Fans have been waiting seven long years since the 2016 release of Anti for Rihanna to drop her ninth studio album. Keep reading to find out when the singer plans to deliver new music and what she’s had to say about the album’s sound and release date. 

When Is Rihanna’s New Album’s Release Date?

It’s a mystery at this point when the LP, which fans refer to as R9 for her ninth studio album, will be released, as Rihanna has teased new music without giving any timeline as to when it might drop. After revealing she’s pregnant with her second child during her February 12, 2023, Super Bowl halftime performance, Rihanna’s Navy is worried that once she has two children under the age of 2, her new album could be further delayed.

Is Rihanna Working on a New Album?

“I’m excited to actually put new music out but I don’t have any updates for you on that yet,” the “Diamonds” singer told Good Morning America‘s Michael Strahan ahead of her Super Bowl appearance, acknowledging about her fans, “They are waiting.”

In July 2020, Rihanna teased that music was still a high priority for her, even though she was focused on growing her various businesses, including Savage X Fenty lingerie and Fenty Beauty.

“I can’t wait to put something out that I’m really proud of and excited about,” the “Stay” songstress told Access Hollywood. “It probably is gonna be sooner than my fans think, but I’m just gonna leave that alone because I got enough stress, questions, and ‘R9, when’s the album coming.’ They don’t leave me alone,” she said of her fans, adding, “I haven’t neglected them. Music is still my baby.”

When it was announced that Rihanna would be the Super Bowl LVII halftime performer, many people thought it would coincide with the release of new music. “That’s not true. Super Bowl is one thing. New music is another thing. Do you hear that, fans?” she told the Associated Press in November 2022. “The second that I announced this, I said, ‘Oh, my God, they’re going to think my album is coming. I need to get to work.’”

What Is the Name of Rihanna’s New Album?

“So, so far, it’s just been R9, thanks to the Navy,” the “Work” singer told The New York Times, in 2019, as her followers had been using it as the reference term for her ninth studio album. “I’m about to call it [“R9”] probably, ’cause they have haunted me with this “R9, R9, when is R9 coming out?” How will I accept another name after that’s been burned into my skull?”

How Will Rihanna’s New Album Differ From Her Previous Work?

“You’re not going to expect what you hear. Just put that in your mind. Whatever you know of Rihanna is not going to be what you hear. I’m really experimenting,” she told AP Entertainment at her Savage X Fenty show on September 21, 2021. “Music is like fashion. You should be able to play. I should be able to wear whatever I want. I treat music the same way. So, I’m having fun, and it’s going to be completely different.”

What Was the Last Single Rihanna Released?

After six years without a new song, RiRi dropped “Lift Me Up,” the lead single from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack, on October 28, 2022. Prior to that she was featured on DJ Khaled‘s 2017 single “Wild Thoughts,” a portion of which she performed during her Super Bowl halftime performance.