Rihanna & Chris Brown Have Essence

Reigning R&B prince Chris Brown and R&B princess Rihanna perform at the Louisiana Superdome during the 2008 Essence Music Festival on Friday, the Fourth of July, in New Orleans.

Here’s Billboard’s review of dear RiRi’s latest “Disturbia” single: “Rihanna has scored 10 top 40 hits since her career launched in 2005. More staggering, the 20-year-old has four songs riding the Pop 100: top two ‘Take a Bow,’ Maroon 5 duet ‘If I Never See Your Face Again’ just entering the top 40, ‘Don’t Stop the Music’ inside the top 40 after 30 weeks—and now ‘Disturbia.’ It’s safe to say that Rihanna is the premier artist of the second half of the decade, with no signs of wear and tear. This latest is a sort of ‘Thriller’ for partygoers, with multilayered vocals cascading across Ri’s lower register, alongside fun scatting, a la ‘bum bum bi dum bum’ with co-writing (and background vocals) from the irrepressible Chris Brown. Rereleased albums with added cuts have become a tedious trend, but ‘Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded’ is actually worth its weight in platinum. In short order, Rihanna has become the trustworthy ‘it’ girl of our time.’

25+ pictures inside of essence-filled Rihanna and Chris Brown…