Rihanna has returned to music for the first time in six years with her debut solo single. The end credits song from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and the lead single for the accompanying album, “Lift Me Up,” is a touching and passionate homage to the late Chadwick Boseman.
“Lift Me Up,” written by Rihanna, Tems, Ryan Coogler, and Ludwig Göransson, sees Rihanna asking for a safe refuge in the wake of the departure of a loved one. She croons, “Burning in a hopeless dream / Hold me when you go to sleep,” amid fingerpicked guitar, lullaby-light piano, and stirring strings. Tems’ tendency for twisting long words and sentences into undulating melodies is instantly apparent in the song’s lyrics. Indeed, Rihanna retains some of Tems’ characteristic vocal inflections, such as the ever-so-slight vocal fry on “hold me, hold me,” which lends roughness to an otherwise slick tune. The mournful chorus does the most of the job in “Lift Me Up,” which has an attractively basic structure.
“Lift Me Up” is a stark departure from the anthemic upbeat feel of Kendrick Lamar and SZA’s “All the Stars” from the first Black Panther soundtrack and movie. Nevertheless, this darker and more somber approach seems fitting for a film that has to grapple with grief and mourning unlike the MCU has ever seen. With “Lift Me Up,” Rihanna enters the Oscar race for Best Original Song alongside fellow pop stars such as Lady Gaga (“Hold My Hand” from Top Gun: Maverick), Doja Cat (“Vegas” from Elvis), and Billie Eilish (“Nobody But U” from Turning Red). Regardless of what happens on the Oscars stage, none of the aforementioned songs are as touching as “Lift Me Up.”