After years of teasing and trolling her fans, at last, the musical drought is finally over for Rihanna’s Navy (Rihanna’s fandom name) as the Barbadian singer officially returned to the music scene on October 28 with a new song.
tonight…
MIDNIGHT EST. #LiftMeUp pic.twitter.com/1y8yRjh7GM— Rihanna (@rihanna) October 27, 2022
Aptly titled “Lift Me Up,” the track is the lead single from the soundtrack of the upcoming Marvel film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which is set for a theatrical release this year. She even accompanied the song with a visual treatment and dropped the music video on October 29. Now, talk about a sweet comeback!
The arrival of the song was first teased on October 26 by the official social media account of Black Panther after posting a cryptic video that highlighted the letter “R” in “Forever.”
A day later, Rihanna then took to her social media account to officially announce her musical comeback. The singer-turned-businesswoman posted a 14-second video, where she can be heard humming, and wrote: “[L]ift me up. 10.28.22.”
As soon as the word got out, Navy rushed over to Twitter to celebrate the queen’s comeback, with many fans being extremely elated as this marks the first time they hear Rihanna’s new music in six years.
All the reaction memes are on point:
POV: After waiting 6 Years for @rihanna 😭 pic.twitter.com/qpwhTS6LVo
— Eni Adeoluwa (@Enioluwa_) October 28, 2022
BURNING IN A HOPELESS DREAM HOLD ME WHEN YOU GO TO SLEEP #Rihanna pic.twitter.com/KnojWYNSzF
— Stella (@stellaspeaks1) October 28, 2022
“Lift Me Up” has literally lifted the Navy up, huh? Her power!
The power of “lift me up” #rihanna pic.twitter.com/he4oD0ZRy1
— Saint Hoax (@SaintHoax) October 28, 2022
"LIFT ME UP HOLD ME DOWN KEEP ME CLOSE SAFE AND SOUND" #LiftMeUp #Rihanna #Riri #BadGalRiri pic.twitter.com/qeDkxxW37m
— judas (@holyf00l) October 28, 2022
Congratulations, Navy! We survived the musical drought and are officially out of the music waiting room.
hearing new rihanna after 6 years pic.twitter.com/D5J5decxWD
— your ultimate 🅿️lug (@GimK_) October 28, 2022
NAVY GET UPPP pic.twitter.com/Tz4db2JZ2a
— egypt’s interlude (@egyptiysis) October 26, 2022
Rihanna fans hearing her humming for 6 seconds pic.twitter.com/C4OArsrup3
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) October 26, 2022
Rihanna, an Oscar winner? The Academy, award her now.
just finished listening to rihanna’s future oscar winning song lift me up pic.twitter.com/WDOwWNHPkr
— wiLL (@willfulchaos) October 28, 2022
rihanna is really coming back to the music industry after 6 years with an oscar in the bag…
— not a virgo (@virgosgrooviest) October 27, 2022
Okay, so maybe the comeback song isn’t the upbeat one that we’re expecting, but the ballad is *chef’s kiss*.
No way you guys thought that Rihanna’s new song for Black Panther, a tribute to Chadwick, was gonna be mama-say-mama-sa-mama-coosa music
— AK (@DistinCray_) October 28, 2022
Gay Rihanna fans waiting for the beat to drop on Lift Me Up pic.twitter.com/obl4aNqwSh
— b (@the_petshopboy) October 28, 2022
“Lift Me Up” marks the first solo song of Rihanna in six years, following the release of her 2016 album “Anti.” The song is co-written by Rihanna, Grammy-nominated artist Tems, Academy-winning composer Ludwig Göransson, and Black Panther director Ryan Coogler.
According to Variety, “Lift Me Up” is a tribute song to the life and legacy of the late Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman, who died in 2020 at 43 years old after his private battle with colon cancer.
Apart from this poignant ballad, Rihanna is also reported to release another track on November 4, called “Born Again,” to be featured in the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’s soundtrack.
This isn’t the first time Rihanna has broken the internet this year. Earlier this year, Rihanna surprised everyone with a surprise pregnancy announcement, and in May, she and her beau A$AP Rocky welcomed their first child together. Just last month, the global pop icon confirmed that she’ll headline the 2023 Super Bowl halftime show.
Welcome back, RiRi! We missed you!
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