We've got good news and bad news about Rihanna's next album. The good news is that she's still planning on making it; the bad news is that she's "starting over."
Her ninth album, nicknamed R9 by fans, has been in the works since at least 2018, when she was said to be working on two separate projects: a reggae album and a pop album. Since then, nothing has emerged, and this month she was photographed wearing an "I'm Retired" T-shirt.
"I think that music, for me, is a new discovery," she told Entertainment Tonight, dismissing the idea that the "Retired" shirt had any significance. "I'm rediscovering things. I have been working on the album for so long that I kinda just put all that stuff aside, and now I'm prepared to go back in the studio. So, now I'm prepared. So I'm gonna start — so give me a second!"
When the interviewer suggested that she was "starting over," she agreed: "Yeah, I'm starting over. But I don't want to neglect the songs that I have, so I actually want to go back and listen to stuff with new ears, with my new perspective, and then see what applies and what I still am in love with."
We'll believe it when we see it! Rihanna's most recent album is 2016's ANTI. Many fans believed she might unveil new music, or possibly announce a tour, when she played the Super Bowl Halftime Show in 2023, but that came and went without anything new from the pop star (except for a baby).