Rihanna

She was born on February 20, 1988, in Barbados, and her name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty. She is known for her singing, business, and acting careers. The music Industry Association of America (RIAA) has certified her digital single more times than any other female artist, and Guinness World Records has her listed as the best-selling female music artist of the 21st century. Rihanna has surpassed all but two musicians in terms of fortune as of the year 2024. No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 and seven diamond certified singles are among her accomplishments. A multi-award winner, Rihanna is widely considered to be among the all-time best-selling music artists, with 250 million units sold worldwide.

The 2005 and 2006 studio albums by Rihanna—Music of the Sun and A Girl Like Me—helped propel her to stardom when she inked a deal with Def Jam Recordings. Both albums reached positions in the top 10 on the US Billboard 200 list, reflecting their shared influence from Caribbean music. Good Girl Gone Bad(2007), her third studio album, cemented her place in pop music history with its dance-pop influences. This album brought her first Grammy, and the lead track "Umbrella" reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100.

Rated R(2009), Loud (2010), Talk That Talk (2011), and Unapologetic (2012)—the latter of which peaked at number one on the Billboard 200—were Rihanna's subsequent albums in which she persisted in fusing pop, dance, and R&B elements. The albums produced the songs "Rude Boy," "Only Girl (In the World)," "What's My Name?", "S&M," "We Found Love," and "Diamonds," all of which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Anti (2016), her eighth studio album after leaving Def Jam for Roc Nation, Jay-Z's label, demonstrated more creative freedom. Single "Work" helped propel the album to the top of the US charts, becoming her second number one album overall.

Aside from her music, Rihanna is well-known for her philanthropic work, business acumen, and impact on the fashion industry. She made history as the first Black woman to head a luxury brand for LVMH when she founded the Clara Lionel Foundation, the Fenty Beauty cosmetics brand, and the Fenty fashion company. Battleship(2012), Home(2015), Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets(2017), and Ocean's 8 (2018) all include Rihanna in significant parts. Following her 2021 proclamation as a National Hero of Barbados, the Barbados government nominated her ambassador in 2018.

Life in the beginning

Saint Michael, Barbados is the place where Robyn Rihanna Fenty came into this world on February 20, 1988. She was born to Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor, and Monica, an accountant (formerly Braithwaite). She is from a mixed African, Irish, English, and Scottish family; her father is of Barbadian origin. Her mother is of Afro-Guyanese heritage. Rorrey and Rajad Fenty are Rihanna's two brothers, while two half-sisters and a half-brother were born to other women from her father's past marriages. She spent her childhood in a three-bedroom home in Bridgetown, where she and her father had a street cart selling clothing. The alcoholic and crack addict father of Rihanna's parents had a difficult marriage, which had a profound impact on Rihanna's upbringing, according to Rihanna herself. According to her interviews, she would attempt to mediate arguments between her parents and that her father would physically attack her mother.

The horrific migraines Rihanna endured as a youngster led to several CT scans; she recalls that "doctors even thought it was a tumor, because it was that intense." Her parents' divorce brought about her health's improvement by the time she was fourteen years old. Reggae was her musical background. At Combermere School and Charles F. Broome Memorial Primary School, she was a fellow student of Chris Jordan and Carlos Brathwaite, who would go on to play cricket for their respective national teams. Shontelle, a Barbadian singer-songwriter, served as Rihanna's drill sergeant when she was a cadet in the Barbados Cadet Corps when she was eleven years old. Despite her early aspirations to complete high school, she ultimately decided to pursue a career in music instead.

When Rihanna was a student in Barbados in 2003, she and two other students created a trio. "The minute Rihanna walked into the room, it was like the other two girls didn't exist." As a result, Rihanna went on to sing covers of Destiny's Child's "Emotion" and Mariah Carey's "Hero" during their audition with American record producer Evan Rogers, who had no idea who the other two ladies were. Rogers was so impressed that he asked Rihanna to his hometown in the US to create demo recordings that might be forwarded to record labels. After that, he organized a second meeting with Rihanna's mother present. Because she could only record during school breaks, the process was sporadic and took almost a year. She recorded two songs for the demo tape—"Pon de Replay" and "The Last Time"—that would later be on her debut album, Music of the Sun. In the same year, Rihanna joined Syndicated Rhythm Productions, the production firm co-founded by Carl Sturken and Rogers.

Jay Brown, an A&R executive at Def Jam Recordings, was among the first to hear Rihanna's tape when it was sent out to the company. Recently appointed president and CEO of Def Jam, rapper Jay-Z, asked Brown to play him the demo tape. She was too huge for Jay-Z's "Pon de Replay" when he first heard it. Even though he had his doubts, he sent an audition invitation to Rihanna. Jay-Z introduced Rihanna to music tycoon Antonio "L.A." Reid at her 2005 New York City Def Jam audition. During her audition, she sang a number of songs, including "For the Love of You" (a Whitney Houston version), "Pon de Replay," and "The Last Time," which were demo recordings. With her performance of her upcoming hit "Pon de Replay" under her belt, Jay-Z knew she had their number. L.A., his employer.... Reid, who was equally smitten by her audition, instructed Jay-Z to keep Rihanna in the building until they signed the deal. Def Jam signed Jay-Z and his crew to a six-album recording contract, and Reid handed the agreement over to them to finalize. For reasons related to his desire to keep her from signing with another company, Jay-Z wanted her to wait until three in the morning at his office to have attorneys prepare a contract.

Before moving in with Rogers and his wife in the US, Rihanna called off more meetings with record companies and left Barbados.

Following Rihanna's contract with Def Jam, Jay-Z and his crew oversaw art and research for her debut album, which she then spent the following three months recording. Various producers, including Rogers and his colleague Carl Sturken, helped her finish her maiden studio album. Out of all the tracks considered for the first single, "Pon de Replay" stood out as the one most appropriate for a summer release. Released under the pseudonym "Rihanna" in May 2005, "Pon de Replay" was her first song. It was a global hit, reaching number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number five in the UK Singles Chart, among fifteen other countries. After reaching number one on Billboard's dance club songs chart, the song became a smash in American nightclubs.

August 2005 saw the release of Music of the Sun. With almost half a million copies sold, it garnered a gold certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and debuted at number ten on the Billboard 200. Worldwide, the album sold more than 2 million copies. Although it failed to achieve the same level of popularity as the first song, "If It's Lovin' that You Want" did go into the top ten in three countries: Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand. In addition to her musical career, Rihanna has dabbled in acting with a cameo in the 2006 August direct-to-DVD hit Bring It On: All or Nothing.

