How Rihanna manifested her success: from fashion and beauty to music and motherhood

A tweet that has resurfaced from a 2008 interview suggests the star's global domination was exactly what she has always set out to do

Rihanna's Fenty Beauty cosmetics brand has helped to redefine inclusivity in the make-up world. The singer, who was born Robyn Fenty, is now worth $1.7 billion, according to Forbes.

Rihanna at the opening of a Fenty Pop Up shop in Paris, France. The bulk of her fortune comes from the value of the Fenty Beauty brand, of which she owns half.

Rihanna's Fenty by Puma sportswear collection. The singer became creative director of Puma's women’s collections in 2014.

A sports top from the Fenty by Puma collection. Rihanna spent three years as Puma's creative director.

A Fenty Beauty eye palette in spicy tones that is retailing for Dh260. The cosmetics brand is a 50-50 joint venture with French luxury goods conglomerate LVMH.

Rihanna promotes her Fenty Beauty collection. Rihanna is now the wealthiest female musician in the world and the richest female entertainer.

A Fenty by Puma polo top. The brand's clothing line was first launched in 2016.

Rihanna and LVMH revealed the Fenty brand in 2019 but the singer's brief foray into fashion came to a halt when the clothing line was shut down this year.

A top from the Fenty by Puma collection. The brand’s first offering was the Creeper, a platform-soled variation of Puma’s suede trainer.

Rihanna's face is projected on to the side of the Burj Khalifa to celebrate the launch of Fenty Skin in the GCC early this year.

Rihanna attends a Sephora loves Fenty Beauty launch event in Milan, Italy.

Rihanna, Delphine Arnault, Bernard Arnault and Alexandre Arnault attend a Fenty launch party in Paris, France.

Rihanna has come a long way since she first emerged on to the music scene in 2005, aged merely 17. Fast-forward 17 years, and she’s conquered much more than the music industry.

With several fashion partnerships and a beauty empire under her belt, earning her billionaire status last year, as well as eight studio albums, the star has been busy cementing her global superstardom for the best part of two decades.

And now, she is about to embark on a new journey – motherhood. Rihanna and boyfriend, rapper ASAP Rocky, announced they are expecting their first child in a typically stylish way, debuting her bare bump, decorated with jewelled body chains, from beneath a vintage pink Chanel coat during a stroll around Harlem, New York on Monday.

As it turns out, Rihanna has seemingly manifested her dream life. In a 2008 magazine interview that has resurfaced on social media, the star was asked where she saw herself in 10 years’ time.

“That’s a cool question,” she replied. “In 10 years, I want to have already started my family and have some businesses of my own. A fashion line, a makeup line, and I still want to be doing what I am doing at a much bigger capacity – by the grace of God!”

Following her pregnancy announcement, the star’s tweet has gone viral, with many pointing out how she has achieved everything she set out to, and then some.

Here’s a closer look at exactly how she did it:

Music

Rihanna was discovered by American record producer Evan Rogers, who invited her to the US from her native Barbados to record demo tapes. The trip led to her being signed with Def Jam in 2005, and quickly releasing her first two albums, Music of the Sun in 2005, and A Girl Like Me in 2006, both of which gained critical acclaim.

However, her status as a pop super-force was really cemented in 2007, with the release of single Umbrella, which topped the charts in Australia, Canada, Germany, Spain, Ireland, Sweden, Switzerland, the US, and the UK, where it remained at No 1 for 10 consecutive weeks. It also earned the singer her first Grammy award. She has been nominated 33 times, winning nine gongs overall.

During her career, Rihanna has collaborated with the likes of Drake, Eminem, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Adam Levine, Paul McCartney, Ne-Yo and Shakira, to name a few.

It’s been five years since the star has released new music, much to her fans' disappointment. And it looks like they will have to wait a little longer now for a ninth studio album.

Beauty

Just as she shook up the music industry back in 2005, Rihanna took her disruptive vision into the world of beauty in 2017, when she launched Fenty Beauty. The brand was a game-changer in the world of cosmetics, offering one of the first truly inclusive make-up lines at affordable prices.

Initially launched with foundations, highlighters, bronzers, blush compacts, lip glosses and blotting sheets in a diverse range for all skin colours, the brand has gone from strength-to-strength, and now includes a skincare arm.

Dubbed the “Fenty effect”, the brand forced other mainstream make-up companies to assess the lack of diversity in make-up shades, with many quickly expanding ranges to be more inclusive.

The company is estimated to be worth $2.8 billion, making Rihanna’s 50 per cent stake in the company worth $1.4 billion, according to Forbes, which last year officially named the star in its list of new billionaires.

Fashion

Rihanna has also ventured into the world of fashion and lingerie. In 2018, she launched her Savage X Fenty underwear brand, which again, was designed to be inclusive for all body shapes and sizes. The brand debuted at New York Fashion Week in 2018, and has held annual star-studded fashion shows in the years since, often featuring supermodels and A-list celebrities, with the likes of Gigi and Bella Hadid, Lizzo, Travis Scott and Normani featuring.

In 2019, she also announced the launch of her high-end fashion label Fenty, released under LVMH, the luxury powerhouse that owns the likes of Louis Vuitton, Dior and Fendi. It was the first new luxury label launched by the company since 1987.

The brand launched with a pop-up in Paris, however, owing to the coronavirus pandemic, the brand was put on hold so she could focus on her Savage x Fenty collection.

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See Rihanna's style evolution in 62 photos: