Rihanna‘s first of two contributions to the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack has arrived. As reported earlier this week, “Lift Me Up” was co-written by the artist in tandem with Nigerian singer/songwriter Tems, the film’s director Ryan Coogler, and Oscar-winning composer Ludwig Göransson, who also produced the song.
Wakanda Forever hits theaters on Nov. 11. It’s the first in the hugely successful Marvel franchise without the titular character played by Chadwick Boseman, who died in 2020 at age 43 after battling colon cancer.
For Rihanna, the return to music comes ahead of her headlining appearance at the Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show on Feb. 12, 2023, in Glendale, Ariz. She previously turned down an offer to headline the event in 2020, citing solidarity with quarterback Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers star who remains without a team after protesting during the National Anthem in 2016 and 2017.
The original Black Panther soundtrack in 2018 was a rap-heavy affair curated by Kendrick Lamar. It spawned the massive Lamar/SZA collaboration “All the Stars” alongside hits such as the Grammy-winning “King’s Dead” with Lamar, Future, and James Blake, and “Pray for Me” with Lamar and the Weeknd.
Rihanna hasn’t released an album since 2016’s Anti. We named the album the best of the 2010s.
