Rihanna is on the cover of Elle magazine’s September 2026 issue, on newsstands August 25.
In a departure from the norm, the 38-year-old superstar did not do an interview for the cover reveal, though it’s possible one could be coming later.
Instead, New York Times bestselling author Roxane Gay wrote a piece for the cover story!
What it’s like seeing Rihanna arrive at a party
Roxane perfectly epitomized what it’s apparently like being in the same room as RiRi.
This one time, I was in Rihanna’s vicinity. It was in Hollywood, at an after-party for something—I can’t even remember what. I was standing awkwardly with a friend, trying to feel like I belonged there. I had an invitation and everything! All around me were the usual people you find at a party in Hollywood, creative types and strivers, preternaturally attractive, excellent footwear. And then the room hushed. Rihanna swanned in.
Even in a room full of reasonably famous people, she commanded the attention of all those proud peacocks. She was…absolutely entrancing. It was one of those moments when I understood, with great clarity, what charisma looks like when someone genuinely has it. Her beauty, in person, cannot be overstated. Her eyes shine bright like a diamond. (See what I did there?) Her skin is dewy and clear. And she smells amazing. As she walked by, I didn’t even try to speak to her. I just admired her and then returned to my awkward shuffle.
Rihanna having her fans wait patiently for new music to be released
Roxane also addressed the long wait for new Rihanna music.
It has been a decade since she released her last studio album, Anti, and her legion of fans has been clamoring for new music the entire time. That fevered desire has become something of a cultural punch line.
Whenever Rihanna pops out, people on social media have “jokes” that are, really, thinly veiled entreaties in the way of a greedy public foisting its expectations on public figures, as if those public figures are only there to satisfy their fans. “Where’s the album?” people ask. And she never, ever, answers the question definitively. In a 2020 interview with Entertainment Tonight, she said, “To be continued,” when asked about the album. “I like to antagonize my fans a little bit. Well, they antagonize me, too! So they get it right back,” she added. Living her life on her own terms. Inspiration. Aspiration… only she knows when, or even if, she will make music again, and she won’t be rushed or pressured to do so on anyone’s timeline but her own.
For more, head to Elle.
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