Rihanna Dresses Down in Her Music Video Return

For her return song video, Rihanna is going back to the basics.

On Friday, the worldwide icon unveiled the official music video for “Lift Me Up,” a song from the Wakanda Forever soundtrack. The three-and-a-half-minute clip, which combines scenes of Rihanna performing alone on a beach under a setting sun and clips from the upcoming Black Panther sequel, is incredibly emotional and intimate. In addition to serving as the lead single for the Wakanda Forever soundtrack, co-written with Nigerian singer Tems, along with Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Göransson (Wakanda Forever’s director and score composer, respectively), “Lift Me Up” pays homage to the late actor Chadwick Boseman, who played T’Challa in the first big-budget movie and whose untimely passing changed the plot and direction of the eagerly awaited sequel.

In keeping with the song’s mood, Rihanna chose muted yet unmistakably her looks for the video wearing a cream colored satin corset (The color palette reflects the gray Rick Owens dress she chose to wear to the film’s premiere earlier this week.) and maxi skirt with an oversized puffer coat and her hair in flowing, tousled waves as she belts the song’s heart-wrenching lyrics by a bonfire. Rihanna stands on a beach as a fire burns in memory of someone and the sun slowly sets behind her in a scene cut with scenes from the upcoming Marvel movie.

This is the first music video Rihanna has created for a song she actually appears on since the clip for N.E.R.D.’s “Lemon” single back in 2017. Rihanna co-starred in her partner A$AP Rocky’s “D.M.B.” video earlier this year.

She has jokingly claimed that the song “Lift Me Up” marks the start of a brand-new era. Hopefully, the wait for her next music video fashion statement won’t be as long because she has a Super Bowl halftime show scheduled for the first quarter of next year.