The year is 2016. It's been five years since 'We Found Love'. FIVE YEARS. Let's try and make that sound more impressive: it's been half a decade since 'We Found Love'.
However you phrase it, 2016 marks an anniversary, and the best way to mark a collaboration's anniversary is with some sort of victory lap. What we're saying is: it's time for Calvin Harris and Rihanna to record a new song.
The reasons this would make sense are myriad, and by myriad we really mean that if you were to list them you'd get to about four points before you completely ran out of steam. LIKE SO:
1. It's the anniversary. Things make sense on anniversaries. Also, it's fair to assume both parties feel a sense of affection for 'We Found Love' — for Rihanna it became her biggest hit, and for Calvin it was a major career turning point.
2. Calvin Harris has a new song coming out. It could be be out very soon. When he told us recently, upon the Twitter, that it would be "this year I reckon" that was him being funny because he's a funny chap.
https://twitter.com/CalvinHarris/status/716002795770486784
He's also been tweeting about his next release being "in God's hands".
https://twitter.com/CalvinHarris/status/720313382792867842
Obviously there are a few different ways Calvin could come back with new material — the two most extreme routes being a total back-to-basics underground and fairly non-commercial sound that ends up being successful anyway simply because it's by Calvin Harris, or a full-on, balls-out, here-are-famous-singers extravaganza. But for the sake of trying to will a new Rihanna collaboration into existence let's assume three things: firstly that he's taking the latter route, secondly that the new single isn't the new Ellie Goulding collaboration she talked about a few weeks ago (but which seems to point to the here-are-famous-singers route), and thirdly that the new single is in fact a new Rihanna track called 'In God's Hands'.
3. Rihanna and Calvin performed together at last weekend's Coachella. This is significant in that it shows the pair are on good terms, and have a current dialogue. Calvin's also performing at this weekend's Coachella. Was last weekend's collaboration a way to set the stage for something else this weekend? Is the only way for Calvin to top a Rihanna appearance at last Sunday's Coachella to drop a new Rihanna track at this Sunday's Coachella?
4. But why would Rihanna do a club track (presuming Calvin hasn't 'gone acoustic') when 'Anti' is such a well-realised project so far removed from what we might expect of a Calvin Harris tune? Well, we know she does not Fear The Banger, and in fact rather enjoys being complicit in banger creation. Releasing 'In God's Hands' during — but also outside — the 'Anti' campaign wouldn't pollute the purity of the 'Anti' era, and it might also bring back some fans (and parts of the media) who felt pushed away by the current album's look and feel. There are tour tickets to sell, after all.
Anyway that's your four points.
Let's just say 'In God's Hands' by Calvin Harris featuring Rihanna will get its first airing this Sunday, possibly with some sort of Tidal release in the days that follow. THE END.