Rihanna – USA Celebrity, Singer

Robyn Rihanna Fenty (born February twenty, 1988), higher called Rihanna, could be a Barbadian recording artist and model. Born in Saint Michael, Barbados, Rihanna moved to the USA at the age of sixteen to pursue a recording career beneath the steerage of record producer Evan Rogers. She subsequently signed a contract with Def Jam Recordings once auditioning for then-label head Jay-Z.

In 2005, Rihanna released her debut studio album, Music of the Sun, that peaked among the highest 10 of the Billboard two hundred and options the Billboard Hot a hundred hit single “Pon de Replay”. but a year later, she released her second studio album, a lady Like Me (2006), that peaked among the highest 5 of the Billboard albums chart, and made her 1st US much loved hit single, “SOS”, similarly as Billboard Hot a hundred prime 10 entries “Unfaithful” and “Break It Off”. Rihanna‘s third studio album, sensible lady Gone dangerous (2007), peaking at variety 2 on the Billboard two hundred, featured 5 prime 10 hits as well as 3 US much loved hit singles?”Umbrella”, “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia”?and the worldwide hit “Don’t Stop the Music.” The album was nominated for 9 Grammy Awards, winning Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for “Umbrella,” that options Jay-Z.

Rihanna has sold over twelve million albums,worldwide in her four-year career span and has received many accolades, as well as the 2007 World Music Awards for World’s Best-Selling Pop feminine Artist and feminine Entertainer of the Year, similarly because the 2008 yankee Music Awards for Favorite Soul/R&B feminine Artist and Favorite Pop/Rock feminine Artist. Rihanna has attained 5 Hot a hundred much loved singles, changing into the primary of 2 feminine artists with the foremost variety ones attained among the 2000s. She additionally is one amongst Barbados’ honorary cultural ambassadors.

Rihanna was born in Saint Michael, Barbados to Ronald Fenty, a warehouse supervisor, and Monica Fenty, an accountant. Her mother, a native of Guyana, is Afro-Guyanese and her father is Barbadian and Irish. She is that the oldest of 3 siblings; 2 younger brothers, Rorrey and Rajad Fenty. She began singing at round the age of seven. Her childhood was deeply suffering from her father’s addiction to crack cocaine and parent’s rocky wedding, that ended when she was fourteen years recent. Rihanna attended Charles F. Broome Memorial faculty, a primary faculty in Barbados, and then the Combermere faculty, where she fashioned a musical trio with 2 of her classmates at the age of fifteen. In 2004 she won the Miss Combermere Beauty Pageant. She was a military cadet in an exceedingly sub-military programme that trained with the military of Barbados and Shontelle was her drill sergeant.

At the age of fifteen, she fashioned a woman cluster with 2 of her classmates. In 2003 friends introduced Rihanna and her 2 bandmates to record producer Evan Rogers, who was vacationing in Barbados together with his wife. The cluster auditioned for Rogers, who said that “the minute Rihanna walked into the space, it absolutely was just like the different 2 ladies did not exist.” whereas auditioning for Rogers, Rihanna sang Destiny’s Child’s cowl of “Emotion”. Over subsequent year, Rihanna and her mom shuttled back and forth to Rogers home in Stamford, Connecticut. Then, shortly when turning sixteen, she relocated within the us and moved in with Rogers and his wife. Carl Sturken helped Rihanna record a four-song demo, including the ballad “Last Time,” a canopy of Whitney Houston?s hit “For the Love of You” and what would become her 1st hit, “Pon de Replay” to send to numerous recording firms. It took a year to record the demos, as a result of she was getting to faculty and would solely record throughout summer and yuletide faculty breaks. Rihanna’s demo created its thanks to Def Jam, that invited her to audition for the label’s then-president, Jay-Z, who quickly signed her.

2005?2006: Music of the Sun and a woman Like Me

After signing with Def Jam, she spent subsequent 3 months recording and finishing her debut album. The album featured production from Evan Rogers, Carl Sturken, Stargate and Poke & Tone. She 1st collaborated with rapper Memphis Bleek on his fourth studio album 534 before her debut. She released her debut single, “Pon de Replay”, on August twenty two, 2005, that peaked at range 2 on the Billboard Hot a hundred. It conjointly became a worldwide hit where it peaked inside the highest 10 across fifteen countries. Her debut album, Music of the Sun, was released in August 2005 within the us. The album reached range 10 on the Billboard two hundred, selling 69,000 copies in its 1st week. The album has sold over 2 millions copies worldwide and is certified gold by the Recording trade Association of America, denoting shipments to US retailers of over five hundred,000 units.

