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"Diamonds" is a song recorded by Barbadian singer Rihanna for her seventh studio album, ''Unapologetic'' (2012). It was written by Sia Furler together with its producers, Benny Blanco and StarGate. The song premiered on September 26, 2012, during the ''Elvis Duran and the Morning Show'' and was digitally released the following day as the lead single from ''Unapologetic''. Def Jam Recordings serviced the single to contemporary hit radio in the United States on October 2. "Diamonds" is a mid-tempo electronic and pop ballad that features heavy synthesizers, orchestral sounds and electronic rhythms. The song's lyrics serve as a departure from the themes of unhealthy relationships that were on Rihanna's previous singles and contain a prominent concept of love. "Diamonds" was well received by most critics, some of whom complimented Rihanna's different musical direction, while others criticized the song's production. The single topped music charts in over twenty countries, including the United States, where it became Rihanna's twelfth number one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and tied her with Madonna and The Supremes for the fifth-most number one singles in the chart's history. "Diamonds" was certified five-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and sold over 3.5 million digital copies in the country. By May 2013, it had sold over 7.5 million copies worldwide and became one of the best-selling singles of all-time. The song's music video was shot by director Anthony Mandler, a frequent collaborator of Rihanna's, and depicts her in four environments that represent the elements of earth, air, water and fire. The video received positive reviews and was praised for its imagery. Some critics believe that the heavily tattooed man intertwined with Rihanna's arm in the video resembles Chris Brown. The singer performed "Diamonds" on television shows such as ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The X Factor'' and included it on the 777, Diamonds and The Monster Tour set lists. The American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers (ASCAP) recognized it as one of the most performed songs of 2013 and 2014. The official remix of "Diamonds" featured rapper Kanye West and was released on November 16, 2012. The song has been covered by various recording artists, including Josef Salvat who released his own single version of "Diamonds". ==Writing and production== In 2012, American songwriter and record producer Benny Blanco met with Norwegian production duo StarGate at a recording studio in New York City to write new songs, including one for Rihanna. StarGate had previously produced her singles "Don't Stop the Music" (2007) and "Only Girl (In the World)" (2010). According to Blanco, he and StarGate wanted to deviate from Rihanna's usual sound and produce as though the song would be for a rapper such as Kanye West: "It's the one that we weren't thinking Rihanna ... that turned into the Rihanna record ... But that's how it always happens like with me".〔 They produced the song's drum machine beat after the other instrumental music was recorded.〔 StarGate's Mikkel S. Eriksen told ''The New York Times'' that Blanco took a recorded snippet of Eriksen's singing, altered it electronically, and made it sound "dirtier".〔 He then applied timbre and used audio software to create ghostly accompaniment lines. Eriksen described Blanco's style as "unorthodox, as he almost never plays the keyboards but throws in weird samples and alters them to the right pitch to go with the song." Australian singer-songwriter Sia later joined them and wrote the lyrics for "Diamonds".〔 Sia later revealed that she wrote the lyrics in 14 minutes. After the song was completed, they wanted to play it to Rihanna, but Blanco was skeptical about the reaction towards the song because of its slow sound. After StarGate played it to her, they called Blanco from London and told him that she liked the song: "She's flippin' out. She played it like seven times in a row. It's her favorite song."〔 Phil Tan and the assistant Daniela Rivera, mixed and mastered "Diamonds".〔 Recalling it, in an interview with ''The Huffington Post'', Blanco commented, "we needed to have it recorded, the beat finished, mixed and mastered in 24 hours. She was recording in a separate part of the world, sending back the files, we're finishing the music and then we're mixing and mastering it, and then it was out in a few days. It's fucking amazing and incredible." Kuk Harrell produced Rihanna's vocals on the song and recorded them together with Marcos Tovar.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Diamonds (Rihanna song)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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