Rihanna confirms new single ‘Lift Me Up’ arriving this week

26 October, 2022

Rihanna

Rihanna has shared confirmation that her new song, ‘Lift Me Up’, will be arriving on Friday.

The singer posted a 14-second clip on her social media accounts, revealing a capital “R” – stylised in the same font as the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever trailers and promo art – between her name and the song title.

A brief snippet of the song can also be heard, consisting primarily of hummed vocals and a string backing. The video ends with the date “10.28.22”, confirming its release in two days’ time.

The announcement follows a similar short clip posted on social media by Marvel Studios earlier today. In that video, the film’s shimmering title card slowly bleeds into view, before the first “R” in “Forever” zooms into the centre and remaining letters fade away, making room for the date reveal.

Last Tuesday (October 18), it was reported that Rihanna had recorded two songs for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack. One of these is said to be the film’s end credits song – the first Black Panther film, which arrived in 2018 and scored four stars from NME, closed out with the Kendrick Lamar and SZA joint ‘All The Stars’.

Lamar served as the executive producer of the first film’s soundtrack, which also featured the likes of Schoolboy Q, 2 Chainz, The Weeknd, and Travis Scott. Lamar’s song ‘Alright’ featured in the first trailer for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, while a prologue EP released in July features tracks from Tems, Amaarae and Santa Fe Klan. Last year, it was reported that Doja Cat and Stormzy were in talks to feature on the sequel’s soundtrack album.

Rihanna’s Black Panther songs will mark her first solo material in nearly seven years. Aside from a guest spot on PartyNextDoor’s 2020 single ‘Believe It’, the singer was last heard on her 2016 album ‘Anti’. She’s consistently teased new music over the past six years, though, and next February, she’ll return to the stage to headline the halftime show at the 2023 Super Bowl.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever is primed to hit UK cinemas on November 11. It comes after the passing of original Black Panther actor Chadwick Boseman, who died following a battle with colon cancer in 2020. Though some fans have expressed a desire for Marvel Studios to re-cast the role, head honcho Kevin Feige recently said it was “much too soon” to do so.

The post Rihanna confirms new single ‘Lift Me Up’ arriving this week appeared first on NME.