"Crying because its just merch" - Fans left disappointed after Rihanna updates her profile picture and header with her album titles

Rihanna sent her fans into a frenzy after updating her X profile picture and unveiling a new header containing her album titles. The update left fans eagerly awaiting news regarding the singer's upcoming album, dubbed 'R9,' which she has been teasing for years. For context, the Umbrella singer has not released a full-length album since her 2016 LP, Anti, which includes her hit song Work.

On August 27, Rihanna's X account received a makeover, leading fans to expect an announcement regarding new music.

However, many were left seemingly disappointed after the change heralded the announcement of her new merch drop to celebrate the 20th anniversary of her debut album, Music of the Sun, which was released on August 29, 2005. The announcement on Rihanna's website, titled "20 Years With You," read:

"We are celebrating 20 years of music with new merch dropping on Friday. Sign up below for a notification when the store opens."

Fans took to social media to express their disappointment about the merch announcement, as they had been expecting news about her album, with one fan writing:

"Crying because its just merch."

Several fans echoed similar sentiments, wondering if the singer built up such hype only for a merch drop.

Others accused Rihanna of "playing" them and requested the singer to have mercy on them and release the album.

What has Rihanna said about her upcoming album?

Rihanna at the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" (Image via Getty Images)

Reportedly, Rihanna has been teasing her upcoming album since 2018. In July 2018, Rolling Stone reported that the singer was working on two albums, a pop album and a reggae one. In May 2019, she told T Magazine that she might title her reggae album R9 due to her fans' insistence on using that name for her upcoming album.

In March 2020, she told British Vogue that she was "very aggressively working" on new music. During a 2021 interview on the red carpet of her Savage X Fenty Show, the singer revealed that she was experimenting with new styles for her upcoming album, adding:

“Whatever you know of Rihanna is not gonna be what you hear. I’m really experimenting. And music is like fashion, you should be able to play.”

In subsequent interviews, the singer continued teasing her album. However, in June 2024, she was spotted wearing an "I'm Retired" T-shirt in New York. In a follow-up interview with ET days later, she dismissed the rumors surrounding her alleged retirement, adding that she was "starting over" with the album.

During her March 2025 cover story with Harper's Bazaar, Rihanna refuted her previous claims that R9 would be a reggae album, stating that the new project had no specific genre. She also revealed that R9 will not be "commercial or radio digestible," adding:

“This feels right. 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. This is becoming my new freedom, because 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. I’ve been in the studio the whole eight years."

She continued:

"But it didn’t hit me. I was searching for it. I went through phases of what I wanted to do. ‘This kind of album, not that album.’ I know it’s not going to be anything that anybody expects. And it’s not going to be commercial or radio digestible. It’s going to be where my artistry deserves to be right now. I feel like I’ve finally cracked it, girl!”

Beyond music, Rihanna is currently expecting her third child with partner A$AP Rocky and had announced her pregnancy during the 2025 Met Gala. The couple also shares two sons, RZA and Riot.

About the author

With a strong love for the English language cultivated from a childhood filled with reading, Juhi aims to take her readers on a literary journey with every word she writes.

When she's not busy putting her pen to paper, Juhi can be found indulging in her hobbies, such as embroidering and crocheting, while binge-watching TV shows.

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Edited by Ameen Fatima