Rihanna’s cancelled London comeback shows reportedly rescheduled for 2026

Rihanna‘s cancelled rumoured London comeback shows have reportedly been rescheduled for 2026.

• READ MORE: Rihanna: every album ranked and rated

Rumours that the singer would be returning to the stage emerged in February, when the Telegraph reported that she was planning a six-night residency at the London Stadium.

The first date was reportedly set for July 4 – just five days after Glastonbury wrapped up, fuelling speculation that she would also be headlining the festival.

Reports claimed that a “senior concert industry source” said the shows were at an advanced planning stage, but no announcement was ever made, and Rihanna also didn’t play Glastonbury, which was instead headlined by The 1975, Neil Young and Olivia Rodrigo.

Now, the shows are reportedly back on, with The Sun reporting that a source has confirmed Rihanna and her team are “confident they can make it work for next year”.

The shows would coincide with the 10th anniversary of Rihanna’s eighth and most recent studio album, ‘Anti’, which arrived in 2016.

The ‘Umbrella’ singer is also among the bookies’ favourites to headline Glastonbury 2027 – which will take place after a fallow year in 2026.

Live performances from Rihanna have been few and far between in recent years. In 2023, she headlined the Super Bowl Halftime Show, which was her first performance in seven years. The singer later delivered a powerful rendition of ‘Lift Me Up’ at that year’s Oscars.

In early 2024, Rihanna played her first full live show in eight years at an Indian billionaire heir’s wedding ceremony.

Since the release of ‘Anti’ almost a decade ago, fans have been eagerly awaiting its follow-up. Last summer, Rihanna gave an update on new music, telling fans that she was “starting over” and “rediscovering things”.

The star then said earlier this year that she had “finally cracked it” when talking about the “kind of album” she wanted to make. However, Rihanna explained that the project was “not going to be anything that anybody expects”. She added: “And it’s not going to be commercial or radio, digestible. It’s going to be where my artistry deserves to be right now.”

After revealing in May that she was expecting her third child with partner A$AP Rocky, RiRi gave another update on the progress of her next album the same month.

When asked if the record – dubbed ‘R9’ – would be “put on pause even longer”, she replied: “Maybe a couple [of] videos”, suggesting that any plans for music videos would have to wait until after the baby is born.

As for whether work on the record itself was being pushed back, Rihanna simply responded: “I can sing.”

In May, she released ‘Friend Of Mine’, her first new single in almost three years. The track was recorded for the Smurfs soundtrack, with the singer also starring as Smurfette in the animated film.

It marks Rihanna’s first material since ‘Born Again’, which arrived in November 2022 from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack. She had previously shared ‘Lift Me Up’ from the movie.

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