Rihanna fans are eagerly anticipating the pop star’s performance at the Super Bowl half-time show this weekend. But even in her absence from the music scene, Rihanna has been living rent-free in our heads.
Where have you gone, Rihanna
Riri last released an album in 2016. The eclectic Anti which includes the hitmaker Work. Notably, Barack Obama was still president and TikTok did not yet exist!
Rihanna was once one of the most reliable hitmakers in the indutrsy. But she has since been occupied with her uber successful fashion and make-up companies. During her hiatus she occasionally featured on other artists’ tracks – even recording two songs for the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack.
Lift Me Up marks Rihanna’s first new solo single in six years and is nominated for an Oscar. Fans are really hoping that the 34-year-old’s Super Bowl performance will be a premonition to a big musical performance this year.
READ MORE: Black Panther Tracklist Shows Its Teeth
What you need to know about the Super Bowl
The Philadelphia Eagles will face the Kansas City Chiefs at the State Farm Stadium in Arizona. The Super Bowl is the yearly final finals of the National Football League (NFL). The game determined the league champion.
The 57th Super Bowl will take place on Sunday at 23:30 GMT. South Africans can watch the show on ESPN (DStv 218, Starsat 248)
The game typically runs for three-and-a-half hours, with a 30-minute break in between. This is when Rihanna will take to the stage and keep the crowds entertained.
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#SBLVII #AppleMusicHalftime pic.twitter.com/rfZgTrX103
— Rihanna (@rihanna) January 13, 2023
The national anthem will be sung by country music-singer Chris Stapleton. He follows artists such as Demi Lovato, Eric Church and Mickey Guyton who had this honour in the past. Stapleton is an 8-time GRAMMY winner and has 15 Country Music Association awards.
READ MORE: Big wins at the GRAMMY Awards 2023
Eating up the half-time show
Rejoice pop-lovers! Rihannah’s music hiatus will close on Sunday when she returns to the one of the biggest stages in the world!
Rihanna was a poster girl for pop music once. In the eight years of 2005 to 2012 – she released 7 albums! All of which went at least platinum. She set the record for fastest solo artist to rack up 10 Number One singles in 2011…only the Beatles did this quicker…
READ MORE: Can they save the music industry?
The Super Bowl will be watched my hundreds of thousands, with audiences both in the US and around the world. Roughly 100 million viewers watched the game in the US alone. The half-time performance with Dr. Dre, Eminem, Snoop Dog, Mary J Blige, Kendrick Lamar and 50 Cent, added a further 160 million views on YouTube.
