Rihanna is back with “Friend Of Mine,” her first new song since 2022’s “Lift Me Up.” Like its predecessor, “Friend Of Mine” hails from an upcoming film soundtrack for Smurfs, in which she’ll also play female Smurf, Smurfette, (“Lift Me Up” appeared in the Black Panther sequel, Wakanda Forever). However, unlike that song, “Friend Of Mine” throws out some of the musical conventions we’ve seen Rihanna employ in the past, really leaning into her promise that her next album won’t be “commercial or radio digestible” with a pulsating EDM track and sparse vocals that find Rihanna playing more her own hype woman.
The video is a simple, understated endeavor, with Rihanna walking through a set resembling the Smurfs’ forest village. When she gets to Papa Smurf’s house, she opens the door, transitioning the video to a stream of scenes from the upcoming animated film.
Rihanna recently announced that she’s on pregnancy number three with ASAP Rocky after keeping the impending bundle of joy a secret until last week’s Met Gala. However, she said that pregnancy won’t prevent her from working on her next album, which fans have been demanding since 2016’s Anti.
Watch Rihanna’s “Friend Of Mine” video above.
Smurfs premieres in theaters on July 18.