THE 1000 BEST SONGS IN THE WORLD EVER.

858-Rihanna featuring Drake-What’s My Name?

2011-Number 1 single.

Best Bit-At 1.26. She’s Robyn Rihanna Fenty, and he’s Aubrey Drake Graham.

‘What’s My Name?’ was co-written by Mikkel S. Eriksen, and Tor Erik Hermansen, who collaborate under the working name of ‘Stargate.’ The songs other writers are Ester Dean, Traci Hale, and Drake, who wrote the songs ‘Rap.’ The track was produced by Stargate, along with Kuk Harrell. ‘What’s My Name?’ was released as the second of seven singles from Rihanna’s fifth studio Album ‘Loud,’ from November 2010.

‘Stargate’ are one of the most successful songwriting, and production teams of the 21st Century. They originally formed in 1996, in Trondeim, Norway, as the songwriting trio of Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor E. Hermansen, and Hallgeir Rustan. After initial success in Norway, where they produced the Norwegian R&B singer Noora Noor, they then branched out into the British market, writing and producing the 1999 UK Number 2 hit ‘S Club Party,’ for the English ‘Teen Pop’ band ‘S Club 7.’ It was that success which gave them the confidence to branch out even further, and attempt to conquer the American market as well. ‘Stargate’ have gone on to write or produce 10 American Billboard Hot 100 Number 1 singles to date, six of which have been in collaboration with Rihanna.

Another of this songs writers. Ester Dean, is also one of the most successful songwriters of the 21st Century. Ester Renay Dean was born on April 15th, 1986, in Muskogee, Oklahoma, United States, and since 2007 she has been writing songs for herself, and others to record. Artists who have had hit singles with songs she has written, or co-written, include, Beyonce, Chris Brown, and Christina Aguilera. Ester Dean has also charted twice on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart as an artist, in 2009 with ‘Drop It Low,’ featuring Chris Brown, (Number 38) and in 2010, as the featured artist on ‘Super Bass,’ with Nicki Minaj (Billboard Number 8, and UK Number 8.)

‘What’s My Name?’ is one of five collaborations between Rihanna, (see also best songs 566) and Drake, (see also best songs 1043 and 921) with the others being ‘Lemon,’ (Remix) from 2007, ‘Too Good,’ (2016-Billboard Number 14, and UK Number 3) ‘Work,’ (2016-Billboard Number 1, and UK Number 2) and ‘Take Care’ (2011-Billboard Number 7, and UK Number 9.) The collaboration for ‘What’s My Name?’ was originally intended to be just a remix of the song, with the solo version by Rihanna intended for the Album ‘Loud,’ Regarding Drake’s inclusion on the song, Rihanna said at the time,’Drake is the hottest rapper out right now, and we’ve always been trying to work together, he’s a young rapper who has incredible melodies,’ Tor Erik Hermansen of Stargate, who co-wrote, and co-produced ‘What’s My Name?’ has said,’She (Rihanna) played the record to Drake backstage somewhere, to try to get him on a verse. She’s calling me up saying, ‘Where are the files?’ That’s one thing you don’t hear often from artists on her level. When ‘What’s My Name? topped the UK singles chart in January 2011, Rihanna became the first female solo artist in chart history to achieve Number 1 singles in five consecutive years.

Drake has come in for a certain amount of criticism for a portion of his rap on the track, with some calling it ‘cheesy,’ and others going a step further by calling it, ‘beneath him.’ The line critics are referring to, is when Drake says,’The square root of sixty nine is eight something, right? This is a disguised reference to oral sex, as ‘sixty nine is a sexual position,’ and ‘eight something’ (ate something.) Is it clever or childish?……who cares.

‘Hey boy, I really wanna see if you can go downtown with a girl like me. Hey boy, I really wanna be with you, ’cause you just my type. Ooh na na na na. I need a boy, to take it over, looking for a guy, to put in work uh, ooh, ooh.’