As soon as her debut album came out, Rihanna got to start on her second studio album. April 2006 saw the publication of A Girl Like Me. According to Rolling Stone, "the burning rock guitar" and ghostly strings on a few tracks made "A Girl like Me [...] likable." In terms of sales, the album was successful, reaching the top 10 in thirteen different countries. With 115,000 copies sold in its first week, the album topped the charts in Canada and placed fifth in the UK and US. Because it sold more than 100,000 copies, the RIAA certified it as platinum, making it Rihanna's first album to receive that honor. A top five hit in eleven different countries, its lead song "SOS" proved to be a global smash. It was her first number one single in Australia and the United States, respectively, on the Billboard Hot 100. In addition to topping the charts in Canada and Switzerland, the album's second single "Unfaithful" peaked at number ten in eighteen other nations. "We Ride" and "Break It Off" are the album's other two radio hits.

"Good Girl Gone Bad" from 2007 to 2008.

Rihanna collaborated with Jamaican band J-Status and fellow Barbadian singer-songwriter Shontelle on the 2007 single "Roll It" in the beginning of the year. Only a few European nations got to hear this song because it was on J-Debut Status's album, The Beginning. Good Girl Gone Bad, Rihanna's third studio album, was already in the works at that point. She went in a new creative path with the aid of Sean Garrett, Tricky Stewart, and Timbaland, creating upbeat dance music. After its May 2007 release, the album topped the charts in a number of nations, including the UK, Ireland, Brazil, and Canada, and peaked at No. 2 in both the US and Australia. Critical reception was the best of her first three albums for this one.

With 13 nations topping the charts, the lead song "Umbrella" stayed at No. 1 in the UK for 10 weeks in a row, the longest-running No. 1 single there since "Love Is All Around" by Wet Wet Wet lasted 15 weeks at the top in 1994. The song sold more than 8 million copies, making it Rihanna's first top-charting hit. Additionally, there were three singles: "Shut Up and Drive," "Hate That I Love You" (with Ne-Yo), and "Don't Stop the Music," the latter of which became a worldwide smash. With 80 concerts spread around the Americas, Europe, and Canada, Rihanna launched the Good Girl Gone Bad Tour in September 2007 to promote the album. For her 2008 album Good Girl Gone Bad, Rihanna received many nominations and won her first Grammy for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Umbrella" with Jay-Z.

In 2008, Rihanna dropped her debut live long-form video, Good Girl Gone Bad Live, on June 9th. Presented on DVD and Blu-ray was Rihanna's performance at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, United Kingdom, on December 6, 2007, during the Good Girl Gone Bad Tour. Included with the release was a unique documentary in which Rihanna spoke about her tour experiences. Entertainment Weekly crowned Rihanna "Diva of the Year" for her "newfound staying power" in late 2008, and the fifth song from Good Girl Gone Bad, "Rehab," continued to keep her in the charts. The RIAA certified Good Girl Gone Bad twice for Platinum sales, and the album has sold more than 2.8 million copies in the US alone. So far, it has been Rihanna's most successful album in the nation. Global sales of the album have reached 9 million copies.

In the late aughts, Rihanna formally abandoned her image as a Barbados island girl and began experimenting with pop, dubstep, and rock music. Rihanna was a member of Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D.'s 2008 Glow in the Dark Tour. Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, a reissue of her third studio album, came out in June 2008. It had three new songs—"Disturbia," "Take a Bow," and a duet with Maroon 5 called "If I Never See Your Face Again." Additionally, it had a Spanglish version of "Hate That I Love You" with Spanish pop artist David Bisbal. Upon their first release as singles, all four of them quickly rose to the top of charts throughout the world. Rihanna and several other female artists recorded the anti-cancer campaign Stand Up to Cancer's theme song, "Just Stand Up!" in August 2008. A duet featuring T.I. and "Live Your Life" the Billboard Hot 100 upon its November debut, which included Rihanna.

R-rated and boisterous from 2009 to 2011

A cancellation of Rihanna's performance at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards occurred on February 8, 2009. The musician Chris Brown, who was her boyfriend at the time, allegedly abused her. The accusation of making criminal threats led to his detention. Brown faced charges of assault and criminal threats on March 5, 2009. According to a snapshot that TMZ.com acquired from the police department, Rihanna clearly had injuries. Shortly after the incident, Rihanna made an appearance on Jay-Z's "Run This Town" (the second single from his eleventh studio album, The Blueprint 3), which included Kanye West.

As early as January 2009, Rihanna started to work on Rated R, her fourth studio album. November 2009 saw the album's release. "Transformed her sound and made one of the best pop records of the year" was the assessment of Rihanna's album by Rolling Stonemagazine. The mood of Rated R was darker and more ominous than that of Rihanna's earlier albums.

The United States Billboard 200 list placed Rated R at #4 on its debut. Among the six singles released in promotion of the album, "Rude Boy" was the most internationally successful, spending six weeks atop the US Billboard Hot 100 and penetrating the top ten in 22 other nations.

For the Hope for Haiti Now initiative, Rihanna released her charity cover version of "Redemption Song" in January 2010. Aside from it, she collaborated with Jay-Z, Bono, and The Edge on the 2010 Haiti disaster relief single "Stranded (Haiti Mon Amour)" with the same campaign.

A huge international hit, "Love the Way You Lie"—a collaboration between Rihanna and rapper Eminem—peaked at No. 1 in more than 20 countries in the summer of 2010. The song was the first of Rihanna's songs to sell over one million copies in the UK, and it became the biggest-selling song of 2010 after reaching number two. Joining Jay-Roc Nation Z's management team in October 2010, Rihanna made a management change. Kanye West's "All of the Lights" from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010), Nicki Minaj's "Fly" from Pink Friday (2010), and David Guetta's "Who's That Chick?" from One More Love (2010) were the three singles that featured her in late 2010.

In November 2010, Rihanna dropped her fifth studio album, Loud.

There were three US Billboard Hot 100s that came from the album. "Only Girl (In the World)" serves as the first single, while "What's My Name?" features rapper Drake. "S&M" follows the release of its official remix, which features Britney Spears. When it comes to the Hot 100s, Rihanna broke the record for fastest accumulation of 10 toppers by a single artist. Best Dance Recording went to "Only Girl (In the World)" at the 53rd Annual Grammys.

The May 2011 singles "Man Down" and "California King Bed" had a considerable amount of popularity. Released as the album's seventh and last single, "Cheers (Drink to That)" features an interpolation of "I'm with You" by Avril Lavigne from 2. As part of her Loud Tour, which she launched in June 2011, Rihanna played 10 sold-out nights at London's O2 Arena. These performances were the most ever for a female artist at the arena. As far as 2011 tours go, this one ranked eighth globally. She listed her North London home in St. John's Wood for sale in September 2020 for £32 million.

Talk That Talk, Rihanna's sixth studio album, came out in November 2011. Launching at No. 1 in the UK and No. 3 in the US, the album's first song "We Found Love" topped charts in 27 countries, reached the top 10 in 30 countries, and shattered several records around the globe. With ten weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, the song became the longest-running No. 1 single of 2011 in the United States and Rihanna's longest-running No. 1 hit ever. Released as the second and third singles, respectively, "You Da One" and the title track of the album—which featured Jay-Z—had minor success. As the fifth single, "Where Have You Been" did well on international charts, peaking at number five in the United States and number six in the United Kingdom. As the album's last single, "Cockiness (Love It)" came out in a remixed version featuring rapper ASAP Rocky.