“Pon de Replay” (2005)

“Pon de Replay” is Rihanna‘s debut single. The song encompasses the reggae genre employing a mixture of dance-pop and R&B.

Her music was marketed inside the soca and reggae genres attributable to her Caribbean descent. The album received mixed reviews by music critics. Rolling Stone magazine rated it a pair of.5 out of five stars and described as lacking the replay price, ingenuity and rhythm of the only with “generic vocal hiccups and frills” people R&B inflecting upon her “Caribbean charm”. Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine described the album as a “glut of juvenile R&B chanteuses ” and described her lead single “Pon de Replay” as “a dancehall-pop mixture that owes lots of its sweat and shimmy to Beyonc?’s “Baby Boy”.” A reviewer for Entertainment Weekly commented that the “dancehall/R&B debut is crammed with chintzy production and maudlin arrangements that block out the Music of the Sun.” The albums second single, “If It’s Lovin’ that you simply Want” was less successful than “Pon de Replay”, having managed a peak position of range thirty-six within the US, and range eleven on the united kingdom Singles Chart. In Australia, eire and New Zealand the only proved to be well-received reaching the highest 10 in those countries. However, the third single, “Let Me” was solely released in Japan, peaking at range eight.

A month when the discharge of her debut album, she began acting on her second studio album. The album contained production from record producers Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken who created most of her debut album, Stargate, J. R. Rotem and label-mate singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. whereas recording the album, Rihanna served as a gap act for Gwen Stefani to push her debut album. The lead single, “SOS”, peaked at beloved on the Billboard Hot a hundred, changing into her 1st number-one within the us. a woman Like Me was released in April 2006, but eight months later of her debut. The album reached range 5 on the Billboard two hundred selling a hundred and fifteen,000 copies in its 1st week and has been certified platinum by the RIAA, having shipped over 1,000,000 units. Internationally, the album peaked at beloved on the highest Canadian Albums, 5 on the united kingdom Albums Chart and range 5 on the Irish Album Chart. The vital response to the album was mixed; Rolling Stone magazine commented “Like her filler-packed debut album, this similar however superior follow-up does not deliver the rest as ingenious as its lead single.” Critics conjointly described the album as a record that nearly identically alternates between the sunny dancehall/dub-pop, hip-hop-infused club bangers and gushy, adult-oriented ballads. The second single, “Unfaithful”, became a serious worldwide hit, reaching the highest 10 in dozen countries round the world, as well as the us where it reached range six on the Billboard Hot a hundred, likewise as topping the charts in Canada, France and Switzerland. The albums third single, “We Ride” didn’t reprise the success of the lead single however the fourth single, “Break It Off” that includes Sean Paul, jumped from range fifty-two to range 10 eventually peaking at range 9. when the discharge of the album, she began the Rock Tha Block Tour and then toured with Pussycat Dolls from November 2006 to February 2007 within the UK.

2007?2008: smart woman Gone unhealthy

Rihanna performing throughout the Glow within the Dark Tour in 2008.

Rihanna released her third album, smart woman Gone unhealthy, in June 2007. before the discharge of the album, she spent the week of the Grammys writing songs for the album with Ne-Yo. She adopted a additional sexual image whereas recording the album, eventually dying her hair black and cutting it short. Rihanna worked with Timbaland and Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, also as previous musical collaborators like Stargate, Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers to re-imagine her album compositions with uptempo dance tracks. Rihanna commented, “I need to stay individuals dancing however still be soulful at a similar time you’re feeling completely different each album, and this stage I feel like i would like to try and do plenty of uptempo .” The album topped the charts in countries just like the uk, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Russia and eire, and peaked at variety 2 within the u.  s. and Australia. in contrast to previous work, the album featured a additional dance-pop sound rather than the dancehall, reggae and ballad designs. The album received positive reviews by critics, turning into her most critically acclaimed album at that point compared to her previous efforts. It yielded eight hit singles ? all singles reaching the highest twenty on the Billboard Hot a hundred ? as well as the worldwide number-one hit “Umbrella,” that includes Jay-Z. additionally to reaching darling in varied countries, “Umbrella” was the amount one single within the uk for 10 consecutive weeks, creating it the longest-running number-one single since Wet Wet Wet’s single “Love Is All Around” spent fifteen weeks at the highest in 1994. The song is listed variety 3 on the a hundred Best Songs of 2007 revealed by Rolling Stone magazine. Her alternative singles, “Shut Up and Drive”, “Don’t Stop The Music” and “Hate That i like You” were able to mirror the success of “Umbrella,” with “Don’t Stop the Music” reaching variety 3 on the Billboard Hot a hundred whereas peaking at darling in varied countries.

