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Rihanna went viral on social media platforms after attending a karaoke event in New York City on Sunday, December 29. Many expressed skepticism about her singing abilities after hearing her perform hits like Needed Me and S*x With Me, while going off note. Since then, netizens have been actively discussing her upcoming album online.
While in the Big Apple, Rihanna sported a graphic t-shirt, jeans, Bottega Veneta boots, and an oversized fur hat. In a video circulating online, the Fenty Beauty founder can be seen performing the aforementioned songs from what appears to be the DJ booth of the event.
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Despite singing off-key, the Grammy winner was cheered on by the crowd. At one point, it appeared as if Rihanna was creating new renditions of her own music. However, not many seemed pleased with her performance, with one netizen commenting:
"This might be the reason why is she not dropping."
Several others shared similar sentiments on X.
“Chii the mic was bleeding,” an X user said.
“Is this edited this sounds horrible,” a platform user said.
“Riri… i love you… but before this mess u NEEDED to at least take some singing lessons..,” a netizen commented.
Several others began discussing whether Rihanna would drop a new album.
“And that’s all we getting,” an X user said.
“Girl keep R6,” another platform user said.
“Oh I see why that album will never come out ijbol,” a netizen said.
Rihanna dropped her last album, Anti, in 2016. She has not released any songs since then, leaving her fans eagerly awaiting new music. Meanwhile, other reactions read:
“oh henni that album is gonna be unlistenable,” an X user said.
“Closest we’ll ever come to new music,” an internet user said.
Rihanna seemingly hinted at retiring from her music career in November
While at a fashion event in Barbados last month, Rihanna seemingly hinted that her music career might be coming to an end. She stated that she felt like “God had other plans for me.” The singer added:
“And I was able to create in ways that were sincere and genuine and organic and authentic to the things that I loved. So it doesn’t even feel like a job.”
In April, the 36-year-old shared that she had unreleased music ready for fans. While speaking to Entertainment Tonight during the red carpet event for her Fenty x Puma Creeper Phatty Earth Tone sneaker, Rihanna said:
“I mean it's up to them. I already got stuff that I feel like I can make hits out of really. My and Rocky are really trying to figure out who is going to use what.”
The last music she released was the Oscar-nominated song Lift Me Up, which was also part of the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack.
In December 2023, her longtime collaborator and producer, James Fauntleroy, exclusively told People magazine that the two had been working together again. He said:
“I’ve known her so long, and the last session I did for her was last week.”
Meanwhile, RiRi continues to promote her Fenty creations on her Instagram account.
