We Ride
"We Ride" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna from her second studio album A Girl like Me (2006). It was written by Makeba Riddick, Mikkel S. Eriksen and Tor Erik Hermansen, with production helmed by Stargate. The song was released on August 21, 2006, as the album's third single. "We Ride" is a hip hop and soul ballad. Critical reception of the song was generally positive, as the majority of reviewers praised its relaxing and carefree qualities.
For the Mary J. Blige song, see We Ride (I See the Future)."We Ride"
August 21, 2006
2006
- Battery (New York City, New York)
- The Loft Recording (Bronxville, New York)
- Blue Wave (Saint Philip, Barbados)
- Hinge (Chicago, Illinois)
- 3:46 (album version)
- 3:56 (radio edit)
- Def Jam
- SRP
"We Ride" peaked inside the top forty on multiple charts, including Australia, the Flanders and Wallonia regions of Belgium and the United Kingdom. The song peaked inside top ten in Finland and New Zealand. Despite failing to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, the song peaked at number one on the Dance Club Songs chart and number 34 on the Pop Airplay chart. The song's accompanying video was directed by Anthony Mandler, and shot in Miami and the Florida Keys. The video features Rihanna in various scenes, including a beach, nightclub and socialising with friends.
Background and release[edit]
"We Ride" was written by Makeba Riddick, Mikkel S. Eriksen and Tor Erik Hermansen, with production helmed by Eriksen and Hermansen under their stage name Stargate.[1] Rihanna explained the reasoning behind "We Ride" being chosen as the third single from the album in an interview with Corey Moss of MTV. The singer stated that instead of asking her record label and management which song should be released after "Unfaithful", Rihanna looked on iTunes to see which was her most downloaded song after the album's lead single "SOS" and "Unfaithful" and stated that "We Ride" was the third most popular, saying "Out of all my songs available for sale on iTunes, [We Ride was] the third most downloaded, behind 'SOS' and 'Unfaithful,' ... It's having good feedback, so I'm gonna give fans what they want."[2] "We Ride" was released as the third single from the album to US mainstream and rhythmic radio stations on August 21, 2006,[3] and was released in certain European territories as a CD single throughout October and November 2006.[4][5] In Australia, the song was released as an extended play (EP) on October 30, 2006, which featured remixes of "We Ride" and the previous single from the album, "Unfaithful".[6]
Critical reception[edit]
"We Ride" received positive reviews from music critics. David Jeffries of AllMusic praised "We Ride", writing that the song is "an easy-flowing weekend cruiser".[13] Spence D. of IGN similarly noted that "We Ride" is a song to which someone can listen to whilst driving, writing that it is a "ubiquitous cruising track that reworks the cliché catch phrase of the new millennium: 'we ride till the day that we die.'"[8] Bill Lamb of About.com noted that "We Ride" would appeal most to urban audiences due to its hip-hop composition.[14] However, Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine was critical of "We Ride", writing that although the song is a "hip hop-influenced club banger", it appeared to be too mature for the singer and her "minor vocal talents".[9]
Chart performance[edit]
In Australia, the song debuted and peaked at number 24 on November 19, 2006. The following week, the song remained at number 24 and spent a total of 10 weeks on the singles chart, with its last chart appearance at number 43 on January 21, 2007.[15] In New Zealand, "We Ride" debuted at number 16 on December 12, 2006, and rose to number eight the following week. In its third week charting, the song fell to number 10, but peaked at number seven in its fourth week. After having spent 11 weeks on the chart, "We Ride" dropped out of the top-40 singles chart, however, the song re-entered the chart at number 37 on February 26, 2007, for one week.[16]
In Europe, "We Ride" charted moderately in several territories. In the Netherlands, the song debuted at number 89 on November 25, 2006, and peaked at number 60 the following week. Over the following six weeks, the song fluctuated on the lower region on the top-100 singles chart, and spent a total of eight weeks on the chart.[17] In the Flanders region of Belgium, the song debuted at number 46 on December 16, 2006, where it remained for a further week. In its third week charting, "We Ride" peaked at number 40. The song re-entered the singles chart at number 43 on January 20, 2007, where it remained for a further week before dropping out of the singles chart.[18] In the Wallonia region of Belgium, the song debuted at number 34 on December 9, 2006, and rose by one chart position to number 33 the following week, where it remained in its third week. "We Ride" peaked at number 26 in its fourth week on the singles chart.[19] In Switzerland, "We Ride" debuted and peaked at number 42 on December 17, 2006. After having spent seven weeks on the chart, "We Ride" dropped out of the top-100 singles chart, however, the song re-entered the chart at number 95 on February 11, 2007, for one week.[20] In Finland, the song debuted peaked at number four in the final week of December 2006; "We Ride" spent one week on the singles chart.[21] In Italy, the song debuted and peaked on that countries singles chart at number 16 on October 9, 2008, more than two years after the song's release as a single; "We Ride" spent one week on the singles chart.[22] The song peaked at number 96 on the European Hot 100 Singles chart.
In the United Kingdom, "We Ride" debuted at number 55 on October 28, 2006, and peaked at number 17 the next week.[23][24] It fell to number 34 the following week, spending a total of two weeks inside the official UK top-40.[24] In the United States, the song failed to make a chart appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but managed to chart on the Dance Club Songs chart and Pop Airplay chart. The song peaked at number one on the Dance Club Songs chart on February 3, 2007, and spent a total of 18 weeks on the chart.[25] On the Pop Airplay chart, "We Ride" peaked at number 34.[26]
Music video[edit]
Background and release[edit]
The music video for "We Ride" was filmed in Miami and the Florida Keys in August 2006.[27] It was directed by Anthony Mandler, the director of the previous single's video, "Unfaithful".[27] In an interview with Corey Moss of MTV, Rihanna explained the concept behind the inspiration for the video, saying, "We just wanted to reconnect with my peers, let them know I'm still a teen, I still have friends – but to make something provocative. The '[SOS]' and 'Unfaithful' [concepts] were so out there, so we pulled it back a little bit. I'm chilling with my girls some."[27] The singer continued to talk about the choreographic content, saying, "I'm dancing [in the video], like technical dance, which was a challenge ... It usually takes years to learn, but we got it done in a few days. And it was beautifully shot."[27] The video was released to download via iTunes on September 18, 2006, in Ireland[28] and September 20, 2006, in the United States.[29]
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of A Girl Like Me, Def Jam Recordings, SRP Records.[11]
Recording
Personnel