With the re-issue of her third album, titled smart woman Gone Bad: Reloaded, that was released in June 2008. Rihanna released the primary singles from the re-release “Take a Bow” ? that became a worldwide number-one hit ? the duet with Maroon five, “If I Never See Your Face once more,” and therefore the alternative US number-one hit “Disturbia.” “Disturbia” reached to variety four before reaching darling, as her previous single, “Take a Bow”, was at variety 2, creating Rihanna the seventh feminine singer to possess 2 songs within the high 5. Meanwhile, Rihanna was featured on rapper T.I.’s “Live Your Life,” that peaked at number-one on the Billboard Hot a hundred, giving Rihanna her fifth number-one single on the new a hundred to date (“SOS,” “Umbrella,” “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia,” also as T.I.’s “Live Your Life”). This created Rihanna one among the 2 feminine solo artist with the foremost number-one singles this decade, with the opposite being Beyonc? Knowles. smart woman Gone unhealthy has shipped over 2 million units within the u.  s., receiving a two-time platinum certification from RIAA; this gave Rihanna her best-selling album, to date. She was nominated in four classes at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards, winning Monster Single of the Year and Video of the Year. At the 2008 Grammy Awards, Rihanna earned her initial Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration, additionally to receiving 5 alternative nominations, as well as Record of the Year, Best Dance Recording, Best R&B Performance by a couple or cluster and Best R&B Song. In support of the album, she began her initial headlining tour the great woman Gone unhealthy Tour on September twelve, 2007, with many shows across the u.  s., Canada and Europe and then began the Glow within the Dark Tour with Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, and N.E.R.D on April sixteen, 2008. Rihanna conjointly won Favorite Pop/Rock feminine Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B feminine Artist at the 2008 yankee Music Awards.

2009?present: Domestic violence case and Rated R

On February eight, 2009, Rihanna‘s scheduled performance at the 2009 Grammy Awards was cancelled. Reports later surfaced concerning an alleged altercation with then-boyfriend, singer Chris Brown, who was arrested on suspicion of creating criminal threats. On March 5, 2009, Brown was charged with assault and creating criminal threats. thanks to a leaked photograph from the la Police Department obtained by TMZ.com?which revealed Rihanna had sustained visible injuries?an organization called STOParazzi has proposed a law known as “Rihanna‘s Law”, which, if enacted, would “deter workers of law enforcement agencies from releasing photos or info that exploits crime victims.” Gil Kaufman of VH1 reported “he nonstop coverage of the Rihanna/Brown case has referred to variety of problems concerning the privacy of alleged victims of domestic violence, as well as the choice by most major news retailers to divulge the identity of the victim?which isn’t generally tired domestic-violence cases” and therefore the controversial distribution of the leaked photograph. Rihanna was subpoenaed to testify throughout a preliminary hearing in L.A. on June 22, 2009. “The DA told me Rihanna are going to be subpoenaed. i will be able to settle for on her behalf,” Rihanna‘s attorney, Donald Etra told Us Weekly. “She can seem in court, and if asked to testify, she’s going to do so”. On June 22, 2009, Brown pled guilty to the felony assault. In exchange for his plea Brown received 5 years probation and was ordered to remain fifty yards removed from Rihanna, unless at public events, that then are going to be reduced to 10 yards.

Rihanna collaborated with Jay-Z and Kanye West on “Run This city.” The song peaked at variety 2 on Billboard Hot a hundred and conjointly reached the highest 10 in 5 alternative countries. She appeared on the quilt of Vogue Italia for the September 2009 Issue. The photo shoot was influenced by Rihanna‘s hair, that she had cut for the shoot into a mohawk-like vogue. the design of the shoot was Extreme Couture and extremely dark, and in one shot she appeared semi-nude. Rihanna performed “Run This Town” at the side of Jay-Z and West for the “Answer the Call” concert at Madison sq. Garden in September 2009, creating it her initial musical performance since the altercation with Brown. The trio conjointly performed “Run This city,” on the premiere of The Jay Leno Show on September fourteen, 2009.

