to be reworked.
In many sense, what Rihanna has been doing all these years is dominance. Other girls better adapt or be left behind, TBH.
You just don't get it, but you're a Manster. Yule see one day.
P!nk's success is more impressive and consistent than Rihanna's. On top of having three back-to-back 6m albums (+ a 3m GH) and two-back-to-back $150m+ tours, she's seen as a good singer/songwriter/performer who's not a dumb, vapid sexual popstar.
Rih as a pop construct turned out to be ahead of her contemporaries. Gaga really seemed like the next big thing early on, but the wheels just sort of fell off. Rih is more or less the perfect popstar and somehow immune to all of the difficulties that have come with the exposure of the digital age: she's distant enough to never over-saturate the public interest even while omnipresent. They've worked her music release cycles down to an art that requires almost no expense on the side of the label, aside from the writing camps. She becomes an icon, her songs get played everywhere, her writers make lots of money, her label doesn't have to fork over millions in unneeded promotion, she makes money from endorsements, no one gets sick of her, and she does it all over again.
Rih as a pop construct turned out to be ahead of her contemporaries. Gaga really seemed like the next big thing early on, but the wheels just sort of fell off. Rih is more or less the perfect popstar and somehow immune to all of the difficulties that have come with the exposure of the digital age: she's distant enough to never over-saturate the public interest even while omnipresent. They've worked her music release cycles down to an art that requires almost no expense on the side of the label, aside from the writing camps. She becomes an icon, her songs get played everywhere, her writers make lots of money, her label doesn't have to fork over millions on promotion, she makes money from endorsements, no one gets sick of her, and she does it all over again.
And she isn't bound to just one musical audience (dance-pop like Britney/Gaga, r&b like Beyonce, bubblegum like Katy, country like Taylor). She can genre hop with no backlash.
Everyone loves Rihanna. She appeals to every demographic and has worked with musicians in every genre. (She was even in the first black female to perform at a country music awards too.) Her music is like the soundtrack to this generation.
The only people denying this are either bitter queens that are mad their fave is washed up or the ones living under a rock.
