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Rihanna and Winston Duke Have Date Night on Red Carpet of 'Black Panther: Wakanda Forever' Premiere

The outing came two days before the release of Rihanna's new single on the film's soundtrack

Rihanna and Winston Duke had a very public date night on Wednesday.

The Grammy-winning singer, 34, and her Black Panther: Wakanda Forever actor boyfriend, 35, walked the red carpet at the premiere of Marvel's Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, posing for photographers while sharing some sweet moments of affection.

Their outing comes five months after they welcomed their first baby together in May and just two days before Rihanna's highly anticipated musical comeback. Earlier in the day, she confirmed her first single in years — titled "Lift Me Up" — would be appearing on the soundtrack of Ryan Coogler's long-awaited Marvel sequel.

Fan excitement carried over to the Los Angeles premiere at the Dolby Theatre, where Rihanna smiled as Winston, who portrays M'Baku in the film, embraced her on the carpet. She wore a sparkly, strapless, olive green Rick Owens dress with a fitted bodice and structural detail around its skirt. The songstress accessorized the look with a pair of lengthy gloves with pointed-toe heels.

While Winston opted for a more sophisticated look in black pants, shirt, sunglasses, beanie, orange-patterned coat, Christian Louboutin shoes, and a Vacheron Constantin timepiece.

Wednesday marked the first time the couple walked a red carpet since the birth of their baby, and since Rihanna was announced as the Super Bowl Halftime Show headliner for February 2023.

Notably, Riri hasn't released a new album in six years, the last being her fan-beloved eighth studio LP, Anti, which included her most recent No. 1 hit "Work" and other favorites in "Kiss It Better," "Needed Me" and "Love on the Brain." But now she'll be playing one of the biggest sporting events of the year with new material, as Friday marks the arrival of her new single "Lift Me Up."

"Lift Me Up" will serve as a nod to the late Chadwick Boseman, who starred in the first Black Panther film and died in August 2020 following a private battle with colon cancer. It was written by Ludwig Göransson, Rihanna, Ryan Coogler and musician Tems, who said it was a "great honor" to hear Rih sing the track.

"After speaking with Ryan and hearing his direction for the film and the song, I wanted to write something that portrays a warm embrace from all the people that I've lost in my life," Tems shared in a statement. "I tried to imagine what it would feel like if I could sing to them now and express how much I miss them."

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