Rihanna is currently recording within the studio with various completely different producers, as well as The-Dream, difficult Stewart, Chase & standing, Stargate, Justin Timberlake, Ne-Yo and Akon, on her fourth studio album Rated R. On October eight 2009, Rihanna shot the quilt for her fourth album with Ellen von Unwerth in Berlin. The new album are going to be released November twenty three, 2009. The album’s lead single, “Russian Roulette”, was released on October twenty, 2009.

Volume 65 of the Contemporary Black Biography book series notes that “Rihanna is the rare rhythm and blues (R&B) diva to emerge from the Caribbean world.” Becoming an international sensation, Rihanna is known for blending R&B with Caribbean music, such as reggae and dancehall. Peter Coulter of the Antrim Times, commented that ” has an amazing voice which showed during her acoustic set, she just needs to work on her audience engagement during live shows.” At the time of her debut, reviewers referred to her as a “bubblegum queen” and her music to “teen pop.” Larry Meyler of The Sun stated that Rihanna going bad is very good and that she had shook off any ‘teen pop’ image as she rocked the stage. While performing at the Ottawa Bluesfest in 2006, Denis Armstrong of Canadian Online Explorer commented on her performance saying “her show was a Disney-esque choreographed fantasy of non-stop hip-swivelling, sassy attitude and personal endearments and a string of funky, sugar-free hits.” After revealing a new image while headlining her first tour, she was likely to be criticize for her tight leather outfit during each show. A review in the The Times compared Rihanna‘s stage wardrobe styling to that of Janet Jackson. He also described her outfit as “a vision of Ann Summers couture in thigh-high boots and a few scraps of black PVC.” However, Stuart Derdeyn of The Province commented that “even with the whole haute couture B&D clearly firing on all points, she’s still got a ways to go to become the new Janet Jackson.”

“Disturbia” (2008)

“Disturbia,” a dance-pop, features a dark sound with the vocal effect of Auto-Tune.

“Don’t Stop the Music” (2007)

“Don’t Stop the Music” contains a sample of Michael Jackson’s “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’.”

Rihanna‘s musical style has changed during the release of her last three albums. She was originally marketed as a reggae singer since she burst on scene in 2005, with a styles of pop, R&B and dancehall. Her music also include various styles of musical genres, including contemporary R&B, dance-pop, pop rock and the Caribbean music styles of reggae, soca, and dancehall. With the release of her debut album Music of the Sun and its lead single “Pon de Replay”, Jason Birchmeier of Allmusic described Rihanna‘s musical style as “synthesize Caribbean rhythms and beats with standard-issue urban dance-pop: Caribbean-inflected urban, if you will.” Rihanna is also described as utilizing “dancehall-lite beats and a reggae vocal cadence.” NME describes the singer as a “heady mix of dancehall, reggae and contemporary R&B.” During the release of her sophomore album, many critics felt that Rihanna‘s sound and substance was too heavily similar to that of Beyonc?’s. The media even made negative reviews comparing her music, music videos, performances and even her image to Beyonc?, which garnered Rihanna much criticism. Some media even unfairly claimed that Jay-Z fashioned her to be a replica of Beyonc?. Barry Walters of Rolling Stone considers Rihanna‘s A Girl Like Me to be “lightweight dancehall and R&B jams.” After the release of Good Girl Gone Bad, Allmusic’s Andy Kellman credits Rihanna to be “as pop as pop gets.” Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times described her hit “Umbrella” as a lightweight pop confection with a heavy hip-hop backbeat, a breezy love song enriched by those unexpectedly goth-sounding keyboards and by the incongruous hint of anguish in Rihanna‘s girlish voice.

