Rihanna Quietly Made Music History Last Week

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Rihanna Quietly Made Music History Last Week originally appeared on Parade.

Even though Rihanna has not released a new studio album since Anti in 2016, her music and impact still dominate people's playlists and break musical records.

Over the weekend, it was revealed by ROC Nation, her record label, that Rihanna surpassed 50 billion streams on Spotify. She is also the first black female artist to accomplish this feat.

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Other artists that have reached over 50 billion streams on Spotify include Kanye West, Travis Scott, Eminem, Ariana Grande, Ed Sheeran, Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Bad Bunny, Taylor Swift and Drake.

Though she hasn’t released a new album in years, Rihanna did return to music last month with a track titled "Friend Of Mine" for the Smurfs: The Lost Village soundtrack. It’s her first official release since the Oscar-nominated ballad “Lift Me Up” for Marvel's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in 2022.

Rihanna remains one of the top global artists, with over 91 million monthly Spotify listeners. Plus, she still has her beauty business empire, from Fenty Beauty to Savage x Fenty, which only amplifies her cultural impact. Even though she has only been releasing remixes and songs for movie soundtracks, the Grammy-winner has been keeping herself busy these past few years.

In February 2023, the "Diamonds" singer headlined the Super Bowl LVII halftime show, which was her first live performance since 2018 and a stunning stage comeback while pregnant with her second child with rapper and partner A$AP Rocky.

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The couple has been prioritizing growing their family, and they are pregnant with their third child. A$AP Rocky alluded that they are expecting a baby girl on Saturday at the Smurfs world premiere in Brussels, which got fans super excited. The two also attended a few fashion shows during Paris Fashion Week this past week.

Rihanna did tease that her ninth studio album is in production, according to her cover story she did in February 2025 with Harper's Bazaar. She told the publication and her fans that "she will only put the music out when she is ready."

Rihanna Quietly Made Music History Last Week first appeared on Parade on Jul 1, 2025

This story was originally reported by Parade on Jul 1, 2025, where it first appeared.