There were two 2012 singles that included Rihanna: "Princess of China" by Coldplay (from their album Mylo Xyloto) and "Take Care" by Drake (from his album of the same name). Rihanna was named Best International Female Solo Artist at the 2012 BRIT Awards for the second year in a row, and she received her third Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung duet at the 2012 Grammys in February 2012 for "All of the Lights"—a duet with Kanye West. It was in March 2012 that Chris Brown's "Turn Up the Music" and Rihanna's "Birthday Cake" were both released as remixes. The pair's history of domestic violence explains why the tapes drew mostly negative comments. After "We Found Love" became the first female artist to win the MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year twice, Rihanna became the first woman in history to do so in September 2012.

November 2012 saw the release of Unapologetic, Rihanna's seventh studio album. The album became Rihanna's first No. 1 album in the US when it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums list. Single "Diamonds" earned Rihanna's twelfth number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and went on to top the charts in over twenty nations across the world. With Mikky Ekko included, the album's second song "Stay" peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top five in more than twenty countries. In the seven days leading up to the album's release, Rihanna performed seven concerts in seven different countries as part of her 777 Tour. Fox broadcast a documentary on the tour on May 6, 2013, and the following day, Rihanna's third live long-form video was a DVD of the same documentary.

At the 55th Annual Grammy Awards in February 2013, Rihanna took home her sixth Grammy for Best Short Form Music Video for "We Found Love" (2011). During the same month, Rihanna was named the top artist nominated for the 2013 BRIT Awards, and the Official Charts Company of the United Kingdom revealed that her record sales for the prior year had reached 3,868,000 units. In March 2013, Rihanna embarked on the Diamonds World Tour in support of Unapologetic, her sixth headline concert series. After that, in June 2013, Rihanna had an appearance in the comedy film This Is the End, which also starred Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. In the same month, American hip-hop singer Wale dropped a remix of "Bad" featuring Rihanna off his album. In October 2013, Eminem dropped the fourth single from his eighth studio album, The Marshall Mathers LP 2, which featured Rihanna: "The Monster" (2013).

Releases in 2014–2017: Home soundtrack and Anti

The 2014 single "Can't Remember to Forget You" by Shakira had an appearance by Rihanna. After Unapologetic and its tour concluded, Rihanna stated, "I wanted to have a year to just do whatever I want artistically, creatively." In May 2014, she signed fully with Roc Nation, the record label that had managed her career since October 2010, after leaving Def Jam Recordings.

The collaboration between Rihanna, Kanye West, and Paul McCartney on the track "FourFiveSeconds" came a year after she started recording her eighth studio album. "American Oxygen" and "Bitch Better Have My Money" were two more songs that came out after it, however neither of them ended up on Rihanna's eighth studio album. Rihanna dabbled in other projects while the album was in production. She voiced Tip in the animated feature film Home, which was based on Adam Rex's The True Meaning of Smekday and featured Jim Parsons, Jennifer Lopez, and Lopez. The film's score was a concept album that Rihanna also released.

Samsung and Rihanna inked a $25 million deal in late 2015. As part of the deal, Rihanna would promote Samsung's Galaxy range of goods and Samsung would fund both the record and tour in support of Rihanna's eighth studio album. Upon its announcement in November 2015, the Anti World Tour got underway in March 2016, with Big Sean serving as support on some European dates and Travis Scott providing support in North America. With "unforeseen changes in upcoming projects" as his excuse, The Weeknd withdrew his support from several European venues. As a special treat for Tidal subscribers alone, Rihanna dropped her eighth studio album, Anti, on January 28, 2016. The album became Rihanna's second number one and eighth top ten album on the US Billboard 200, peaking at No. 1. Among the four songs released in promotion of the album was the number one hit "Work" (with Drake), which peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. The additional Platinum-certified tracks "Love on the Brain" and "Needed Me" also reached peak positions within the US Hot 100.

Multiple 2016 songs featured Rihanna. Kanye West and Rihanna's "Famous" was the first joint hit; Rihanna contributed uncredited cameo vocals. Calvin Harris's hit single "This Is What You Came For" subsequently included her officially. Mike Will Made It's "Nothing Is Promised" and Drake's "Too Good" both featured Rihanna. As part of the score for the 2016 film Star Trek Beyond, Rihanna dropped the single "Sledgehammer" in June. After singing a number of medleys of her most popular songs, Rihanna received the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards on August 28, 2016.

Rihanna dropped a slew of joint projects last year. "Selfish" is the lead single from Future's sixth studio album, Hndrxx, and she first appeared in it. Kendrick Lamar's "Loyalty" and Rihanna's duet with DJ Khaled on "Wild Thoughts" (which included Bryson Tiller) were both released in the summer of 2017 and became international hits. "Loyalty" also helped Rihanna win her ninth Grammy at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards. "Lemon" is the lead song from N.E.R.D.'s 2017 comeback album No One Ever Really Dies, which featured Rihanna.

With Rihanna's "absolutely insane" album in the works, Shakka announced their collaboration in October 2017. Rihanna first revealed the album's 2019 release date and genre (reggae) in December 2018. Fans took note in August 2019 that "Private Loving" had been registered with BMI by Rihanna and her songwriters Collin Edwards, Monique Lawrence, and Alexander Ogunmokun. Someone mentioned that she has signed with Sony/ATV Music Publishing in September 2019. Rihanna posted an Instagram in December 2019 that hinted at her album's completion but permanently delayed its release. During an interview with British Vogue in 2023, she addressed the topic of her upcoming ninth studio album and said, "When you come off of an album like Anti... there's this pressure that I put on myself. That if it's not better than that then it is not even worth it." She went on to say that this is not the correct perspective on music, and that she is not willing to risk the album taking an eternity to complete or never being released if she waits until it feels perfect.

During this time, Rihanna was a featured artist on the March 27, 2020, single "Believe It" by Canadian musician PartyNextDoor. As her first solo effort since Anti, "Lift Me Up" debuted on October 28, 2022, as the lead song from the soundtrack of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. She received Best Original Song nods from both the Golden Globes and the Academy Awards for the release. After leading a self-imposed boycott of the event in support of Colin Kaepernick, she finally performed live on February 12, 2023, during the Super Bowl LVII halftime show. This was her first live performance in more than five years. Viewers were mostly pleased with the program. According to Nielsen Media Research, the performance drew 121.017 million viewers, which is more than Katy Perry's performance at Super Bowl XLIX's halftime show. The original report indicated that 118.7 million viewers watched the performance across television and digital platforms. The show garnered her a nomination for Best Variety Special (Live) on Primetime Emmy.

