Rihanna Says She Has 170 Unreleased Songs Since Last Album in 2016
The singer revealed the size of her unreleased catalog during a TikTok Live for her beauty brand, more than a decade after releasing ANTI.
Rihanna has accumulated at least 170 unreleased songs since her last album, the Grammy winner revealed during a TikTok Live for Fenty Beauty on October 6. “If there are 10 products in a vault, then I have at least 17 vaults,” she said in response to a fan question, according to Page Six.
The disclosure comes a decade after her last album, ANTI, dropped in January 2016. In August, A$AP Rocky, her partner, confirmed she was actively recording. “She in the studio right now,” he told Jason Lee during an interview. “Like, bro, she working. She cooking, no funny sh–t. Damn, I’mma get in trouble for this.”
The Long Wait for New Music
Rihanna has teased new projects multiple times without releasing a full album. In 2018, she hinted at a reggae-inspired project she called “R9,” telling Vogue that “reggae always feels right to me. It’s in my blood.” By 2020, she pivoted, telling British Vogue she had “no boundaries” when it comes to music and that she could “make anything that I want.”
She shared a song called “Lift Me Up” in October 2022, and in 2023 told British Vogue she wanted an album to drop that year, while also acknowledging uncertainty about release. In February 2025, she told Harper’s Bazaar that the next project would not be “commercial or radio digestible” and would reflect where “my artistry deserves to be right now.”
Setting the Bar High
The long delay reflects her own exacting standards. In 2023, Rihanna told British Vogue that ANTI was “my most brilliant album” and that it created pressure for what comes next. “There’s this pressure that I put on myself. That if it’s not better than that then it is not even worth it,” she said to the outlet. She acknowledged the toll this mindset takes but also explained her reasoning about creative work and experimentation.
More recently, she explained to Harper’s Bazaar that the gap from her last release demands results. “This much time away from music needs to count for the next thing everyone hears,” she said. “It has to count. It has to matter. I have to show them the worth in the wait. I cannot put up anything mediocre.”
Between Music and Business
In 2024, speaking at a Fenty event, she suggested music might no longer be her sole priority. “Music was the thing that got the attention, but God had other plans for me,” she said.
This article was compiled by the Glamorade editorial desk from the official announcements and reporting listed under Sources.