Her debut album featured a refreshing touch from pop veterans Evan Rogers and Carl Sturken of Syndicated Rhythm productions, who first discovered her. Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers have collaborated with Rihanna many times, including with her debut single “Pon de Replay”, which helped launch her career with the tradition of reggae and dance pop and also collaborated on her sophomore album. Rihanna then enlisted into the pop and contemporary R&B working with music producer Stargate and singer-songwriter Ne-Yo on “Unfaithful” and sampling the key section, bass line, and drum beat from Soft Cell’s 1981 single “Tainted Love” on “SOS”. The concept of her third studio album was to head in a new direction with the help of music producers Timbaland, will.i.am and Sean Garrett, and also to re-imagine her album compositions with fresh, uptempo dance tracks. While recording the album, Rihanna stated that she wants to keep people dancing but still be soulful at the same time. She then commented “You feel different every album, and this stage I feel like I want to do a lot of uptempo .” She also began taking voice lessons from Ne-Yo for the third album. With songs like “Kisses Don’t Lie” and “Shut Up and Drive”, her music style became more pop rock oriented. Unlike Music of the Sun or A Girl Like Me, her third album contained a more dance-pop sound and less of the dancehall, reggae and ballad styles of her previous albums. She has included various styles of music from uptempo pop-reggae with “Pon De Replay”, to an 80’s new wave fueled club banger “SOS” to the whiff of gothic horror in a love song “Unfaithful”. Most of her love subject ballads contain a mid-tempo pop sound, with an R&B influences that uses of a gently strummed acoustic guitar with the production of Stargate and the songs written by Ne-Yo. Some of her up-tempo dance-pop songs include production from Carl Sturken and Evan Rogers, Christopher “Tricky” Stewart and J. R. Rotem. She has also taken to the music industry tradition of sampling songs from other artist like Soft Cell’s “Tainted Love” on “SOS”, New Order’s “Blue Monday” on “Shut Up and Drive” and 70’s original song “Soul Makossa” of Manu Dibango with a part of the chorus from Michael Jackson’s “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'” on “Don’t Stop the Music”.

One of Rihanna‘s major influence and idol is Mariah Carey, whose song “Hero” she covered while performing at a school talent show. She says, “I looked up to a lot and I still do. I admire her as an artist, and to was a moment I will never forget for the rest of my life.” She then stated that her song, “Vision of Love” made an impact on her. Rihanna has also named Beyonc? Knowles a major influence, citing that she was inspired to start her career after watching Knowles on television as part of a Destiny’s Child performance . Her other musical influences include Bob Marley, Alicia Keys Whitney Houston, Destiny’s Child, Celine Dion, Brandy, and Gwen Stefani. Her music also contains strong influences of caribbean music and says that it has influenced her tremendously. Her friend and former Island Def Jam record label artist Fefe Dobson was someone that she admired and looked up to, having a fellow artist writing, singing, and performing the music she truly loves. In a interview, Rihanna stated, that while growing up in Barbados, she grew up listening to reggae music and when she came to the United States she was exposed to many different types of music. Rihanna also considers Madonna as one of her biggest influences. She mentioned that she respects her ability to reinvent herself and aspires to be just as successful.

Jon Bream of the Star Tribune commented “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” due to her “blend of lush island rhythms and swinging pop and … mischievous sensuality.” Rihanna commented that Marilyn Monroe and vintage clothing served for visual inspiration for the music video “Hate That I Love You” and “Rehab”; in contrast, the “dark, creepy” scenes of “Disturbia” have drawn comparison to Michael Jackson’s Thriller. The music video also ranked number five on the “Top Five Most Paranoid Music Videos” published by MTV Buzzworthy.

The New York magazine described Rihanna‘s early look as a cookie-cutter teen queen and that she has the ability to shift looks so dramatically and with such ease. Since the release of her third album, Good Girl Gone Bad, has become a sex symbol and also set herself apart from other R&B starlets, opting for designer couture over belly-baring crop tops. Sonya Magett of Black Voices reported that Rihanna‘s style has become quite risqu? since she burst on the scene 4 years ago. In 2008, she constantly surprised, switching from pretty and sweet in pastels on the red carpet to dominatrix-leaning wear on stage and at awards shows. Rihanna‘s fashion and style also landed her on the list of People’s 10 Best Dressed Stars of 2008. Glamour also awarded Rihanna with the seventeenth most glamorous woman of 2009 out of fifty. Glamour also commented on Rihanna‘s style saying “rockstar of leading ladies” and “She almost can?t make a style mistake right now.? They also said her “little-bit-punky, very-much-girly look still entrances readers.” They also commented on Rihanna‘s fashion risks saying “If style risks could be measured in miles, Rihanna would have criss-crossed the globe a thousand times over already.”

