The wait for Rihanna’s highly anticipated ninth studio album continues. According to the nine-time Grammy winner, it will be well worth it. Read more about what we know about her upcoming project inside.

In a new interview with Harper’s Bazaar, the 37-year-old star opened up about her long absence from music, her creative journey, and why she refused to release anything that didn’t reflect her evolution.

No Genre, No Limits

For years, fans speculated that Rihanna’s next album would lean heavily into Reggae, but she’s finally shutting that rumor down.

“Way off! There’s no genre now. That’s why I waited,” she clarified.

She explained that every time she attempted to finalize the album, something felt off.

“I was just like, ‘No, it’s not me. It’s not right. It’s not matching my growth. It’s not matching my evolution. I can’t do this. I can’t stand by this. I can’t perform this for a year on tour,’” she added.

That realization led her to take a different approach. “After a while, I looked at it, and I was like, this much time away from music needs to count for the next thing everyone hears. It has to count. It has to matter. I have to show them the worth in the wait.”

Not ‘Mediocre’—Something Unexpected

While she’s still keeping most details under wraps, Rihanna made one thing clear: she’s not putting out anything “mediocre.” After an eight-year gap since her last album, Anti (2016), she insists that she’s crafting something unique, bold, and deeply personal.

“I know it’s not going to be anything that anybody expects,” she teased. “And it’s not going to be commercial or radio digestible. It’s going to be where my artistry deserves to be right now.”

Fans recently spotted Rihanna in the recording studio, sparking excitement that the project might finally be nearing completion. While she hasn’t given a release date, she reassured fans that she’s finally cracked the code.

“This feels right,” she said. “It feels like it digs right into where I need to be, and I want this. This body needs to come out, and I’m ready to go there.”

Finding Freedom in Music Again

Motherhood has also played a role in Rihanna’s creative resurgence. The singer, who shares two sons, RZA, 2 years old, and Riot, 18 months, with partner A$AP Rocky, said that working on the album has become a new kind of freedom for her.

“When I’m in the studio, I know that my time away from my kids is to blossom something that hasn’t been watered in eight years,” she shared.

She admitted that she spent years searching for the right direction. “I’ve been in the studio the whole eight years. But it didn’t hit me. I went through phases of what I wanted to do.”

A Legacy Album in the Making?

While she’s released music since Anti, including the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack songs Lift Me Upand Born Again, Rihanna hasn’t felt the same deep connection to an album since Anti.

“I used to always have shame. I actually don’t like listening to my music, but Anti—I can listen to the album,” she admitted. “That’s the one album that I can have an out-of-body experience with.”

With Rihanna finally feeling confident in her vision, fans can expect something daring, personal, and unlike anything she’s done before. The wait may not be over just yet, but the Navy knows one thing—when Rihanna drops, she delivers.

Who’s excited? Comment your thoughts on Rihanna’s new music below.