John Lemuel Celebrity

Rihanna ‘Born Again’ disappointing: Artist not in her forte?

LONDON, ENGLAND - JULY 24: Rihanna attends the "Valerian And The City Of A Thousand Planets" European Premiere at Cineworld Leicester Square on July 24, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images)

Rihanna’s second song in less than a month prompted her fans to exclaim, “Not another Rihanna ballad!”

The 34-year-old Bajan vocalist’s “Born Again” from the “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” soundtrack was released on Friday.

Members of her ‘navy’ fans wasted no time venting their displeasure with the song’s lack of… upbeatness.

After Pop Crave announced the release of a new song, a user named Jesus Sanchez commented on the app on Thursday morning:

“Hopefully it’s not another ballad.”

Holding up an old photo of Mindy Kaling from “The Office” with a disappointed expression, someone remarked:

“I’m settling down to listen to a second Rihanna ballad in a row.”

“Born Again” follows “Lift Me Up,” another slow song released a month before the sequel’s November 11th premiere.

Rihanna’s first solo song in six years, which debuted on October 28th and was gloomy, disappointed her most devoted fans despite allowing her to return to the charts and nearly dethrone Taylor Swift. But not entirely.

Perhaps if it was a pop song?

Another Twitter user commented, with crying laughing emojis:

“Oh we got another Rihanna song and it’s another ballad…the navy is not happy.”

For the most part, fans appeared to agree, with one fan adding:

“rihanna with another ballad lord SHUT IT DOWN.”

Peter Kash, a DJ from Toronto, complained online that he missed her regular work.

The artwork for the single featured a close-up grayscale photograph of the Bajan singer with her hair surrounding her face. She adorned her eyelids with glittery makeup and shapely lips with matte lipstick.

The song debuted at number two on Billboard’s singles charts for the tracking week of October 28 to November 3.

However, seeing Rihanna in her “element” will not take long. During Super Bowl LVII, Rihanna will perform at the Apple Music Super Bowl Halftime Show on February 12, 2023. Under the new agreement between Apple Music, the NFL, and Roc Nation, she will be the first performer to lead the halftime show.

The halftime show is one of the most coveted musical spots, so it only fits that Rihanna memorably returns to the stage. After focusing on her Fenty Beauty and Skin companies in recent years and welcoming her first child with boyfriend A$AP Rocky in May, Rihanna will return to her musical roots for the first time.