Rihanna‘s image has also been identified as a sex symbol. Regal of the Associated Content stated that Rihanna quickly garnered a more mature and definitely sexier look. In 2007, she ranked #8 in Maxim‘s 2007 Hot 100 list; she then ranked #15 on 2008 Hot 100 list the following year. In June 2007, Rihanna was named 2007 Venus Breeze?s ?Celebrity Legs Of A Goddess? by Gillette. Margeaux Watson of Entertainment Weekly wrote an article entitled “Rihanna: Diva of the year” which he refers to her breakout success of 2008. In 2009, Maxim awarded Rihanna as the number 8th most sexiest woman on earth. This made Rihanna the only female of African descent in the top ten or top twenty for that matter.

Rihanna‘s tattoos have drawn much media attention. One of her first tattoos was music note on her ankle and a Pisces sign behind her right ear. Her most visible and popular tattoo is her trail of stars going down her back. Rihanna has a total of twelve known tattoos, including music note tattoo on her ankle, a Pisces sign behind her right ear, a Sanskrit prayer going down her hip, a star in her left ear, the word ?love? on her left middle finger, an Arabic phrase on her ribcage area, meaning ?Freedom is God,? a trail of stars going down the back of her neck, a skull with a pink hair bow, the phrase ?shhh?? on her right index finger, the date ?4.11.1986? on top of her left shoulder and a henna-style dragon claw, complete with Hawaiian hibiscus flowers. Her most recent gun tattoo was planned to be just below her shoulders but changed it to her ribcage. Although, she was likely to be criticised for her tattoo, BangBang, the tattoo artist, was quick to explain that the image simply ?represents strength and power?.

Rihanna is heavily involved in the marketing of her native country of Barbados. She began by including the flag and trident in many of her videos, also shooting her album packaging for A Girl Like Me there. In September 2007, she became the official face of tourism for Barbados, being included in many of their ad campaigns. She currently holds an honourary title of Ambassador for Culture and Youth in Barbados. She additionally was honored by the Prime Minister David Thompson, who presented her several gifts at a national concert on 20 February 2008 in Barbados, called “Rihanna Day”. Regardless, In February 2008, Rihanna thanked her country and honoured them during the acceptance speech for her win of “Best Rap/Sung Collaboration” at the Grammy Awards. Although Rihanna is heavily involved in the promotion of her country and works with the government in Barbados to do so, she is constantly criticized and ridiculed for everything from her music, her successes and for wearing “skimpy clothes”. Rihanna speaking on the incident, “I went to the beach and I had on a one-piece swimsuit with jeans, They took the picture and they made it look like a top that was really revealing. There were radio programmes about it. It was a big deal for, like, three weeks straight – talking about I’m not setting a good example.”.Rihanna also states she was bullied at school She states Having lighter skin wasn?t a problem in my household, but it was when I went to school – which really confused me at first, The harassment continued to my very last day of elementary school.

They also mentioned that Rihanna was too young for Def Jam to push her as a “sex symbol”, making a plea that she cover up. The media and The Nation newspaper constantly make personal attacks and have shown lack of support and encouragement. Rihanna spoke out against the scrutiny to Entertainment Weekly stating, “They all hate me. I didn?t have to talk about them. I didn?t have to even mention that I?m from Barbados. But I do and people kind of take it for granted. They hate me. They talk shit about me all the time. But I?m like, ?Whatever. I?m still doing this cause I love to do it and you?re not going to stop me”. Media fought back with letters to Rihanna publicly via a Barbadian newspaper, ” sounds as if though she is doing us a favour. If God didn’t give us a Rihanna, he would have given us someone else. So don’t ever for a second get to thinking you are irreplaceable, Rihanna” and “Her putting Barbados on the map is nonsense. Barbados was well on the map before she came along; and will be when she is gone”. Her mentor and music producer Evan Rogers spoke out to the media stating that Rihanna subsequently “formed her impression of any Bajan dislike from the reception she received at the recent Barbados Music Awards where,” according to Rogers, “It was disappointing the way some people reacted as if they were almost rooting against her”.

In October 2005, Rihanna struck her first endorsement deal with Secret Body Spray for them to sponsor her first tour. In 2006, Rihanna participated in several endorsement deals, including Nike sportswear for the launch of her “SOS” and J. C. Penney. In 2007, Rihanna signed with CoverGirl and became a celebrity spokesperson which included appearances on TV commercials and in the Barbados Tourism Authority’s tourism commercials. She also received an endorsement deal from Clinique in 2006 to promote their Happy fragrance. She recorded a song written by Ne-Yo entitled “Just Be Happy” as part of the deal to promote their Happy fragrance. Rihanna also recorded a song called “Winning Women” with Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger for P&G’s female deodorant Secret. In December 2008, Rihanna contracted with Gucci to appear in their ads for the Tattoo Heart Collection, a special-edition line. In the Gucci handbag ad, Rihanna is seen hanging from a giant hoop, scantily clad in a barely-there white bodysuit and wearing an oversized white Gucci purse. The success of her single, “Umbrella” also inked an endorsement deal with Totes. Her handlers pitched her hit “Umbrella” to Totes and the song became the soundtrack for commercials in which she starred. On April 8, 2009 it was announced that Rihanna inked a fragrance deal with Jay-Z?s licensing company Iconic Fragrances. Iconic Fragrance will launch the fragrance in the summer of 2010.

