page_title: Unapologetic
section_title: Release and promotion
hierarchical_section_title: Unapologetic / Release and promotion
caption_attribution_description: English: rihanna yes
context_page_description: Unapologetic is the seventh studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on November 19, 2012, by Def Jam Recordings and SRP Records. It was recorded between June and November 2012, during promotion of her sixth album, Talk That Talk. As executive producer, Rihanna enlisted previous collaborators The-Dream, David Guetta, Chase & Status, and Stargate to work alongside new collaborators such as Parker Ighile, Mike Will Made-It, and Labrinth. Unapologetic is primarily a pop, dubstep and R&B record that incorporates elements of hip hop, EDM and reggae in its production, similar to the sound of her previous albums Talk That Talk and Rated R.
  Unapologetic received generally mixed reviews from critics, with some reviewers describing its music as interesting, while others criticized its weak lyrical content and rushed nature. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 2014 ceremony, while "Stay" was nominated for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. It debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 238,000 copies, becoming Rihanna's first number one album on the chart and best-selling debut week of her career.
context_section_description: On September 12, 2012, Def Jam France announced via Twitter that Rihanna would release a new single the upcoming week while her seventh studio album was scheduled to be released in November 2012. However, the tweet was shortly deleted and replaced with another clarifying that "more information will be made available tomorrow, Thursday, September 13". To further promote the announcement for her seventh upcoming studio album, Rihanna launched a promotional website rihanna7.com. Via her official Twitter account, Rihanna posted series of "teasing" tweets announcing her seventh studio album. On October 11, 2012, she revealed the cover art and title of her new album, Unapologetic. VH1 ranked the cover at number one on their list of The 30 Hottest Naked Album Covers Ever. Regarding the title of the album, Rihanna explained that she named it because she wanted to express how honest she is, "I named my album 'Unapologetic' because there is only one truth, and you can't apologise for that. It's honest. I'm always evolving of course, I think the only motto I have is to be true to myself."
  In August 2012, it was revealed that Unapologetic would be released in late November 2012. In early October, it was reported that the album would be released on November 19, 2012. On November 2, 2012, Rihanna released a behind the scenes video of the journey to making Unapologetic. The first video included a behind-the-scenes view of Rihanna backstage at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards, a shooting range, rehearsing for the iHeartRadio Music Festival and a photo shoot at a studio.
  On November 14, Rihanna embarked on a seven-date promotional tour for Unapologetic titled the 777 Tour. She performed seven concerts in seven days, each in a different city in North America and Europe. Fans and members of the international press (150 journalists representing 82 countries) were invited aboard a chartered Boeing 777 twinjet to every venue. Beginning on November 14 in Mexico City, the tour visited Toronto (Canada), Stockholm (Sweden), Paris (France), Berlin (Germany), London (UK) and ended on November 20 in New York City (United States). On May 6, 2013, Fox aired a tour documentary, with a documentary DVD being released the following day.
  Rihanna performed "Diamonds" and "Phresh Out the Runway" at the 2012 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on November 7, 2012, which aired on CBS on December 4, 2012. She performed "Diamonds" and a solo version of "Stay" on Saturday Night Live on November 10, 2012. On November 25, 2012, Rihanna performed "Diamonds" on The X Factor in the United Kingdom. On December 8, she performed the song on Wetten, dass..? in Germany. On December 9, 2012, Rihanna performed "Stay" in a medley with her 2011 single "We Found Love" on the final of series nine of British The X Factor. She also performed "Diamonds" on La Chanson de l'année ("The song of the Year") in France, on December 10, 2012, which was broadcast on December 29, 2012.
  During the 55th Annual Grammy Awards on February 10, 2013, Rihanna performed "Could You Be Loved" alongside Bruno Mars, Sting, Damian Marley and Ziggy Marley as a tribute to Bob Marley. Rihanna performed for a second time at the award ceremony, where she performed her album's second single "Stay" along with Mikky Ekko. To further promote the album, Rihanna embarked on her fifth concert tour, the Diamonds World Tour in March 2013. North American, African and European dates were announced with ASAP Rocky serving as the support act for North America, while David Guetta performed for the Moroccan date of the tour as well as some selected European dates including London and Paris. In September 2013, she also performed on Channel 4's Alan Carr: Chatty Man to promote "What Now".
caption: Rihanna performing during her 777 Tour in Mexico.
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