AI-generated video falsely presented as Rihanna tribute to Diogo Jota

As of July 6, 2025, the post had garnered over 5,000 likes, 1,000 shares, 230 reposts, and more than 90 comments.

CLAIM

Rihanna released a new song in tribute to Diogo Jota.

THE FINDINGS

Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is FALSE!

A thorough analysis of the video content revealed that it was digitally manipulated.

In the opening scene, a woman claimed to be Rihanna is seen in a desert with cracked soil, holding a cross. Within split seconds, the same woman is shown on a boat and then rising from a crouched position in fast, erratic sequences. Our fact-checkers observed that the movement of her hands on a keyboard did not match the music being played suggesting artificial editing.

Other scenes, including walking, talking, and hand movements, exhibited staccato-like motion, with the visuals appearing cartoony and AI-generated.

Further checks by The FactCheckHub show that Rihanna’s last solo release was “Lift Me Up”, which came out on October 28 2022 s part of the ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ soundtrack. This was her first solo track since her 2016 album ‘Anti’.

The FactCheckHub also ran the audio from the viral video through Shazam, a music recognition app. The app could not identify the song, indicating it is not officially released on any major music label or streaming platform.

A keyword search for “Rihanna tribute song for Diogo Jota” led to a YouTubee video nearly identical to the one circulating on Threads. The video, uploaded by a user named Lil R3Vi, had a YouTube disclaimer in the description noting that the content was created using altered or synthetic media.

Additionally, the video does not  appear on Rihanna’s verified YouTube channel.

THE VERDICT

The claim that Rihanna released a new song in tribute to Diogo Jota is FALSE. The video and audio in question are AI-generated and digitally manipulated.