By: Justin Pecisto
Rihanna has finally come back from the long hiatus she took to pursue other business endeavors! The Navy and non-obsessive fans have let it be known how badly she was needed in the music sphere. The world is missing her bops, we’re in a dark era of music at the moment. This single is meant for the new Marvel movie, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. With the movie touching more somber themes, it was expected that this song wouldn’t be “Pon De Replay” re-up reloaded.
The song starts with her humming, which is not her strong suit, but we still love her. It feels like a hymn, with the intention of people singing together like a chorus as Rihanna leads. It is very emotional, about swimming through grief and how mourning is something collective. The lyrics give a picture of what it’s like to want to be held when you’re feeling hurt, especially after experiencing something traumatic. Rihanna ends the sony by singing, “(Keep Me Safe) We Need Light, We Need Love.” In the context of the film (I won’t spoil) It’s important we don’t fall into negative feelings after being hurt in such a major way. Even if we are hurt, we still have to show others our capacity to love. Rihanna did very well with the song considering the subject matter and the intention of the song. Everyone and myself are more accustomed to her doing dance music. It feels different listening to her sing a song of lamenting and healing. I enjoy the song, I don’t think I will be listening to the song a lot because it’s not something I would particularly want to hear from her. Rihanna’s strong suit in the term of emotional songs are heartbreak and breakup songs. I think she did very well in her performance, but she wouldn’t be my first pick to do a funeral song.
