Flashback: Rihanna Performs in Destiny’s Child Tribute
In 2005, Rihanna was a 17-year-old dancehall pop singer just breaking on the scene. She released her breezy debut album, Music of the Sun, on August 30th; the day after its release, she made one of her first-ever award show appearances at the World Music Awards, where she joined Amerie and Teairra Marí onstage in a Destiny’s Child tribute.
Destiny’s Child had recently released their final album, 2004’s Destiny Fulfilled, and the girl group would officially disband in 2006. That night in August 2005, Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams looked on from the audience as Solange Knowles introduced “three new artists that have been inspired by them” – Rihanna, Amerie and Marí – who strutted down the steps and performed “Lose My Breath,” the lead single off Destiny Fulfilled.
By the time of her WMA debut, Rihanna’s first single, “Pon de Replay,” had shot up to Number Two on the Billboard Hot 100. Music of the Sun entered the Billboard 200 at Number 10, with Kanye West’s sophomore LP, Late Registration, topping the charts that week.
2005 remains Amerie’s biggest year to date. Her second album, Touch, debuted in the Top 10 that year on the strength of her bouncy hit single “1 Thing.” Her most recent album was released in 2009; the following year, she officially changed her name to Ameriie.
Marí was on a similar track as Rihanna in 2005, with both 17-year-old newcomers having been signed by then-Def Jam president Jay Z. Her self-titled debut entered the charts at Number Five; she didn’t release another LP 2014. Since 2011, however, she has been on the VH1 reality series Love & Hip-Hop and its spin-off Love & Hip-Hop: Hollywood.