* Craftsmanship*

*Voice and music*

As a mezzo-soprano, Rihanna can sing from B2 all the way up to C?6. Rihanna worked with Ne-Yo for voice coaching when she was recording Good Girl Gone Bad(2007), her third studio album. She described the experience as follows: "I've never had vocal training, so when I'm in the studio, he'll tell me how to breathe and stuff... He'll call out these big fancy words: 'OK, I want you to do staccato.' And I'm like, 'OK, I don't know what that is.'" Critics praised her vocal performance on Loud (2010). According to BBC music critic James Skinner, "it is Rihanna's vocal - at once commanding, soulful and vulnerable - that anchors the song, and Loud itself." Skinner also mentioned Rihanna's strong vocals on "Love the Way You Lie (Part II)" and her voice. According to Andy Gill of The Independent, her vocal performance on "California King Bed" is her finest. Billboard magazine praised Unapologetic, writing, "Diamonds finds Rihanna doing one of her throatiest, most impassioned vocals to date, on this inspirational pop ballad." The New York Times' Jon Caramanica said, "over the years, as her game face froze in place, her voice cured into a weapon of emotional chill and strategic indifference. It's decidedly unfriendly, made to give orders." When it came time to rank the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time, Rolling Stone placed Rihanna at number 68 in 2023.

She grew up in Barbados listening to soca, hip hop, and reggae. At her first exposure to music in the United States, she heard "rock being one of them, and I fell in love with it. [Now] I love rock music." Her debut album featured songs influenced by her Caribbean heritage, and she characterized her early sound as "a fusion of reggae, hip-hop and R&B, with a little something different thrown in." Music of the Sun and its sequel, A Girl Like Me, reveal her early dancehall influences. The Caribbean music that Rihanna grew up listening to is evident in her debut album. "Dancehall reggae sometimes seems like a furiously insular form of music, but... Rihanna is only the latest singer to discover how versatile the genre's spring-loaded electronic rhythms can be," said Kelefa Sanneh of the New York Times, giving praise to the blend of dancehall and reggae. The reggae-infused dancehall-pop track "Pon de Replay" and the girl-seducing-a-boy-to-be-her-boyfriend-themed "If It's Lovin' that You Want" are her debut singles, respectively. In an effort to develop as an artist, A Girl like Me uses elegant and mature ballads to convey the feelings and experiences of ordinary 18-year-old females. Slowly but surely, she distanced herself from her reggae and dancehall origins after her second album.

According to Rihanna, who has said, "to make music that could be heard in parts of the world that I'd never been to," her musical career has been an exploration of new concepts. She started including a lot of other genres, such pop, R&B, reggae, dubstep, hip hop, and electronic dance music (EDM), because of the controversial lyrics and subject matter. "Push Up on Me" and "Don't Stop the Music" are examples of the uptempo dance-pop that make up the bulk of Rihanna's Good Girl Gone Bad album, according to Slant Magazine's assessment. Touted as a watershed moment in her career, it marks a change from the Caribbean feel of her earlier albums. Song titles like "Don't Stop the Music" and "Shut Up and Drive" are reminiscent of the pop of the 1980s, but the record's second half reverts to more traditional R&B.

Rated R, which she recorded in the wake of her attack by ex-boyfriend Chris Brown in 2009, was significantly darker in tone and contained a wide range of emotions. Rihanna discusses the carefree and enthusiastic mood she was in when she was making Loud, her fifth studio album. Melodies, upbeat party music, and inspirational love ballads make up the CD. The hip-hop, R&B, dancehall, and dubstep styles included on Talk That Talk are comparable to those on Rated R. With "S&M" and "Birthday Cake" from Loud and Talk That Talk, she delves into sexuality; with "Man Down" and "Watch n' Learn" from the same album, she returns to her dancehall roots. With house singles like "Complicated," "Only Girl (In the World)," and "We Found Love," she also explored other musical genres. Sampling music from other artists' albums is another source of inspiration for her tracks.

What are the effects?

Madonna is Rihanna's hero and biggest influence, according to the singer. Becoming the "Black Madonna" was her lifelong goal, and she lauded Madonna for her capacity to always evolve and reinvent herself. It was said, "I think that Madonna was a great inspiration for me, especially on my earlier work. If I had to examine her evolution through time, I think she reinvented her clothing style and music with success every single time. And at the same time remained a real force in entertainment in the whole world."

Mariah Carey has also had a significant impact on Rihanna's career and music. Rihanna sang Carey's song "Hero" at her high school talent show when she was a teenager. She had previously said that "Vision of Love" by Mariah Carey "was the song that made [her] want to do music."

Bob Marley's reputation in the Caribbean meant that she would watch him on television when she was younger. It was said, "He's one of my favourite artists of all time – he really paved the way for every other artist out of the Caribbean" . As a tribute to the reggae icon, she constructed a shrine in her house and performed renditions of "Is This Love" and "Redemption Song" by Bob Marley and the Wailers at her concerts.

When she was a little girl, her neighbors began to call her "Robyn Redbreast" because she would walk around singing Whitney Houston songs like "A Whole New World" into her hairbrush. Along with that, she mentioned that Houston's rendition of "I Will Always Love You" was among the first songs she ever fell in love with, and she went on to say that it "was really inspiring, and it made me develop a passion for music, so really, she's partly responsible for me being here in this industry."

Beyoncé, Tupac, Janet Jackson, Aaliyah, and Destiny's Child were also influences on Rihanna. In addition to Prince, Fefe Dobson, Lil' Kim, Grace Jones, Celine Dion, and Alicia Keys are some of my musical heroes and influences. When asked about the music that influenced her, Rihanna said that she fell in love with rock as one of the first genres she heard in the United States. She said, "as I grow older, I want to know more about music. I want to discover more types of music" . Good Girl Gone Bad (2007) was her third studio album, and she said that Brandy's Afrodisiac (2004) was the major influence. Early on in her career, she drew heavily from reggae and dancehall, two styles of Caribbean music. The visuals for the "Rude Boy" music video drew inspiration from her Caribbean heritage.

**Stage and videos**

Beginning with "Unfaithful" (2006), Rihanna has collaborated with Anthony Mandler on over a dozen music videos. "We've done 16 videos together; they're not all tough, [...] Yeah, I mean, I'm known for the 'Disturbia's and the 'Russian Roulette's and things like that, but 'Only Girl (In the World)' is certainly an ethereal kind of empowering, beauty-filled video," said Mandler. MTV's Jocelyn Vena said, "Rihanna, like Madonna, also has a tendency to make truly thought-provoking music videos that fit the songs they represent. Smattered in between glitzier, more glamorous clips, Madge and Ri want us to think about bigger issues" . According to Jon Bream of the Star Tribune, "[i]n the tradition of Madonna and Janet Jackson, Rihanna has become the video vixen of the '00s... Rihanna has perfected the pout, the long-legged strut, and trend-setting hairdos that keep women and men alike checking her out on YouTube." George Epaminondas of InStyle considers Rihanna's music videos to be "cinematic" because of her "blend of lush island rhythms and swinging pop and... mischievous sensuality."

