Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

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

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

Furvah Shah
Thursday 27 October 2022 05:27 BST
Comments
Rihanna interview

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

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.

Amazon Music logo

Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music

Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)

Sign up
Amazon Music logo

Enjoy unlimited access to 100 million ad-free songs and podcasts with Amazon Music

Sign up now for a 4 month free trial (3 months for non-Prime members)

Sign up

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.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in