Anti is the eighth studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on January 28, 2016 by Roc Nation and Westbury Road. Rihanna started recording in 2014 after departing from Def Jam Recordings, who had released all of her albums since her 2005 debut. As executive producer, Rihanna recorded Anti with producers including Jeff Bhasker, Boi-1da, DJ Mustard, Hit-Boy, Brian Kennedy, Timbaland and No I.D., at studios in Canada, the United States and France. SZA and Drake contribute guest vocals.

Conceived in the midst of creative struggles and emotional turmoil, Anti is characterized by atmospheric production incorporating lo-fi beats, distorted vocals and downtempo arrangements. The first half consists of bass-heavy tracks, while the second is characterised by textured minimalism. Compared to the radio-friendly dance songs which had characterised Rihanna's prior discography, Anti is more muted and soulful. Primarily a pop, dancehall, psychedelic soul and alternative R&B record, Anti also incorporates an array of eclectic influences spanning from hip hop, soul, industrial, psychedelic, doo-wop, country, synth-rock and trap. The lyrics are about the emotions ensued from love and relationships, from endearment and desire to betrayal and liberation, with references to sex, drugs and alcohol.

The promotional campaign for Anti from summer 2014 comprised prolonged release delays and a $25 million deal with Samsung. Rihanna announced the cover art and title at the MAMA Gallery on 7 October 2015. The Anti World Tour ran from March to November 2016, and four songs were released as singles, including the US Billboard Hot 100 number one "Work". In the United States, Anti is Rihanna's second number-one album and the first album by a black woman to spend 400 weeks on the Billboard 200; it was certified six-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. The album topped charts in Canada and Norway, and it received multi-platinum certifications in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, New Zealand, Poland, and the United Kingdom.

Upon its release, critics commended the album's emotional honesty but were divided on the production; praise mainly centered on Rihanna's newfound musical freedom. Some took issue with the lack of radio-friendly songs and the unfocused tracklist, but others noted the musical shift marked Rihanna's artistic maturity and regarded it as one of her best albums. At the 2017 Grammy Awards, the album and its singles received six nominations, including one for Best Urban Contemporary Album. Anti featured on 2010s decade-end lists by such publications as Billboard, NME and Pitchfork. It ranked 230th on Rolling Stone's 2020 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and 55th on Apple Music 100 Best Albums. As of July 2025, Anti is the fourth-longest charting female album in Billboard 200 history.

Rihanna's seventh studio album, Unapologetic, was released on 19 November 2012, by Def Jam Recordings. Unapologetic combines urban and R&B with radio-friendly pop tunes and dubstep influences, and its lyrics are about Rihanna's sexual autonomy and emotional struggles. Critics likened the sound and themes of Unapologetic's to those of her previous albums, namely Rated R (2009), Loud (2010) and Talk That Talk (2011). She embarked on the Diamonds World Tour to promote the album in 2013, and co-headlined the Monster Tour with American rapper Eminem in 2014. After touring, Rihanna intended to take a year off to "just do whatever [she wanted] artistically, creatively", but reportedly started recording new music as soon as October 2014.

Unapologetic was Rihanna's last album under Def Jam, who had released all of her discography since her first album, Music of the Sun (2005). In March 2014, she signed with American rapper Jay-Z's Roc Nation after leaving Def Jam and gaining the right to her album masters; Jay-Z was her mentor when she first moved from Barbados to the United States. Up to that point, Rihanna had released one studio album each year from 2005 to 2012 (with the exception of 2008), totalling seven.

In an interview with MTV News in March 2015, Rihanna said she wanted her eighth album to be "soulful" and "timeless", having found the "really, really big songs" on her past albums had fallen out of her taste; "I wanted an album that I could perform in 15 years. ... Not any songs that were burnt out." By January 2015, the album was to be executive-produced by rapper-producer Kanye West, who had produced and co-performed on its intended lead single, "FourFiveSeconds" alongside English musician Paul McCartney, however West stepped down from the project in January 2016. Although Rihanna wanted the record to represent her authentic self, feeling "numb" and disconnected from her emotions, she experienced an emotional turmoil. Speaking with Sarah Paulson for the October 2019 issue of Interview, Rihanna talked about her spiritual wellbeing while making Anti: "I have been in a place where I felt like maybe I had disappointed god so much that we weren't as close."

The album's recording sessions took place at various studios including the Jungle City Studios in New York City, Westlake Recording Studios, Sandra Gale Studios and Windmark Recording Studios in Los Angeles, SOTA Studios in Toronto and Twin Studios in Paris. Most of the songs were recorded at the Westlake Recording Studios. Songwriter Bibi Bourelly had been working with producer Paperboy Fabe, who arranged a session with West. The result was the song "Higher". Later, Rihanna and James Fauntleroy also contributed to the song writing. "Higher" was recorded in the early morning hours while Rihanna was under the influence of alcohol. "We just said, 'You know what? Let's just drink some whiskey and record this song.'" The song was described by Rihanna as "a drunk voice mail". Rihanna and Fauntleroy also collaborated on three other songs – "Desperado", "Close to You," and "James Joint". The latter was written with Rihanna and Shea Taylor, who wrote the song in less than 30 minutes, while "Close To You" was written after producer Brian Kennedy sent Fauntleroy a piano music sample.