After a hiatus that saw her conquer the worlds of beauty and fashion and embrace motherhood, Rihanna is making a long-awaited return to her musical roots. This article delves into her latest release, a new track for “The Smurfs” movie soundtrack, marking her first musical offering in over two years.
A highly anticipated return. For the past few years, Rihanna has progressively withdrawn from the world of music to transition into a businesswoman, dedicating herself to her makeup, lingerie, and haute couture brands. The singer has also become a mother of two children: RZA, born on May 13, 2022, and Riot Rose, born on August 1, 2023.
While she revealed her third pregnancy on the red carpet of the Met Gala on May 5, 2025, Rihanna has indeed returned to the studios for a brand new track, her first in almost three years.
A track for the soundtrack of the movie “The Smurfs”
This Friday, May 16, 2025, Rihanna has unveiled “Friend Of Mine,” a previously unreleased electro-pop song from the original soundtrack of the movie “The Smurfs,” expected to be released on July 16, 2025.
The day before, the singer had posted a video on her Instagram account announcing the upcoming release of this track, showing herself smiling in a blue tracksuit top in a recording studio.
A surprise that is ultimately quite logical, since Rihanna herself will lend her voice to the famous character of Smurfette for the new film dedicated to the comic book characters created in 1958 by the Belgian cartoonist Peyo, of which she is also a co-producer. John Goodman, Nick Offerman, Sandra Oh, and Octavia Spencer will complete the voice cast of the feature film.
No album since 2016
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The performer of “Don’t Stop The Music” had not released a new song since 2022 and the release of “Lift Me Up,” a ballad recorded for the movie “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” and nominated for an Oscar and Grammy Awards.
Her last album, “ANTI,” dates back to 2016, and Rihanna has since kept the possibility of its successor’s release uncertain.
This article was originally published by on the Marie Claire France website.
