"Russian Roulette" is a song recorded by Barbadian singer Rihanna for her fourth studio album, Rated R (2009). It premiered on radio stations worldwide on October 20, 2009, and was released as the album's lead single on October 26 by Def Jam Recordings. Written and produced by Ne-Yo and Chuck Harmony, "Russian Roulette" is a pop, pop rock and R&B ballad that contains dark, morbid, and tense atmospheric elements in its composition. Lyrically, the single is about an abusive romantic relationship that ended abruptly. Music critics noted the lyrical theme to be a response to the domestic violence case between Rihanna and her former boyfriend, singer and rapper Chris Brown.
"Russian Roulette" received universal acclaim from music critics; with many praising Rihanna's vocal performance and the song's lyrics. It reached the top-ten in over twenty countries worldwide including number one in the Czech Republic, Israel, Luxembourg, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, and Switzerland. The song reached number two on the UK Singles Chart and number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Russian Roulette" also topped the UK R&B and US Dance Club Songs charts. It was certified two-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) denoting sales of over two million copies in the United States alone.
The song's music video was shot by director Anthony Mandler, a frequent collaborator of Rihanna's, and depicts her playing a game of the titular Russian roulette with her love interest played by American actor Jesse Williams. Other scenes include Rihanna in the woods where she is run over by a car, in a gas chamber, in a padded cell, and shots being fired at her underwater. The singer performed "Russian Roulette" on several occasions including on the sixth series of The X Factor, on the Late Show with David Letterman and also included it on the setlist of the Last Girl on Earth Tour (2010–11). English singer George Michael performed a cover of "Russian Roulette" during his Symphonica Tour (2011–12).
Writing and production
In 2009, producer Chuck Harmony and singer-songwriter Ne-Yo convened together to conceptualize a song that would take Rihanna's music to a further level. According to Harmony, they didn't want to re-work the previous works by Rihanna—something that according to him the fans expected. The producer told MTV News that they wanted to give Rihanna a film, not just a song with a length of three minutes, "I felt musically like everybody was gonna give like that 'Disturbia,' 'SOS,' kind of pop, uptempo stuff, and I really wanted the song that me and Ne-Yo did to stand out."
Following a domestic violence case between Rihanna and her boyfriend Chris Brown, media speculated as to whether any song featured on her fourth upcoming album would be about him. In an interview with MTV News, Ne-Yo clarified that he would not write a song for Rihanna about Brown, because he considered the idea unnecessary. Harmony said that no matter what song Rihanna released as a lead single from the album, it would be looked at as a song about Brown.
In an interview with the same publication, Ne-Yo explained how he wrote the lyrics, "I'm listening to the track, and all I can see is Rihanna and some random person sitting across from each other at the table with a gun sitting in the middle of the table and playing Russian roulette." Ne-Yo further stated that Rihanna is not afraid to try new things and from the first moment she heard the song he knew she would like it, "I trust Rihanna to be Rihanna, and she trusts me to be me. That's the coolest thing about our relationship. I must say this song is a step in somewhat of a different direction for both of us." When Harmony heard the song, both he and Ne-Yo were aware that they should change some elements and that it had to be darker and edgier.
"Russian Roulette" was recorded during summer 2009, at the Roc the Mic Studios in New York City by Marcos Tovar and Kevin Hanson served as an assistant. Mykael Alexander was the assistant recorder while Makeba Riddick made the vocal production of the song. Mike "TrakGuru" Johnson recorded the music."Russian Roulette" was mixed by Kevin "KD" Davis together with Jared Newcomb who served as an assistant. Jessie Bonds played the guitars in the song. Harmony explained that after the song was done, Rihanna called Ne-Yo and told him that "Russian Roulette" is one of her favorites, "I think overall she was comfortable with the vibe of the song and comfortable with the lyrical content of the song. She loves the song."
Release and artwork On October 14, 2009, a metallic "R" along with a message saying "The Wait is Over" was placed on Rihanna's official website. Subsequently, Rihanna posted on her official Twitter profile "#The Wait Is Ova. Nov. 23 09". Speculation rose among fans that "The Wait Is Ova", literally meaning "The wait is over", would either be the name of a new single or the then-upcoming album. According to Entertainment Weekly the date looked accurate for her album release and "The Wait Is Ova" would not be the title of the album. Two days later, a countdown timer appeared on her website and was scheduled to end on October 20, 2009. After the timer finished counting, "Russian Roulette" premiered on BBC Radio 1, the singer's official website and on American radio stations.
Def Jam Recordings serviced the song to contemporary hit radio radio in the United States on October 26, 2009, as the lead single from Rated R. The next day, it was also sent to the rhythmic contemporary and urban contemporary radio stations in the country. In an interview with NME, Rihanna explained that she and her management didn't have doubts if "Russian Roulette" should be the lead single as it was very personal and emotional track to her. On November 3, the single was released for a digital download via the iTunes Store. The album version of "Russian Roulette" together with its instrumental were released as a CD single in Germany on November 13. On December 11, seven remixes of the song were digitally released in some countries.