Her music videos, such as "We Found Love" and "Man Down," sometimes took the form of short films that dealt with themes including love triangles, abuse, and substance misuse romanticism. The video for Rihanna's "Umbrella" reflects her new persona and her entry into maturity. People have said that "Disturbia" has "dark, creepy" passages that are reminiscent of Thriller by Michael Jackson. In the music video for "Russian Roulette," Rihanna and her lover play the game on cushioned tables. One episode equated Rihanna's confrontation with Chris Brown to a nighttime chase by a fast automobile.

Three of Rihanna's 2011 music videos dealt with sensitive topics including sadomasochism, rape, and domestic abuse. Among the things the Parents Television Council had something to say about Rihanna's "Man Down" was the scene when she shoots a man at a train station. The Rape Crisis Centre criticized Rihanna's "We Found Love" due to the message it conveys about her and her love interest's drug-filled, unstable relationship. The Houston Press's Charne Graham defended Rihanna, writing, "Why should Rihanna's music videos get everyone riled up when others' equally sexual and controversial videos are in rotation? [...] she just like[s] to make music videos that give us something to talk about." Rihanna broke the record for most cumulative views by a female artist on Vevo, which surpassed 2 billion.

Regarding her performance at the Ottawa Bluesfest, Denis Armstrong of Canadian Online Explorer wrote, "her show was a Disney-esque choreographed fantasy of non-stop hip-swiveling, sassy attitude and personal endearments and a string of funky, sugar-free hits." A Billboard poll ranked her 2008 MTV Video Music Awards performance of "Disturbia" as the tenth best. The Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party strongly opposed her Good Girl Gone Bad Tour and its provocative leather outfits, calling for their outright prohibition. The Times drew comparisons between Rihanna's stage wardrobe and Janet Jackson's while commenting on the tour for her third album. They described her as "a vision of Ann Summers couture in thigh-high boots and a few scraps of black PVC." In an interview with British Vogue for October 2011, Rihanna explained that her performance outfits and public appearances are all an act. "[t]hat's not me. That's a part I play. You know, like it's a piece of art, with all these toys and textures to play with.".

As Rihanna's music and style have progressed, the media have closely tracked her every move. "A cookie-cutter teen queen" was how New York magazine characterized Rihanna in 2009, when they were praising her "ability to shift looks dramatically and with such ease" and describing her early style. Critics were quick to point out the similarities between Rihanna and Beyoncé when her second studio album, 2006's A Girl Like Me, came out. The subject of parallels between Beyoncé and Rihanna was discussed in an interview with Look magazine. Rihanna expressed her gratitude for being named with Beyoncé, but clarified that the two artists have distinct styles and are wonderful artists. During her early years with Def Jam, she felt claustrophobic due to the label's pop-princess image, as she disclosed on Oprah's Next Chapter. As Rihanna put it, "I felt like they were giving me a blueprint. [...] They had a brand, they had an idea of what they wanted me to be without figuring out who I was." Rihanna ditched her innocent image for a more edgier look with a new hairstyle, drawing inspiration from Charlize Theron's bob cut in the 2005 science fiction thriller Æon Flux, the year of her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007). Like other pop stars who have embraced a more rebellious image, she took cues from Christina Aguilera and Janet Jackson.

"Throughout the duration of her now 10-year career, [Rihanna] has experienced one of the most profound aesthetic transformations the world has ever witnessed," observed Nico Amarca of Highsnobiety magazine. Since the release of her third album, her look and dress have undergone many changes, including haircuts. She mentioned that her fascination with clothing began with her mother and that she "used to watch her [mother] get dressed" when she was a little girl. According to Jess Cartner-Morley of The Guardian, "Rihanna's wardrobe is the most talked-about, influential and dissected in pop right now" and whatever she wears "is immediately reproduced on the high street, because it sells." Rihanna herself has said, "It's become more about taking a risk... I always look for the most interesting silhouette or something that's a little off" when building her own wardrobe. Miranda Lambert, a country artist, has said, "I don't necessarily get inspired by the whole no-bra thing, but I love that you never know what she's going to wear. It always keeps you guessing, which makes her sassy and interesting." in reference to Rihanna's unconventional sense of style.

Olivier Rousteing, a designer for Balmain, lauded Rihanna in an interview with Alexa Chung at the 2015 Vogue Festival. He drew stylistic comparisons between Rihanna and Madonna, David Bowie, Michael Jackson, and Prince, among other legendary music legends. In an interview with MTV in May 2013, feminist and author of The Vagina Monologues Eve Ensler stated, "I'm a huge Rihanna fan, I think she has a kind of agency over her sexuality and she's open about her sexuality, she has enormous grace and she's immensely talented." Also, Rihanna commented on the cultural expectation for pop stars to be role models, saying, "[being a role model] became more of my job than I wanted it to be. But no, I just want to make music. That's it."

Despite being called one of the sexiest women of her generation, Rihanna has come clean about her feelings about being used as a sex symbol: "it's definitely flattering, but also uncomfortable." Rihanna has been featured on the covers of numerous magazines, including Maxim, FHM, Rolling Stone, and GQ's "Men of the Year" issue in December 2012, making her the first woman to do so.

In 2007, Rihanna attended the Met Gala for the very first time. In the years that followed, she made eight more appearances, the most famous of which was in 2015 at China: Through the Looking Glass, when her yellow Guo Pei-designed dress became the event's talk of the town, reaching one billion views on social media. Pietra Brettkelly's documentary Yellow Is Forbidden focused on the outfit, which had been handmade for two years before to Rihanna's discovery of it.

Wearing a Maison Margiela creation, she co-chaired the 2018 event with the subject Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination.

Rihanna, one of the wealthiest celebrities, with an estimated net worth of $1.7 billion in 2021, making her the wealthiest female artist in the world. Forbes has named her one of the 100 most powerful women of 2019. Debuting in 2020, she claimed third position on the list of Britain's wealthiest musicians, according to the Sunday Times Rich List.

In the years after the release of Good Girl Gone Bad (2007), Rihanna has become an icon in the worlds of pop music and high fashion. "The closest thing to a Thriller that 2007/08 is likely to produce" was how Digital Spy's Nick Levine characterized Good Girl Gone Bad. Rolling Stone ranks her album Anti (which includes the song "Umbrella") and single "Umbrella" among their 500 Greatest Albums and Songs of All Time, respectively. According to a Billboard editor, her song "Work" was instrumental in making dancehall popular in the United States. Pitchfork music reviewer Jayson Greene said of Rihanna, "You are the most consequential singer of the last decade."

We want for the excitement that comes from hearing a dozen or more brilliant ideas brought to life by a single voice, and Rihanna Voice has become an industry-wide concept, similar to the intellectual property of the Korg synth or LinnDrum. That voice has essentially belonged to Rihanna for the last ten years. She will likely create a fresh comet trail of Rihanna imitators now that she is joyfully destroying it. The authentic item, with its icy coolness and underground heat, will inevitably be absent from all of them.

