Rihanna vs. Gaga

Two of my favorite artists released their long awaited albums today. The verdict?

Rihanna lays down emotional lyrics on her new album Rated R , which is expected, obviously inspired by her roller coaster year beginning with an assault from then boyfriend Chris Brown. The album can practically be split right down the middle between heart wrenching ballads (Firebomb, Stupid in Love) and stand out club tracks (Hard, Rude Boy, Wait Your Turn) that deliver hard beats and killer hooks. Rihanna sings 'I just wanna set you on fire so I won't have to burn alone/Then you'll know where I'm coming from' in Firebomb expressing her heartache over the break up and highly publicized incident with Brown. The Explicit Content warning sends Rihanna right over the pop edge she was teetering on and right into a more hip hop/gangster neighborhood where she seems to be making a home. She proves it in perhaps my fav track, G4L, filled with trash talk and an eery, synth beat. Lacking fire are tracks like the awkward Te Amo, organ driven Cold Case Love, and of course the horrendous first single Russian Roullette, penned by none other than Ne-Yo (Unfaithful). All of RiRi's collabrations get 4 stars. Sidenote: The legendary Slash appears on the album on the track Rockstar 101.

I can go on and on about why I (along with the rest of this country) am obsessed with Lady Gaga and her music, particularly this 8 song album. Her music comes across as pop, when buried beneath lies so much more. Gaga shed some more light on the inspiration behind many of the tracks on The Fame Monster during her interview on On the Record: Lady Gaga on the FUSE network tonight. Each song represents a fear of hers; death, alcohol, love, sex. And each and every one of them could be a single. She's unstoppable, and humble. Although the entire album will do incredible numbers and each song can hold its own on the Billboard charts if individually released, her collaboration with Beyonce on 'Telephone' is the moneymaker. 'Speechless' speaks of Queen, 'Alejandro' whispers Ace of Base and 'Bad Romance' screams Hitchcock. But overall, the delivery is uniquely Gaga.

Winner: Gaga. Her 8 songs are lightyears ahead of any track on Rihanna's album in terms of compositition and lyrics. Although, both will be on repeat on my iPhone for weeks to come.