Key Takeaways
- Rihanna hinted during a Fenty Beauty TikTok livestream that she has at least 170 unreleased tracks, saying, “If there are 10 products in a vault, then I have at least 17 vaults.”
- She did not clarify how many songs are finished or slated for release, leaving fans to speculate about her long-awaited ninth album, “R9.”
- Rihanna has not released a full album since 2016’s Anti, focusing largely on Fenty Beauty and Savage x Fenty while occasionally contributing collaborations and soundtrack singles.
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Rihanna. And while fans have slowly given up hope that they will hear her long-awaited ninth studio album, the Bajan superstar has hinted that she’s still actively recording music.
During a TikTok livestream for Rih’s cosmetics company Fenty Beauty, she was asked how much unreleased music she’s sitting on. Of course, this prompted an eye-roll from Rih, who’s been fielding — and occasionally dodging — questions about her new music for the past 10 years. She did, however, offer a small hint, which her Navy fanbase has been eating up.
While picking up a box of her beauty supplies, she said: “If there are 10 products in a vault, then I have at least 17 vaults.” That would work out to at least 170 unreleased tracks, although Rihanna didn't specify how many were finished or intended for release.
This prompted cheers from the moderators and audience, and Rihanna then sounded a few sirens. She did not talk about anything music-related thereafter.
But it’s easy to understand why fans are so thirsty for new music. Rih’s last full body of work came in the form of her eighth studio album Anti, which dropped in January 2016. Since then, she’s gone all in on Fenty Beauty, as well as her intimate apparel company, Savage x Fenty.
She’s made a few musical contributions, in the form of collaborations with DJ Khaled, Bryson Tiller, Partynextdoor — and additional soundtrack singles for movies like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Smurfs. But fans are still itching for at least one more album before she says goodbye to music for good.
Over the years, several release timings have been teased for her ninth album — which fans have nicknamed “R9” — but none have come to fruition. But perhaps, now that she’s (somewhat) revealed she has several tracks in the vault, she could potentially be in the process of narrowing down the final tracklist for R9.
Only time can tell when (or if) fans will ever get another album from Rihanna. But with Fenty Beauty launching her into billionaire status, she doesn’t seem to be too worried.
