Rihanna's R9 Unreleased Songs: Everything We Know About the Vault

Rihanna has at least 17 vaults of unreleased music, she said during a Fenty Beauty TikTok Shop livestream on October 7, 2026. 

Here's exactly what she said, what we actually know about Rihanna R9 unreleased songs, and every confirmed detail about the album.

Rihanna's  10 Year Comeback Since 2016  

Rihanna's last studio album, Anti, came out on January 28, 2016. That makes 2026 the 10-year anniversary of her most recent record.

She hasn't been away from the studio, though. In an interview with Harper's Bazaar, she said she had been working in the studio for "the whole eight years" since Anti. R9 would be her ninth studio album, which is where the fan nickname comes from.

In August 2026, A$AP Rocky confirmed she's still at it. On The Jason Lee Show, he said: "Yo, she in the studio right now... she working. She cooking, no funny s–t." That's the most recent outside confirmation that R9 is actively in progress.

(More: How Hailee Steinfeld turned a years-long gap into one of 2026's most-anticipated comebacks.)

What's Actually New About R9

The vault hint is the biggest piece of news right now. Here's the important caveat: Rihanna never said "170 songs." She said she has "at least 17 vaults" of music, using her Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb Vault as a unit of measurement. Fans multiplied 17 by the 10 products in the Gloss Bomb Vault and landed on 170. Billboard reported the "at least 170" figure independently, but it's still an estimate based on that fan math, not a number Rihanna stated.

What she has said directly about R9's sound is more interesting than any number. She has said the album "is not going to be anything that anybody expects" and will not be "commercial or radio digestible." She has also said she has "cracked the code on what I really want to do for my next body of work."

That's a big swing. Anti was already a deliberate departure from her earlier radio-pop era, and she's pointing even further away from it. (More: How Ariana Grande navigated her own deliberate genre reinvention.)

Some outlets are speculating that R9 could be a double album, based on hints from Rihanna. She has not confirmed this. 

As for when it arrives: no release date has been announced as of October 2026. Complex Music put the odds of R9 dropping in 2026 at +1500. For context, that number means most industry observers consider a 2026 release very unlikely. No date in 2027 has been confirmed either.

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Rihanna R9 FAQ

How Many Unreleased Songs Does Rihanna Have?

Rihanna said she has "at least 17 vaults" of music during a Fenty Beauty TikTok Shop livestream on October 7, 2026. Fans calculated that as roughly 170 songs, but she never said the number 170 herself. It's a ballpark figure based on fan math, not an official count.

What Will R9 Sound Like?

Rihanna has said R9 "is not going to be anything that anybody expects" and will not be "commercial or radio digestible." No track list or specific genre details have been confirmed.

When Is R9 Coming Out?

No release date has been announced as of October 2026. Industry odds from Complex Music put a 2026 release at +1500, meaning most observers consider it very unlikely this year.

Is R9 a Double Album?

Some outlets are speculating it could be a double album based on hints from Rihanna, but she has not confirmed this. It's a rumor, not a confirmed fact.