October 21, 2023 – Rihanna, An Example of Black Excellence

Rihanna is a singer, songwriter and businesswoman who was born in 1988 in Barbados, an island in the Caribbean. Her full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty.  She has achieved success in business and music as well as made meaningful philanthropic contributions.  Her estimated net worth is $1.4 billion in 2023 according to Forbes magazine. To put it into perspective, Beyonce is reportedly worth $800 million and Taylor Swift $1.1 billion. 

Rihanna is reported to be America’s youngest self-made billionaire. Her wealth has been attributed to her successful make-up company, Fenty Beauty, which she co-owns with French luxury retailer LVMH. In 2020, Fenty Beauty brought in $550 million in revenue and doubled that in 2022. She is part owner of Tidal, Jay-Z’s streaming company. She is also part owner of Savage X, a lingerie line that Bloomberg reports could be valued over $3 billion.

Rihanna is a philanthropist. In 2008, she created her Believe Foundation to help terminally ill children.  She has performed a series of charity concerts entitled “A Girls Night Out” to benefit the Believe Foundation. 

In 2008, Rihanna contributed to the song “Just Stand Up” with 15 other female artists who performed the song live at the Stand Up to Cancer event.  The television special raised $100 million for cancer research.  In 2007, she was named one of the Cartier’s Love Charity Bracelet Ambassadors.

In 2012, she founded the Clara Lionel Foundation in honor of her grandparents.  Programs include the Clara Braithwaite Center for Oncology and Nuclear Medicine at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Barbados and education programs.  The inaugural event in 2014 raised over $2 million. The second event raised over $3 million.

In March 2020, Rihanna gave $100,000 to a food bank serving victims of Hurricane Sandy.  She donated $5,000,000 to COVID-19 relief with additional donations of personal protective equipment to the state of New York.

In April 2020, she donated $2,100,000 (matched with a donation of $2.3 million from Jack Dorsey) to provide support and resources for individuals and children suffering from domestic violence amid the COVID lockdown. 

In 2022, Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation gave $13 million euros to climate justice.