Composition and lyrical interpretation
"Russian Roulette" is a mid-tempo pop, pop-rock and R&B ballad that contains dark, haunting, morbid, and tense atmospheric elements. The song has an instrumentation that features guitars, piano and synths which play over a "heart beat" bass line, accompanied with Rihanna's "affecting" vocals. Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine wrote that the song's production is also features a sound of a rolling dice. According to Jon Pareless of The New York Times, it "is paced by a heartbeat, a ticking clock and Rihanna's fearful voice." "Russian Roulette" is written in the key of F minor, in common time, with a tempo of 83 beats per minute. Rihanna's vocal range spans from F♯3 to C5. Chicago Tribunes Greg Kot called the singer's voice a "delicate instrument" that is often the least element in her song's production; however, he noted that on the song "she's squarely in the center of the action".
Lyrically, "Russian Roulette" is about an abusive romantic relationship that ends abruptly, with some critics comparing them to the relationship that Rihanna had with Brown. Kot noted that the single's lyrics compare a relationship to a fatal game of choice, while Andy Jill of The Independent wrote that its title refers to a "state of relationships". Rob Harvilla of The Village Voice described the song as a spare, suspenseful, violent torch song with a literal title. The Los Angeles Times Todd Martens wrote that although the song's lyrics are vague and find people speculating, they "hint at a situation one probably doesn't want to be in the middle of". Sasha Resende of The Michigan Daily wrote "the ballad, which employs reckless gunplay as a not-so-subtle metaphor for a troubled relationship, achieves its seemingly morbid intent."
"Russian Roulette" begins with a "searing" guitar solo that later transitions into a "pulsing" beat which stays constant until the end of the song. The single opens with the lyrics, "Take a breath/ Take it deep/ Calm yourself/ He says to me/ If you play/ You play for keeps/ Take the gun/ And count to three." The metaphor about the game of Russian roulette is also present in the chorus in which Rihanna sings, "And you can see my heart beating/ You can see it through my chest/ I said I'm terrified, but I'm not leaving/ I know that I must pass this test/ So just pull the trigger." In the upcoming verse, the character that the singer portrays in the song it's scared that the man talking to her will always have power over, "Say a prayer to yourself/ He says close your eyes/ Sometimes it helps/ And then I get a scary thought/ That he's here means he's never lost." "Russian Roulette" ends with a sound of a gunshot, which according to Michaelangelo Matos of The A.V. Club extends the drama accompanied by "harrowing scenarios and tremulous vocals".
Critical reception Nick Levine of Digital Spy praised "Russian Roulette" and called it a "masterful return effort". He additionally wrote that the single is "brave, brilliantly-realized and bizarre enough to distance" the singer from the other pop or R&B performers like Lady Gaga. According to Levine, the song is her best vocal performances and shows Rihanna growing in front of the audience's eyes. Will Hines of Consequence of Sound called the song a worthy centerpiece and further wrote that it stands out from other tracks on the album which proves that Rated R "was a cathartic process for the singer". Todd Martens of Los Angeles Times wrote that although is hard to imagine the song to be played in a car or a club, it's "attention-grabbing stuff, standing in stark—emphasis on stark—contrast to much of the current pop landscape." Alibhe Malone of NME wrote that Rated R is an album about power and control in which "Russian Roulette" sets the agenda.
The Boston Globes Sarah Rodman wrote that the song is moody but far too deliberate and "has a grab bag of evocative images but never quite jells". A reviewer of OK! magazine wrote that the single represents a downbeat way for return to the charts for Rihanna, but can grow on you. Andy Jill of The Independent stated that "Russian Roulette" and "Fire Bomb" have "inflammatory" titles. Entertainment Weekly's Simon Vozick-Levinson wrote that although Rihanna took risk with releasing the song, it pays off, "Rihanna is in fine vocal form throughout, and Ne-Yo's songwriting is economical and evocative per usual." A staff from MTV Newsroom thought that the single retains some sort of attitude and atmosphere that made Rihanna "such a definitive artist". Jody Rosen of Rolling Stone concluded that works like "Russian Roulette", "a domestic-violence victim's confession whipped into soaring melodrama — tell us why: She was busy saying her piece in the studio."
Andy Kellman of AllMusic stated that in the song Rihanna had a sudden desire to provoke even if that is in metaphorical context. Pitchfork Media's Ryan Dombal concluded that the single is a bad Celine Dion song with "barrel-turning revolver noises that actually sound like a can of spray paint being shook up". Rob Harvilla of The Village Voice stated that "Russian Roulette"'s composition, makes the song unpleasant for listening. Chris Richards of The Washington Post wrote that the song has "plodding beat" and "forgettable hook" and additionally criticized the ending of the song with a sound of gunshot; according to him that's an attempt to "salvage its wasted potential".
Chart performance