Rihanna is a seventeen year old recording artist signed to Def Jam. Her musical success story sounds like a fairy tale. She was an island girl living in Barbado's when she was discovered by a music producer. She has been in the U.S. since February and she already has a Billboard Top Ten single with "Pon De Replay." Her debut album, "Music of the Sun," drops August 30th.

Where are you from?
Rihanna-I'm from Barbados.

How long have you been here in the states?
Rihanna--Since February.

You just got here!
Rihanna--Yeah.

I thought that's what I read. So what was life like growing up in Barbados?
Rihanna--It was a lot of fun.I had a lot of friends. with my brothers going to the beach. I loved going to the beach and I would hang at this club called The Courtyard.

How long have you been interested in music?
Rihanna--Since I was little.

You always were singing.
Rihanna--Always. In the shower. In the mirror.

You got here in February and it's July. How did you go about getting your record deal?
Rihanna--This producer from America, his wife is Barbadian.They were vacationing there. My friend she knows them and she knows they are going to be there. She wants me to meet him. I went to his hotel room and met him and sang for him. He was impressed took me to the studio to do some recording. We recorded for a year back and forth.We put a demo together and sent it to two labels. Def Jam happened to be the first and the first to call back.

Your album Music of the Sun comes out next month. How long did it take you to record the album?
Rihanna--We started just before I got signed. I would say February to June.

You are still under twenty?
Rihanna--Yeah, I'm seventeen.

Do people think you are older than you are? You sound so mature on the song.
Rihanna-People do. No lie. People do.

Your song is like the biggest song of the summer and your not old enough to go to the clubs. Do you enjoy dancing?
Rihanna-I love dancing. That's part of my culture.

Your video is out. Did you get to bring it to 106 And Park yourself?
Rihanna-It's there. I didn't get to take it.

Outside of music and dancing what else are you interested in?
Rihanna-Writing.

Okay, did you write any of the songs on your album?
Rihanna-I co-wrote a lot of them.

What do you enjoy the most about being a recording artist?
Rihanna-Being able to do what I have always wanted to do, doing what I always dreamed I would be doing. I enjoy it all.

Do you have any guest artists on the album with you?
Rihanna-Yes I have Elephant, (inaudible), and Cardinal Official.

How would you describe your music? Would you consider it Reggaeton?
Rihanna--NO! (emphatically, but very nice). It is far from Reggaeton. It's a fusion of reggae, hip-hop and R&B.

Oh okay, I had to ask you to clear it up because I have read a couple of articles that described it as Reggaeton song.
Rihanna--People do get it confused, but it's not Reggaeton.

Listen to Rihanna discuss her music

Did you notice that your song is like top 10 in the Billboard chart?
Rihanna--Did I notice? Yeah I noticed. Oh yeah.

It happened so fast it seems like.
Rihanna--It did, it really did.

Are you doing a lot of performing this summer?
Rihanna--A lot. Then I go to Europe and Japan.

Do you pick out a lot of your own clothes or do you have a stylist?
Rihanna--I have a stylist but we vibe off of each other.

Did you go to the BET Awards this year?
Rihanna--No, I didn't.

What do you do in your free time?
Rihanna--When there is free time. I like to watch TV and get some rest.

Is most of your famiy in Barbados or have they come over here?
Rihanna--They are in Barbados.

Do you get to go home and perform often?
Rihanna--Not perform but I get to go home. I never performed in Barbados. I was just a normal school girl. I just happened to meet a producer who helped.

So when you do go home one day do you look forward to performing in Barbados?
Rihanna--Oh yeah. Oh yeah. It might happen pretty soon too.