Disclosure: State of Alabama-based writer. This article is a work from cited sources for informational purposes and is used with permission. No affiliate links are included.
Last week, a clip from The Tyra Banks Show began circulating on Reddit. In it, a teenage Rihanna recalls how she auditioned for Jay-Z, then-president and CEO of Def Jam Records, and the label’s chairman, Antonio “L.A.” Reidy. Rihanna explained that she performed “Pon de Replay,” the song that would later catapult her to stardom. “They were interested,” she told Banks, reflecting on the audition that changed her life.
Two years later, Rihanna added more detail in an interview with The Guardian. She described the high-stakes negotiation that followed her audition, saying, “They locked me into the office — till 3 a.m.” It was a tactic to ensure she signed with the label before she could explore other offers.
Jay-Z confirmed the late-night deal in a separate interview with MTV VJ Sway, recounting, “We signed her that night. We didn’t let her leave the office. Three in the morning is when that contract got signed.”