In 2007, Rihanna began showing interest in making film appearances. She made her acting debut in a cameo role to the film Bring It On: All or Nothing, released on August 8, 2006. During this time, she stated that singing was always the bigger picture, but she definitely wants to get into acting as well. Rihanna also made an appearance as the central character in Kanye West’s music video “Paranoid”. According to the Daily News, Rihanna has been taking acting classes during her time in New York, and will make her acting debut in Personal Protection, due to start filming later this year.

Rihanna created her Believe Foundation in 2006 to help terminally ill children. Rihanna explained her reasons for starting the Foundation saying, “When I was young and I would watch television and I would see all the children suffering, I always said: when I grow up, I want to help.” Rihanna has also performed a number of concerts to raise funds for both charities and the Foundation and is also a 2008 Cartier Love Charity Bracelet Ambassador. She performed at Madonna?s Raising Malawi fundraiser on February 6, 2008 in New York City . After becoming an honorary cultural ambassador for Barbados, Rihanna became involed with DKMS, an international donor network based in T?bingen, Germany, to try to find a donor for Lisa Gershowitz Flynn. She was diagnosed in November with acute myelogenous leukemia.

In January 2008, Rihanna contributed in the fight against AIDS when she visited the H&M in New York to support Fashion Against AIDS by presenting her t-shirt design and signing autographs for a limited time with slogans like “Believe” and “Stop and Think.” The collection features t-shirts and hoodies designed by Rihanna, Timbaland and other well-known designers, musicians and artists. The line, called Fashion Against AIDS, was launched in February 2008 to raise awareness of the disease among teens and spread awareness about HIV/AIDS. In August 2008, Rihanna and other pop, rock, R&B and country singers such as Carrie Underwood, Ciara, Beyonc? Knowles, Leona Lewis, Mary J. Blige, Mariah Carey, and Fergie recorded the charity single, “Just Stand Up!”, the theme song to the anti-cancer campaign Stand Up to Cancer and its theme song. The singers performed the song live on September 5, 2008. In 2008, Rihanna was selected as the spokesmodel for Gucci?s first United Nations Children’s Fund ad campaign. She appeared in the fashion house?s Tattoo Heart campaign, which premiered in December 2008. Rihanna was photographed in series of special edition print ads with United Nations Children’s Fund items, twenty-five percent of sales will benefit the children?s charity.

On November 19, 2008, Rihanna was enlisted by Gucci’s Frida Giannini along with Madonna to light the United Nations Children’s Fund Christmas snowflake in New York City at the Grand Army Plaza. In 2008, she became the global representative and the face of the 4th annual Gucci Campaign to Benefit United Nations Children’s Fund. The campaign aimed to raise funds for children in Africa through the sale of its Tattoo Heart collection of bags, which launched worldwide on November 19, 2008. Rihanna has also been apart of many benefit concerts to help raise money for various illnesses, such as cancer for Hope Rocks. Rihanna performed on January 20, 2009 at the Recording Industry Association of America’s Presidential Inauguration Charity Ball to raise money for the world largest anti-hunger organization. On April 2, 2009, Rihanna visited the NYU Medical Center to help look for another bone marrow donor for a young girl named Jasmina Amena. Rihanna first learned about Jasmina’s plight in February 2009, when she saw the moving video Jasmina’s best friend, Isabelle Huurman, and her mother, Karen Detrick, made appealing for donors to save Jasmina. Rihanna honored Jasmina’s best friend, Isabella for her efforts for trying to save her best friend at a DKMS Gala on May 7, 2009. Jasmina eventually received her transplant on June 11, 2009, and is in recovery. In September 2009, Rihanna performed at Jay-Z’s “Answer to Call” concert, which paid tribute to the police officers and firefighters who died on the September 11 attacks.