Rihanna shared a late-night Instagram video on February 27, 2026, capturing a raw reaction of her entering a recording studio at 2:18 a.m. Titled ‘commercial break’, the silent clip shows her strutting into a dimly lit space sitting at a mixing console, jotting notes and laughing with collaborators. This raw glimpse reignited excitement for new music from the singer whose last album ‘Anti’ arrived in 2016.

Years of patience: A long break after 2016 release ‘Anti’

Rihanna has dropped hints about her ninth album, dubbed R9 by fans, across multiple interviews. In June 2024, at the Fenty Hair launch, she announced feeling “ready to go back into the studio”, as per E! Online. By February 2025, in Harper’s Bazaar, she revealed a breakthrough: “I finally cracked it. I have finally cracked it” on her sound. She stressed quality over speed, explaining, “This much time away from music needs to count for the next thing everyone hears. It has to count. It has to matter. I have to show them the worth in the wait. I cannot put up anything mediocre”

She dismissed earlier reggae rumors, calling them “way off!” Instead, the project defies expectations: “It’s not going to be anything that anybody expects. And it’s not going to be commercial or radio digestible. It’s going to be where my artistry deserves to be right now”, as noted by People magazine. In a 2022 Vogue interview, she shifted her approach: “I’m looking at my next project completely differently from the way I had wanted to put it out before. I think this way suits me better, a lot better. It’s authentic, it’ll be fun for me, and it takes a lot of the pressure off”

Watch the video here

ID@undefined Caption not available.Paparazzi spotted her at a New York studio in January 2026, adding fuel Sources told The Sun’s Bizarre column, “Rihanna has loved being a mum to her kids and has been so busy working on her Fenty fashion brand but music is her soul passion. She’s ready to get back out on stage and wants her fans to hear the music she has been working on”

Live return on horizon

Insiders predict stadium tours starting August 2026. “This is going to be a monumental year for Rihanna and fans can expect massive shows. It’s going to be a sell-out, that’s for sure,” they shared, as per Retro Pop Magazine. She canceled 2025 London dates due to pregnancy with sons RZA and Riot, shared with A$AP Rocky.Fans flooded social media. One Instagram reel noted, “We might actually be getting new music from #Rihanna soon”. No release date exists, but her studio laugh signals real progress after nearly a decade.