Born into a poor, abusive family, Rihanna constantly strives to move forward. She became a music star known around the world and then became a self-made billionaire at the age of 33.

Extreme childhood in poor Barbados

Rihanna (Robyn Rihanna Fenty) was born and raised in Barbados, where the singer describes herself as “an island girl who rode bikes, ran barefoot, and flew kites in cemeteries.” Her childhood was filled with beatings and days of living in a haunting scene of domestic violence. Rihanna has always been afraid of Ronald Fenty – her alcoholic, drug addicted father. “He makes money and half of it goes to alcohol,” she shared with Rolling Stone in 2011. Ronald is also willing to spend all the money in the house to satisfy his drug cravings despite his family running out of food.

Rihanna had an unhappy childhood when her father was an addict and often witnessed domestic violence

PHOTO: INSTAGRAM MONICA FENTY

“My family fell apart because of my father’s addiction,” Rihanna tearfully confided to Oprah Winfrey during a show. His poverty, drunkenness, and uncontrolled addictions caused her parents to often quarrel: “My parents had an abusive relationship. My father was an abuser and he beat my mother many times.” The owner of the hit Diamonds once confided: “Even when I was a toddler, I noticed that my parents were constantly arguing over small things.”
As the eldest sister in the family, from an early age, little Rihanna knew how to help her father sell clothes on the street, buy candy to package and sell to friends at school to make a profit to support the family. The days of traveling to make a living and saving every penny helped the Umbrella vocalist soon become independent. Although she suffered many beatings from her father, she also admitted that this man helped her become stronger and tougher. When her family broke up, she and her mother became the breadwinners and worked hard to take care of their two younger siblings.

A series of accumulated stresses during her childhood years left Rihanna mentally traumatized, and she had to fight terrible headaches from the age of 8 to 14.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Not only that, when she was in school, she became the subject of discrimination and bullying at school because her family was poor and her skin color was different from her classmates. “I was teased throughout my school life. They called me insulting names that I didn’t even understand, making fun of my skin color…”, the singer shared with Glamour. Despite suffering many disadvantages and humiliations from home to class, Rihanna’s mother, Monica, is proud to say that her daughter is always an A student.
From global music star to self-made female billionaire
Rihanna’s unhappy life turned to a new page in 2003, when she was discovered by producer Evan Rogers and then moved from her hometown of Barbados to the US to develop her music career. In 2005, when little Robyn Rihanna Fenty turned 17, the smash hit Pon de Replay was born, marking the beginning of her path to becoming one of the most successful female singers in the world.

A series of accumulated stresses during her childhood years left Rihanna mentally traumatized, and she had to fight terrible headaches from the age of 8 to 14.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

Not only that, when she was in school, she became the subject of discrimination and bullying at school because her family was poor and her skin color was different from her classmates. “I was teased throughout my school life. They called me insulting names that I didn’t even understand, making fun of my skin color…”, the singer shared with Glamour. Despite suffering many disadvantages and humiliations from home to class, Rihanna’s mother, Monica, is proud to say that her daughter is always an A student.
From global music star to self-made female billionaire
Rihanna’s unhappy life turned to a new page in 2003, when she was discovered by producer Evan Rogers and then moved from her hometown of Barbados to the US to develop her music career. In 2005, when little Robyn Rihanna Fenty turned 17, the smash hit Pon de Replay was born, marking the beginning of her path to becoming one of the most successful female singers in the world.

The 33-year-old singer became rich quickly when she turned her attention to business, becoming an influential figure in the world of beauty and fashion.

PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK

 

2017 marked Rihanna’s transition from an entertainer to a businesswoman. She founded Fenty Beauty with the ambition to create a cosmetics brand that all women in the world can use. The company focuses on diversity and comprehensiveness, targeting a wide range of customers. A year later, the brand’s products were sold in Sephora stores, generating $550 million in revenue, far surpassing other emerging cosmetic brands such as Kim Kardashian’s KKW Beauty, Kylie Cosmetics by Kylie Jenner…
Fenty Beauty is a joint venture with French luxury group LVMH run by billionaire Bernard Arnault and is valued at about $2.8 billion. Of which, Rihanna owns half. According to Forbes, currently Fenty Beauty is still growing with optimistic signs. In its 2020 annual report, LVMH said Fenty Beauty continues to “maintain its appeal as a leading makeup brand.”

Rihanna’s beauty products are always aimed at a wide range of customers, helping all women around the world feel cared for, cared for, and have the right to be beautiful.

PHOTO: INSTAGRAM NV

Fenty Beauty isn’t Rihanna’s only billion-dollar brand. The 33-year-old singer also makes a fortune from the lingerie brand Savage x Fenty, which is valued at $1 billion in which she holds a 30% stake. With the business motto always aiming for diversity, the lingerie brand of 8X female stars is always promoted with models of diverse gender, race, size, and body shape. Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty always extends its arms to plus-size, transgender or disabled models.
After many years of hard work, Rihanna is now not only known as an expensive singer but also a self-made billionaire. She owns a fortune of 1.7 billion USD, mainly from the cosmetics and lingerie business. This impressive figure helps the 33-year-old singer become the richest female singer in the music industry and the second richest woman in showbiz after “media mogul” Oprah Winfrey.

The 33-year-old billionaire took photos for his Savage X Fenty brand

PHOTO: INSTAGRAM NV

“Even if you don’t like her music, she has created a real sense of style in the world of fashion and beauty,” consumer consultant Shannon Coyne said. Rihanna.