R&B superstar Rihanna fired back at a troll who went too far in demanding she release a new album.
The "Love On the Brain" singer's eighth and most recent studio album was 2016's Anti, which she started recording in 2014.
It spawned the hit single "Work" and became the fourth-longest charting female album in Billboard 200 history, as of March 2024.
The 36-year-old mother of two kids has been busy with humanitarian efforts, dabbling in fashion house collaborations, launching the cosmetics brand Fenty Beauty, and acting in films like Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017), and Ocean's 8 (20018).
Yet, fans, understandably, have been clamoring for the singer to release new music material.
But one "fan" crossed the line with a remark that prompted Rihanna to clap back without hesitation.
It started with an Instagram video in which RiRi rang in the new year with friends joining her in counting down to 2025.
The joyous moment prompted her to proudly declare she was sober all year, which was cause for further celebration.
"Y’all, I didn’t drink all year! I didn’t drink all year," she said in the video after the countdown.
She also wrote in the caption, "New Year, New Me."
Unfortunately, an Instagrammer going by the handle @lorenzohirmez ignored the festive occasion to crudely remind the singer it was time to get back into the recording studio.
They wrote:
"We want an album forehead."
As if that was an incentive. Nope.
Rihanna was not about to let that one slide.
She tagged the disrespectful user and replied:
"Listen Lorenzo! You ain't cute enough to be calling me by my black name you dizzy f'k!"
Here is a screenshot of the fiery exchange.
@badgalriri/Instagram
Social media users commented on the breach of online etiquette when interacting with celebrities.
Meanwhile, fans were here for her no-nonsense response.
The Grammy-winning pop icon is self-aware of her distinctive forehead and addressed the topic while discussing motherhood in an interview on Access Hollywood.
“You don’t have an idea [when you picture your future family]. I hoped that I could have kids one day. And I hoped that I could have them in love. I hoped I could be a part of a family that breaks generational curses… it’s happening, and I can’t believe it," said Rihanna.
With levity, she continued mentioning her first son, RZA Athelaston Mayers–named after Wu-Tang Clan leader and founder RZA.
“The only thing I imagined was probably the forehead on RZA."
In terms of the music scene, Rihanna hasn't been entirely absent.
In 2022, she released the solo tracks "Lift Me Up" and "Born Again" exclusively for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack.
The following year, Rihanna headlined the Super Bowl LVII halftime show, marking her first live performance in over five years. The highly-praised spectacle became the most-watched halftime show in history reaching 121 million viewers across TV and digital platforms.
Regarding the possibility of a ninth studio album, she told British Vogue in a 2023 interview:
"When you come off of an album like 'Anti' ... there's this pressure that I put on myself. That if it's not better than that then it is not even worth it."
Rihanna noted that being pressured to release new material by prioritizing deadlines over creative integrity was "not the right way to look at music."
"If I keep waiting until this feels right and perfect and better, maybe it's going to keep taking forever and maybe it'll never come out and no, I'm not down to that," she added.
When the artist is ready, it'll be worth the wait for true fans.
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