Rihanna to release first song in six years for Black Panther 2 soundtrack

Singer has not released music since her 2016 album ‘Anti’

Rihanna has delighted fans with the announcement that she will release her first new music in six years.

The track will feature on the soundtrack for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and will be released on Friday (28 October).

The news was announced by Marvel, after the official Twitter account shared a video confirming the highly anticipated news of Rihanna’s return.

The short clip shows the title of the film, followed by the letter “R” with the date October 28 2022 underneath.

Rihanna confirmed the news by commenting emojis on Marvel’s Instagram post.

The song was co-written by Tems, who said: “After speaking with Ryan [Coogler, director] and hearing his direction for the film and the song, I wanted to write something that portrays a warm embrace from all the people that I’ve lost in my life.

“I tried to imagine what it would feel like if I could sing to them now and express how much I miss them. Rihanna has been an inspiration to me so hearing her convey this song is a great honour.”

Rihanna’s fans have taken to Twitter to share their excitement at the singer’s return to music.

“Rihanna’s coming back to music this Friday with the Black Panther soundtrack? The Oscars and Grammys are HERS,” one fan wrote.

“I’m going to be the most unbearable person when Rihanna releases new music on Friday,” shared another.

“After nearly seven years, we made it everybody,” wrote another fan.

“I have waited so long for this moment Lord, Rihanna is BACK,” one tweet read.

The “Umbrella” singer has been on a hiatus from music since 2016, when she released her Grammy-nominated album Anti.

Since then, the 34-year-old has found immense success with her beauty and lingerie brands, Fenty Beauty, Fenty Skin and Savage x Fenty.

With these ventures making Rihanna a billionaire, many had doubted whether she would return to music at all.

Rihanna’s musical comeback comes ahead of her headline performance at the Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show next February.

Other singers expected to be a part of the Wakanda Forever soundtrack include Tems and Kendrick Lamar.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is released in cinemas on 11 November 2022.