Rihanna was named the fifth largest female performer of all time and the tenth biggest Hot 100 artist of all time in August 2018 by Billboard. In addition, Rihanna was named Billboard's #1 Hot 100 artist of the 2010s. Time magazine's pop stardom ranking criteria, which takes into account both historical and current relevance, placed Rihanna second in 2014. 4Music, a UK music station, also voted Rihanna 2013's most influential pop performer. Lorde, Little Mix, Rita Ora, Billie Eilish, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, Ellie Goulding, Kim Petras, Jennie from Blackpink, Marilyn Manson, Jessie J, SZA, Fifth Harmony, Camila Cabello, Demi Lovato, Alexandra Stan, Grimes, Sleater-Kinney, Tegan and Sara, Cover Drive, Cher Lloyd, Bad Gyal, and Era Istrefi are just a few of the many artists whose work has been directly influenced by Rihanna.

As a result of her meteoric rise to fame, Rihanna was named Forbes' 2012 Social Networking Superstar at number one. Stella McCartney gushed about Rihanna, saying, "She's one of the coolest, hottest, most talented, most liked, most listened to, most followed, most impressive artists at work today. But she does it in her own stride. She works hard, very hard. She gives to her fans, friends, and foundation not just herself but her energy and spirit." In 2018, Rihanna was named one of the best dressed women by luxury fashion retailer Net-a-Porter. Time magazine included Rihanna on its 100 Most Influential People in the World issue in 2012 and 2018.

Rihanna is known as Barbados's "Ambassador for Culture and Youth," an honorary position. David Thompson, a former prime minister of Barbados, established "Rihanna Day" on February 22, 2008. Barbadians commemorate Rihanna's birthday annually, even though it is not a legal holiday. The Harvard Foundation honored Rihanna with the title of "Humanitarian of the Year" in February 2017. As a former U.S. president, Barack Obama, lauded Rihanna's work at her third annual "Diamond Ball" and said, "[She's] become a powerful force in the fight to give people dignity." On September 20, 2018, Rihanna was appointed as an Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary by the Barbados government, with the special duty of promoting "education, tourism and investment for the island."

Derrick Johnson presented Rihanna with the President's Award at the BET-hosted 2020 NAACP Image Awards. The president said: "Rihanna has not only enjoyed a groundbreaking career as an artist and musician but has also distinguished herself as a stellar public servant. From her business achievements through Fenty to her tremendous record as an activist and philanthropist, Rihanna epitomizes the type of character, grace, and devotion to justice that we seek to highlight in our President's Award."

With the launch of Reb'l Fleur in January 2011, Rihanna debuted her fragrance line. Rolling Stone reports that Reb'l Fleur was a commercial triumph, with 2011 sales projected to reach $80 million.

With the introduction of Rebelle in February 2012, Rihanna launched her second fragrance. Known for his work on Reb'l Fleur's commercial campaign, filmmaker Anthony Mandler also filmed Rebelle's.

Released in November 2012, Nude was Rihanna's third fragrance.

On September 14, 2013, Rihanna debuted her fourth fragrance for ladies, Rogue. In 2014, she introduced a version of the scent for men, Rogue Men.

There was an announcement that Rihanna is a co-owner of the music streaming service Tidal on March 30, 2015, together with other musicians. The service's forte is providing clients with lossless audio and HD music videos. In the first three months of 2015, Jay-Z bought out Aspiro, the parent company of Tidal. Among the sixteen artist stakeholders that co-own Tidal—among them, Jay-Z and Beyoncé—the majority possess a 3% ownership position. Other stakeholders include Kanye West, Madonna, Chris Martin, Nicki Minaj, and others. “The challenge is to get everyone to respect music again, to recognize its value,” Jay-Z remarked in his Tidal announcement.

Having founded her record company, Westbury Road Entertainment, in 2005, Rihanna said in 2016 that she will be releasing her songs under that label.

Her Barbados home is located at Westbury Road. Universal Music Group would be in charge of distribution. Melissa Forde, who also happens to be the label's photographer, and KazeLoon are among the artists that make up Westbury Road Entertainment.

Rihanna and Benoit Demouy established Fr8me, a hair and beauty agency, in November 2015. This Los Angeles-based agency first opened its doors to help artists get red carpet appearances, commercials, magazine shoots, and ad campaigns. Mylah Morales, Jason Bolden, Patricia Morales, and Marcia Hamilton are all members of Rihanna's team of hairstylists, makeup artists, and wardrobe stylists. The singer has said, "Hair, makeup, and styling play an important role in creativity; I am very involved with that part of my process, so this agency was an organic thing for me to do." Along with Fr8me, Rihanna also launched a picture agency named "A Dog Ate My Homework" that represents Deborah Anderson and Erik Asla.

The brand Fenty

Launched in May 2019, Rihanna's Fenty label was part of the high-end fashion conglomerate LVMH. Not only was she the first woman of color to head an LVMH brand, but she was also the first woman to launch an original LVMH brand. The brand debuted its apparel, accessories, and footwear in a pop-up shop in Paris on May 22, 2019, before going global on May 29, via its website. For LVMH, it was the first new line since 1987. The debut of the revolutionary fashion label prompted Rihanna to express her gratitude for a "unique opportunity to develop a fashion house in the luxury sector, with no artistic limits." However, in February 2021, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic's effects, Rihanna and LVMH chose to "put on hold" Fenty and focus on expanding the SavagexFenty lingerie line.

To keep her music career and her commercial dealings completely separate, Rihanna never uses her maiden name in any of her non-musical ventures. Regarding the commercial usage of the Fenty name, Rihanna sued her father Ronald Fenty in January 2019. The complaint states that Rihanna's Fenty Beauty cosmetics line suffered financial harm as a result of false advertising linking her father's Fenty Entertainment to the singer. Rihanna withdrew her case against her dad in September 2021.

The beauty brand Fenty

Under the umbrella of LVMH's Kendo Brands, Rihanna debuted her Fenty Beauty cosmetics line in 2017. Forbes reports that Rihanna is the sole owner of Fenty Beauty. As part of the $10 million deal, Rihanna planned to launch a line of cosmetics. Fenty Beauty's debut collection debuted in shops and online on September 8, 2017, reaching more than 150 countries. Its varied selection for all skin tones earned great praise, and the assortment comprised blotting sheets, blush compacts, bronzers, highlighters, foundations, and lip glosses. According to Time, Fenty Beauty is one of "The 25 Best Inventions of 2017" because of its extensive product line. As a result of the "Fenty Effect," other cosmetics companies started incorporating more diverse color palettes into their advertising and product development. "Suddenly beauty houses - niche, establishment and those in between - began extending their shade ranges to accommodate a wider variety of skin tones. Forty shades became the new standard."

