Famed label executive, L.A. Reid has detailed his early encounters with Rihanna in his memoir, 'Sing to Me: My Story of Making Music, Finding Magic, and Searching for Who’s Next'. “I first laid eyes on her in the hallway,” Reid said in a Billboard-published excerpt from the book. “I didn’t know she was a singer or anything, just a pretty girl standing outside somebody’s office.” According to Reid, Jay Z pushed for Rihanna to be heard. Afterwards, Reid asked Hov to sign the singer on the spot. But even after the signing, Reid said the label didn’t exactly believe in Rihanna’s star power. However, everything changed because of something Beyoncé said. “Beyoncé came up to me,” Reid wrote. “ 'That Rihanna girl,’ she said, 'she’s a beast.’”
