Rihanna Makes Spotify History Again With 'Only Girl' as Fans Continue Waiting for 'R9'

Rihanna has made Spotify history again with 'Only Girl (In The World),' as the 2010 dance-pop hit crossed two billion streams on the platform, giving her a record eight songs above the milestone among female artists.

The achievement comes as fans continue to await her long-delayed ninth studio album, commonly referred to as R9, which has yet to receive an official release date.

Rihanna's last full-length studio album, ANTI, was released in January 2016. Despite the decade-long gap between albums, her back catalog has continued to perform strongly across streaming platforms.

In April 2026, she also became the first woman to surpass 200 million RIAA-certified singles units in the US, reaching 200.5 million certified units.

That RIAA figure includes a mix of digital sales, on-demand audio and video streams, and traditional single sales, all converted into equivalent units under the association's certification formula.

It is a staggering total for an artist who has not dropped a full album in ten years, and it underscores how her older hits continue to generate commercial momentum long after their initial release.

Only Girl Joins Rihanna's Elite Billion-Stream Club on Spotify

With 'Only Girl (In The World)' now above two billion streams, Rihanna has eight songs that have reached the milestone, 'We Found Love,' 'This Is What You Came For,' 'Umbrella,' 'Love The Way You Lie,' 'Love On The Brain,' 'Stay,' 'Diamonds' and 'Only Girl (In The World).' Kworb's Spotify data, last updated on 31 August, lists 'Only Girl' at 2,001,897,735 streams, with about 1.27 million daily plays.

The milestone moves Rihanna ahead of Billie Eilish, who had seven songs above two billion streams after 'WILDFLOWER' crossed the threshold in April.

Eilish's run of hits from When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? and Happier Than Ever had previously set the pace among women on this specific metric. Rihanna's eighth track at this level now repositions her at the top of that particular leaderboard.

Kworb's latest figures also put Rihanna's total Spotify streams at about 61.95 billion across all credits, including approximately 45.82 billion streams for tracks on which she is the lead artist.

Those numbers place her among the most-streamed artists globally, regardless of gender, and they reflect a catalog that has aged unusually well in the streaming era.

Part of the story here is timing. 'Only Girl (In The World)' arrived during the peak of Rihanna's chart dominance, when she was regularly juggling multiple top-ten singles and headlining global tours.

The song itself was a lead single from Loud, an album that also produced 'What's My Name?' and 'S&M,' and it spent weeks in heavy rotation on radio and television. That kind of saturation exposure tends to translate into long-term streaming performance, especially when a track becomes a staple on workout playlists, party mixes and nostalgic throwback queues.

The latest milestone is another example of the staying power of Rihanna's catalog, which continues to attract millions of streams despite her extended absence from full-length album releases.

It also highlights a wider trend in the music industry, where legacy hits from superstar artists can outperform many new releases simply because they are already embedded in listeners' routines.

R9 Update: A$AP Rocky Says Rihanna Is 'In the Studio Right Now'

The streaming milestone comes as fans continue to speculate about when Rihanna's next album will arrive. The latest update came from A$AP Rocky, Rihanna's partner and the father of her three children, RZA, Riot and Rocki.

During an August appearance on BET's The Jason Lee Show, Rocky was asked whether he was responsible for Rihanna's prolonged absence from music.

'Yo, she in the studio right now. Yeah, I said it. Sorry, babe,' Rocky said, adding that she was 'working' and 'cooking.'

Rocky's comments confirmed that Rihanna is actively working in the studio, but he did not provide a release date, tracklist or other official details about the project. Rihanna herself also teased studio activity in February 2026, when she shared an 'A Night in the Life' video showing her heading to a recording studio after a late-night meeting for Savage X Fenty.

In that clip, she described a typical evening that blended business obligations with creative time, a pattern that has played out repeatedly over the past few years.

Between Fenty Beauty, Savage X Fenty and other ventures, Rihanna's schedule has been packed with non-music commitments, which has led many fans to assume that R9 was being indefinitely shelved. Rocky's remarks suggest otherwise, even if they stop short of promising an imminent release.

For now, there is no official release date for R9. Rihanna's studio activity and Rocky's comments suggest that new music is being worked on, but neither confirms when the album will arrive. IBTimes UK cannot independently verify these claims, so take everything lightly until an official statement lands.

What is clear is that Rihanna's streaming dominance no longer depends on new music. Her classics are carrying the crown with ease, and 'Only Girl' is the latest proof that, even on album hiatus, she remains a central force in pop.

For fans, however, the bigger question remains the same: When will R9 finally arrive?