In other words, Savage X Fenty

Savage X Fenty was Rihanna's lingerie line that debuted in 2018. In her pursuit of an inclusive brand, Rihanna had the idea for the range. A wide choice of sizes and colors are available for the products. At September 2018's New York Fashion Week, she exhibited the label. The inclusion of plus size models in the brand's promotions has received mostly good reviews, while some fans have voiced concerns about the lack of plus size options.

New York Fashion Week took place at the Barclays Center in September 2019, when Rihanna promoted the brand once again in a presentation. Models Alex Wek, Bella Hadid, Cara Delevingne, and Laverne Cox were among the guests, as were singers Normani and 21 Savage. The Savage X Fenty Show debuted on Amazon Prime Video on September 20, 2019, and it featured performances from Tierra Whack, Fat Joe, Big Sean, DJ Khaled, Halsey, ASAP Ferg, Big Sean, Migos, and Big Sean. In 2020, the program was revived for a third time, and artists such Rico Nasty, Big Sean, Miguel, Rosalía, Bad Bunny, Ella Mai, Lizzo, and Travis Scott made appearances. On October 2, 2020, this adaptation made its debut on Amazon Prime Video as well.

Affluence Skin by Fenty

In July of 2020, Rihanna debuted her Fenty Skin line of skin care products.

It's Fenty Hair.

Rihanna debuted her Fenty Hair hair care line in June 2024. All hair kinds, textures, and habits should be able to use the brand's products.

Various other endeavors

Rihanna has dabbled in a number of different fields. Secret Body Spray signed Rihanna as an endorser in October 2005. Along with their support of Rihanna's 2010 album, Last Girl on Earth, Optus included Rihanna in an advertisement. Rihanna and Pitbull were both featured in a Kodak ad that same year. Along with her fourth studio album, Rated R(2009), she released a picture book in October 2010 that featured images from her Last Girl on Earth tour. Nivea and Vita Coco used Rihanna as their 2011 face.

Styled to Rock, her debut television series, debuted in August 2012 on Sky Living in the United Kingdom. Henry Holland, Rihanna, Nicola Roberts, and Lysa Cooper are among the famous faces that lend a hand to emerging British designers in this 10-week series. On October 25, 2013, Bravo debuted Styled to Rock in the United States. With the help of MAC Cosmetics, Rihanna debuted her "RiRi hearts MAC" beauty ranges for summer, autumn, and Christmas 2013 in 2013. Budweiser, a lager producing firm, announced in July 2013 that Rihanna and Jay-Z will be joining their worldwide "Made For Music" campaign.

Rihanna has always wanted to be a fashion designer, and she made that ambition known early on in her career. That "fashion has always been my defense mechanism" was her response. Rihanna revealed her first collaboration with Armani in November 2011. With the help of her stylist Adam Selman, Rihanna debuted a line of women's clothing for the British label River Island at London Fashion Week in February 2013. They released three further compilations under the label. After that, Rihanna worked with a slew of fashion houses, including as Dior, Stance, and Manolo Blahnik, among many others.

Dior made history in March 2015 when they selected Rihanna as their new face, making her the first Black woman to hold that position.

Puma is a fashion sportswear company that Rihanna joined in 2014 as creative director. She is now in charge of the women's collection, which features apparel and footwear collaborations. Online pre-sale for Rihanna's first Puma trainer sold out in three hours the following year. Throughout the subsequent two years, Rihanna unveiled a plethora of more footwear in a variety of styles and hues, each of which garnered favorable reviews from reviewers and consumers alike. Critics were gushing over Rihanna's 2016 New York Fashion Week collection, which was her debut as a fashion designer alongside Puma.

**Career in acting**

Arriving in August 2006, Rihanna's acting debut was a brief appearance in the direct-to-DVD picture Bring It On: All or Nothing. The May 18, 2012, theatrical release of Battleship was Rihanna's debut feature film. Raikes played the role of Petty Officer (GM2). "Just fine in the rather generic role" was how the New York Times described Rihanna's performance in the film, which was loosely based on the same video game. Critics were generally critical of the piece.

Based on Adam Rex's The True Meaning of Smekday, the 2015 animated feature picture Home featured Jim Parsons, Jennifer Lopez, and Rihanna as Tip.

Season five, the last, of Bates Motel included Rihanna in a guest appearance as Marion Crane. Critics were unanimous in their praise for the presentation. The Luc Besson picture Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, based on the Valérian and Laureline comic book series, also featured Rihanna in a significant part. Among the all-female cast in the heist film Ocean's 8, directed by Gary Ross and released by Warner Bros. on June 8, 2018, Rihanna was one of the stars. The film also starred Dane DeHaan and Cara Delevingne. STX Entertainment released it in the US on July 21, 2017. An enormous financial success, the film made $300 million globally.

Rumors circulated in August 2018 that Donald Glover and Rihanna had been secretly filming a project in Cuba that summer, named Guava Island. Letitia Wright and Nonso Anozie were also involved, and Hiro Murai—Glover's Atlanta collaborator—was directing. The full-length film's trailer debuted on November 24 at New Zealand's PHAROS festival. Only in April 2019 did ads for Guava Island show up on Spotify, hinting to an event coming on "Saturday Night | April 13," marking the official announcement of the project's specifics. The film's April 13 release and subsequent disclosure that Regency Enterprises had funded it were both handled by Amazon Studios.

== Protesting

To aid children with terminal illnesses, she established the Believe Foundation in 2006.

Among the many celebrities chosen to represent several international charities as 2007 Cartier Love Charity Bracelet Ambassadors was Rihanna. The H&M Fashion Against AIDS line, which debuted in February 2008, included designs by Rihanna and other celebrities in an effort to battle HIV/AIDS and increase public awareness of the disease. The Believe Foundation was the beneficiary of Rihanna's 2008 A Girl's Night Out charity performances. Anyone might attend the shows without paying a dime. The plan all along was for sponsors and advertising to chip in so that underprivileged kids could get the medical care, school materials, and gifts they needed. Along with fifteen other female musicians, Rihanna co-wrote the 2008 hit "Just Stand Up!" in September. On September 5, 2008, at the "Stand Up to Cancer" TV special, the group performed the song live. The fundraiser received the earnings from the single. There was a $100 million boost for cancer research thanks to the TV special.

To remember her grandparents, Clara and Lionel Braithwaite, Rihanna established the Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF) in 2012. Education initiatives and the Clara Braithwaite Center for Oncology and Nuclear Medicine at Barbados's Queen Elizabeth Hospital are among the activities. The CLF holds a charity event called the Diamond Ball once a year. Both the first and second events were quite successful, raising over $2 million and $3 million, respectively, in 2014. House of Blues fundraiser concert by Rihanna took place on February 12, 2012, with proceeds going to Children's Hospital's Mark Taper-Johnny Mercer Artists Program and Children's Orthopaedic Center. In response to Hurricane Sandy, Rihanna donated $100,000 to a food bank in November 2012. Rihanna helped raise awareness and funds for the MAC Viva Glam campaign on January 3, 2014, which supports all people affected by HIV/AIDS. After donating $5,000,000 to COVID-19 assistance in March 2020, Rihanna continued to help by donating PPE to New York and offered her native country of Barbados ventilators worth $700,000. During the lockdown in April 2020, Rihanna doubled Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's donation of $2,100,000, bringing the total to $4,200,000, to aid victims of domestic abuse and their children.

