Riri (stylized as RIRI) is the eponymous debut studio album by Japanese singer Riri, released February 14, 2018, by Sony Music Associated Records. The album served as her major label debut following a record deal with Sony Music Entertainment Japan.

Riri
Studio album by
ReleasedFebruary 14, 2018
Recorded2016–2017
Studio
  • Prime Sound Studio (Tokyo, Japan)
  • Sony Music Studios (Tokyo)
  • NK Sound (Tokyo)
Genre
Length36:32
LabelSony Music Associated Records
Producer
Riri chronology
Rush
(2017)
Riri
(2018)
Neo
(2018)

Three promotional singles were released prior to the release of the album. The first, a remix of "Rush" was released in November 2017. A second promotional single, "Keep Up" was released in December and a third, "Crush on You" was released in January 2018.

Upon its release, the album peaked at number 34 on the Oricon Albums Chart and number 18 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart.

Background

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In 2016, Riri was discovered by Japanese-American singer-songwriter Ai and her recently launched talent agency, The Mic-a-holics, after winning a talent contest.[1] Later that year, Riri released her debut extended play I Love to Sing under the agency. In 2017, her second EP Rush was released by The Mic-a-holics.[2] Unlike her previous EP, Rush charted in Japan, debuting and peaking at number 70 on the Billboard Japan Hot Albums chart.[3] Riri ultimately was scouted by Sony Music Japan and eventually was signed to Sony Music Associated Records.[4]

Development and production

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Wanting to appeal overseas and Japanese listeners, Riri worked with both western and far eastern producers. Five previously released tracks from I Love to Sing and Rush were included and recorded in Japan while five new tracks were recorded in Los Angeles.[5] She worked with various songwriters and producers such as Nikki Flores, Joacim Persson, Damon Sharpe, Uta, Ai, and Mayu Wakisaka.[6]

Music and lyrics

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Riri has been described as an R&B and EDM album.[5][1] Riri was influenced by artists such as Beyoncé, Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.[1] Riri's western appeal for the album was heavily influenced by Ai, who Riri has described as someone she "cherishes".[6] In an interview with Oricon, Riri described "Promised Road" as a song about eventually having dreams come true.[1]

Track listing

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Riri track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Rush"
  • Flores
  • Love
3:16
2."Next to You"
  • Carlos Jenkins
  • Matthew Quinney
  • Miles Marques Sean II
  • Arai
Sean II3:16
3."That's My Baby"
Sharpe3:15
4."Heart Can't Lie"
  • Arai
  • Ale
  • Tido
Edsclusive3:33
5."Crush on You"
Soko3:53
6."Be Alright"Uta3:39
7."Keep Up"
  • Jenkins
  • Quinney
  • Sean II
Sean II3:17
8."Promised Road"AraiUta3:30
9."Rush" (Seiho remix)
  • Love
  • Persson
  • Alkenäs
  • Flores
  • Arai
  • Flores
  • Love
3:35
10."I Love to Sing"Uta5:14

Notes

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  • Certain digital stores display "2018 remastered" within the title of tracks 1–2, 4, 6 and 10
  • Tracks 1 and 9 are stylized in all capitals
  • Track 10 is stylized in sentence case

Charts

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Chart performance for Riri
Chart (2018) Peak
position
Japan Hot Albums (Billboard Japan)[7] 18
Japanese albums (Oricon)[8] 34

Release history

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Release history and formats for Riri
Region Date Format(s) Label Ref.
Various February 14, 2018 Sony Music Associated Records [6]
Japan February 26, 2018 CD
[8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "AIも絶賛、サブスクシーンで注目の高校生アーティスト・RIRIとは". ORICON NEWS. February 17, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  2. ^ "INTERVIEW - Get a Rush of R&B with RIRI". OneHallyu. 12 September 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  3. ^ * "Rush". Billboard Japan. June 28, 2017. Archived from the original on October 20, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  4. ^ "RIRI『RIRI』 まだ高校生、なれど世界に照準を当てる逸材が満を持してのメジャー・デビュー!". Mikiki. Tower Records. May 16, 2018. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  5. ^ a b "RIRI、いよいよ本格始動! "ボーダレス"に広がる新世代アーティストの可能性". Real Sound. December 22, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c "18歳女子高生シンガーRIRIがメジャーデビュー、LAで大物プロデューサーと制作(動画あり)". 音楽ナタリー (in Japanese). November 29, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  7. ^ * "Riri". Billboard Japan (in Japanese). February 21, 2018. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
  8. ^ a b "RIRI | RIRI". ORICON NEWS. Retrieved 2022-07-12.