ANTI @ 10: Rihanna's Biggest Album and Why She Will Forever Remain the Industry Blueprint

Ten years have passed since Rihanna released ANTI on 28 January 2016, her eighth studio album, which continues to redefine success in the music industry.

This milestone, celebrated as the "ANTIversary," has reignited global conversations about the Barbadian superstar's unparalleled legacy.

Despite shifting her focus to business empires like Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty, as well as motherhood, Rihanna's influence remains undiminished. 

With no new album in sight, ANTI stands as a testament to her artistic evolution, blending R&B, dancehall, and experimental sounds into a project that prioritises depth over commercial conformity. 

As fans clamour for her upcoming album "R9,” ANTI’s enduring chart presence and streaming dominance underscore why Riri is not just a pop icon but the blueprint for longevity and innovation in entertainment.

The commercial trajectory of ANTI remains one of the most anomalous feats in music history, marked by figures that appear almost impossible for a 10-year-old record. Upon release, it was certified Platinum by the RIAA in just 48 hours, a feat bolstered by a $25 million partnership with Samsung that saw 1 million copies gifted to fans. 

However, its true power lies in its endurance; in late 2025, ANTI became the first album by a Black female artist to spend 500 weeks on the Billboard 200. As of January 2026, that number has climbed to over 508 weeks, with the album moving more than 7,200,000 units worldwide despite a chaotic launch that saw only 460 pure sales in its first 24 hours due to a Tidal leak.

This resilience is no accident. Debuting at number 27 on the Billboard 200 with limited sales hours before soaring to number one the following week with 166,000 units, ANTI defied initial setbacks to become Rihanna's second number-one album in the US. ANTI earned 6 Grammy nominations specifically for the project, highlighting a definitive shift toward vulnerability and genre-blending, setting it apart from her earlier pop anthems.

While tracks like ‘Consideration’ and ‘James Joint’ were praised by critics for their introspective tone and artistic merit, the album's formal nominations were primarily for the hit singles ‘Work’ (Record of the Year, Best Pop Duo/Group Performance), ‘Needed Me’ (Best R&B Performance), and ‘Kiss It Better’ (Best R&B Song).

Now certified six times Platinum in the US, the album's chart longevity, making it the first by a Black woman to reach 400 weeks and beyond, illustrates a masterclass in sustained relevance, outlasting many contemporaries through organic fan support and cultural resonance.

The album’s dominance is most visible in the digital realm, where it has effectively conquered the streaming era. ANTI officially surpassed the staggering milestone of 9 billion streams on Spotify in early 2026, cementing its status as Rihanna's most-streamed project. This momentum helped her become the first Black female artist to exceed 105 million monthly listeners on the platform, an achievement reached without one new studio album in 10 years.

 The individual performance of the tracks is equally brutal, with ‘Work,’ and ‘Needed Me,’ each crossing the 1 billion stream threshold, while ‘Love on the Brain’ has already amassed more than 2 billion Spotify streams.

‘Needed Me’ remains her longest-charting solo hit in history, having spent a total of 45 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. The song surpassed the 41-week record previously held by her Calvin Harris collaboration "We Found Love".

This streaming juggernaut reflects ANTI's timeless appeal, with a 130 per cent increase in activity over the past five years alone. 

Collaborations like ‘Work’ with Drake not only topped charts but continue to drive listens across regions, contributing to the album's global footprint. Riri's ability to maintain such figures without new releases highlights her strategic pivot to moguldom, where music serves as a foundation rather than the sole focus.

Rihanna’s commitment to artistic depth was evident in the physical tactile experience of the record itself. For a fact, ANTI was the first album cover to feature physical braille, allowing the visually impaired to experience the art through touch by embossing poetry across the Roy Nachum-designed artwork. This innovation stemmed from a collaboration with the Israeli artist, who integrated Chloe Mitchell's poem "If They Let Us" in braille over an image of a young Rihanna with a crown covering her eyes, symbolising inner vision and challenging perceptions.

Unveiled at the MAMA Gallery in Los Angeles in 2015, this touch-friendly design turned the album into something people could feel as well as hear. It made the music more inclusive for everyone, especially in an industry that usually only cares about visuals. It was a perfect example of Rihanna’s habit of breaking the rules, making ANTI a major moment for representation that went beyond just sound.

This innovation reflects why she remains the ultimate disruptor, as the album’s certifications have only grown; ‘Needed Me’ is now 12x Platinum, ‘Work’ sits at 11x Platinum, and ‘Love on the Brain’ has achieved Diamond status with a staggering 10 million units sold. These figures, combined with her eight total Diamond singles, prove that Rihanna values soul over statistics, yet manages to achieve both. 

The 9-time Grammy winner recently told Harper’s Bazaar that ANTI is the only project she can revisit without shame, stating, “I listen to Anti from top to bottom with no shame. I used to always have shame. I actually don’t like listening to my music, but Anti—I can listen to the album.” This sense of pride has set a high bar for her next project, the long-awaited R9. 

This staunch commitment to quality over commerce explains the decade-long gap since 2016. The 37-year-old clarified that her goal is to ensure her next project matches the legacy of its predecessor by remaining ‘genre-less.’

For eight years, fans have chased rumours of a reggae album or a specific sound, but Rihanna has been waiting for something deeper: her "new freedom." She admitted that she spent years in the studio searching for a sound that matched her evolution, often walking away from work that didn't feel right.

"It has to count," she insisted. "I have to show them the worth in the wait. I cannot put up anything mediocre."  

Rihanna is no longer interested in making radio-friendly hits or sticking to one genre. She believes she has finally "cracked the code," creating music that feels right for where she is as an artist today. As she puts it, her time in the studio is now about "blossoming something that hasn’t been watered in eight years." For Rihanna, the long wait isn't about being slow; it’s about ensuring that when she finally speaks, it’s through a body of work she can stand by for a lifetime.

It is this refusal to limit herself that makes her the blueprint for every artist wishing to become a permanent cultural icon, blending artistry, business acumen, and authenticity into an enduring empire.