Funds for climate resilience and fairness came from the Clara Lionel Foundation. Climate justice received thirteen million euros in 2022.

Defending a cause

Rihanna spoke out against the Religious Freedom Restoration Act in Indiana during her NCAA March Madness performance. The law permits individuals and businesses to claim religious affiliation as a defense against allegations of LGBT discrimination. The internet video "23 Ways You Could Be Killed If You Are Black in America" included Rihanna and other famous people. Joining forces with the We Are Here Movement, the video aired a rallying cry against police violence.

One day after US President Donald Trump's inauguration, in January 2017, Rihanna was among the many protesters that gathered in New York City for the 2017 Women's March. Additionally, she has voiced her disapproval of President Trump's immigration policy, particularly his response to the 2019 El Paso and Dayton massacres and Executive Order 13769, which aimed to prohibit individuals from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen from entering the US. Following the controversy over Colin Kaepernick's participation in the national anthem demonstrations, she announced in October 2019 that she will not be performing at the 2020 Super Bowl halftime show. While Indian farmers were protesting the agricultural bills in February 2021, Rihanna took to Twitter to offer her support.

Rihanna has urged a reorganization of the world's money system to alleviate poverty and climate change, particularly in nations that are bearing the brunt of the latter.

="life outside of work"

The penthouse in Lower Manhattan that Rihanna owns is worth $14 million. To further her proximity to her FENTY fashion company, she also bought a £7 million home in West London in June 2018. After a break-in six months prior, Rihanna decided to put her Hollywood Hills property up for sale in December 2018. Supposedly, $10.4 million was the asking price for the estate. As of 2012, Forbes has been tracking Rihanna's earnings.

In 2007, Rihanna started dating Chris Brown, an American singer. After their domestic violence case became public knowledge, their relationship terminated in February 2009. From 2009 until 2016, she was in an on-again, off-again romance with Canadian artist Drake. In January 2013, Rihanna stated to Rolling Stone that she and Brown had reconciled, even though Brown was still on probation for the domestic violence case they were involved in in 2009. After months of public conjecture in 2012, they finally reunited. During an interview in May 2013, Brown said that he and Rihanna had split up once more. The relationship between Rihanna and Saudi billionaire Hassan Jameel started in 2017. There was a breakup in January 2020.

In May of 2021, American rapper ASAP Rocky announced his relationship status with Rihanna. On March 13, 2022, she gave birth to their first son, RZA Athelston Mayers, who was named after RZA, the founder and commander of the Wu-Tang Clan. Halftime performance in February 2023 saw Rihanna announce she was expecting her second child; on August 1, she gave birth to their second boy, Riot Rose Mayers. This made her the first person to lead a Super Bowl halftime show while pregnant.

Case involving domestic violence

A cancellation of Rihanna's performance at the 51st Annual Grammy Awards occurred on February 8, 2009. There were rumors that her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown had attacked her. His surrender to authorities led to his arraignment on charges of criminal threat making. Brown faced charges of assault and criminal threats on March 5, 2009. In response to a photo that surfaced online showing Rihanna's visible injuries, a group called STOParazzi proposed "Rihanna's Law" to "deter employees of law enforcement agencies from releasing photos or information that exploits crime victims." VH1's Gil Kaufman noted that the "nonstop coverage of the Rihanna/Brown case has brought up a number of issues regarding the privacy of alleged victims of domestic violence, including the decision by almost all major news outlets to divulge the identity of the victim—which is not typically done in domestic-violence cases" and talked about the controversial distribution of the photo. Subpoenaed to testify at a preliminary hearing in Los Angeles on June 22, 2009, was Rihanna. Brown admitted admission to criminal assault on June 22, 2009. The judge sentenced Brown to five years of probation and stipulated that, outside of public events, he must maintain a distance of fifty yards (46 meters) from Rihanna, with a subsequent reduction to ten yards (9 meters).

Brown gave his first public interview on the domestic violence issue on September 2, 2009, during a pre-recorded Larry King Live interview. He talked about his upbringing in a home where his stepfather sexually molested his mother, Joyce Hawkins, and how his lawyer, Mark Geragos, accompanied him to the interview. When asked about the facts of his attack on Rihanna, Brown stated, "I'm in shock, because, first of all, that's not who I am as a person, and that's not who I promise I want to be."

* Accolades and honors*

Rihanna is one of the best-selling musicians of all time, with over 250 million albums sold globally as of September 2018. Among the many accolades bestowed upon her over her career are nine Grammys, twelve Billboard Music Awards, thirteen American Music Awards, and eight People's Choice Awards. The American Music Awards bestowed the "Icon Award" upon Rihanna in 2013, while the MTV Video Music Awards bestowed the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award upon her in 2016. There are six Guinness World Records that she has. After shattering the Guinness World Record for digital single sales of over 58 million in 2012, Rihanna became the best-selling digital artist in the nation, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and her albums sold over 10 million in the US alone.

Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) officials revealed on July 1, 2015, that Rihanna's song certifications have topped 100 million Gold and Platinum. With this achievement, Rihanna has surpassed the RIAA's 100 million cumulative singles award barrier and now holds the record for most digital single awards. Her seven million record sales in the UK put her in third place among female artists this century. Billboard reports that she has sold 54 million copies of her albums globally.

When it comes to the US Billboard Hot 100 list, Rihanna ranks third all-time with fourteen number one hits. She has the most entries (36), top tens (23), and number of No. 1 singles (10), and Billboard has declared her the best Mainstream Top 40 chart artist of the last 20 years. In the UK, Rihanna's album sales were 6 million and her single sales were over 18 million as of March 2014. Not only does she have more million-selling singles than the Beatles, but she is also the second best-selling female artist in the nation and the tenth best-selling overall. On the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Airplay charts, Rihanna has seven number one hits; on the Rhythmic list, she has sixteen. More than 30 of her songs have been in the top ten in Australia and the United Kingdom.

* Recordings

Recordings made in studio

Solemn Gratitude (2005)

Among Us (2006)

The (2007) film Good Girl Gone Bad

Graded R in 2009

Very (2010)

That Thing Called Talk (2011)

Defiant in 2012 (2016)

Against (2016)

Movie List ==

Let It Go: No Holds Barred (2006)

The 2012 Battleship

There Will Be No More (2013)

Domestic (2015)

A Thousand Planets and Valerian (2017)

Eighth Ocean (2018)

Island of Guava in 2019