Rihanna has been named the richest woman in music
Rihanna... Or Richanna?
Last updated 5th Jun 2019
Anyone who's ever heard the name Rihanna knows that she's one of the reigning queens of 21st century music. Not only is she one of the biggest popstars on the planet, but she also has her own beauty empire, Fenty Beauty, as well as her recently-launched fashion line, Fenty.
So it will come as no surprise to learn that RiRi - whose real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty - has now been named the wealthiest woman in music, beating out Madonna, Celine Dion and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.
According to Forbes magazine, the 31-year-old has beaten her fellow female musicians with an estimated net worth of $600 million (£472 million). The publication also report that the next three richest women in music are Madonna with $570 million (£448 million), Celine who has $450 million (£350 million) and Beyoncé with $400 million (£314 million).
Although Rihanna hasn't released any music since 2016 with her album 'Anti', she launched her critically-acclaimed makeup range Fenty Beauty in 2017, followed it up with a lingerie line Savage x Fenty last year and also announced her own clothing line, Fenty, last month.
Swipe through to see Rihanna's complete career timeline...
2005 - First signing
In 2005, Rihanna was discovered by American record producer Evan Rogers in her home country of Barbados. The 16-year-old's demo was then sent to Def Jam Recordings, where it was played to the company's new CEO Jay-Z. Jay-Z invited Rihanna to audition and RiRi left the audition with a six album record deal... easy as that!
2005 - 'Pon de Replay'
It wasn't long before RiRi then released her first album 'Music of the Sun', which sold over two million copies worldwide. It was then in May 2005 the world was graced with the anthem that is 'Pon de Replay' - meaning 'play it again' in Bajan Creole, one of the official languages of Rihanna's home country Barbados. The track had appeared on her original demo that landed her that record deal. The song sold a whopping two million copies, charting top 10 in the UK, US and across the globe.
2006 - Ri's first number 1 single
2006 saw the release of Rihanna's second studio album 'A Girl Like Me', containing bangers such as 'Unfaithful' and 'We Ride'. The album also featured what became her first ever number 1 single 'SOS'.
2007 - 'Good Girl Gone Bad'
2007 saw Rihanna go from teen-popstar to legendary icon. With the release of the chart topping hit 'Umbrella', RiRi showcased her new, sleek look that has been described by critics as a turning point in her career. The star well and truly ditched her innocent teen look, opting for an edgier, bad girl vibe.
2008- Rihanna's first grammy
After receiving four nominations for the 2008 GRAMMYs, including 'Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals', 'Record of the Year' and 'Best Dance Recording', Rihanna walked away from the annual award ceremony the winner of the 'Best Rap/Sung Performance' award - her first ever GRAMMY crown!
2009 - 'Rated R'
2009 warmly welcomed the hard-hitting album 'Rated R', including hits such as 'Rude Boy', 'Te Amo' and 'Russian Roulette'. The mature album reflected on the star's recent struggles and was described by critics as her most layered and heartfelt effort.
2010 - 'LOUD'
Now 2010 was quite the year for this superstar; after ditching her signature dark hair, the star opted for a vibrant red do. Oh, and she also released her fifth studio album 'Loud' that landed her her first ever GRAMMY nomination for 'Album of the Year', featuring her and Drizzy Drake collab for the first time ever. The legendary collab 'What's My Name' featured on the album alongside 'S&M', 'Only Girl (In The World)' and 'Love The Way You Lie (Part II)'. Since then, Rihanna and Drake have gone on to team up on multiple other tunes, including 'Take Care'.
2011 - 'We Found Love'
In 2011 the world welcomed with open arms one of Rihanna's most iconic songs 'We Found Love'. Featuring on her sixth studio album 'Talk That Talk', the star teamed up with Scottish DJ Calvin Harris to produce this, how do you say it... masterpiece. Other than becoming a staple song at any teen disco and/or house-party, the song went on to win the singer awards for 'Best R&B/Urban Dance Track', 'Best Commercial/Pop Dance Track', 'Video Of The Year' and 'Best Short Form Music Video'. WOWZA.
2012 - Battleship
Queen Ri's talent didn't stop there. In 2012 the Barbadian beauty made her big screen debut in summer blockbuster 'Battleship' as Petty Officer Cora Raikes. This lead to her winning the Teen Choice Award for 'Choice Movie Breakout Star - Female'.
November 2012 - First number 1 album
That same year (2017) Rihanna's seventh studio album 'Unapologetic' became her first No. 1 album, winning her the GRAMMY for 'Best Urban Contemporary Album' in January 2014. The album boasts hit tracks such as 'Diamonds' and 'What Now'. Also featured on the album was the incredible 'Stay', which after being released as a single from the album made no. 1 in Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic and Denmark, as well as charting in the Top 5 in the UK, Australia, France, Germany, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland.
2013 - 2014 - Win win win!
Throughout 2013 - 2014, Rihanna took the crown for various awards, including the GRAMMY Award for 'Best Music Video', the Billboard Music Award for 'Top R&B Artist', 'Top R&B Song' AND 'Top R&B Album', the NRJ Music Award for 'International Female Artist of the Year', the BET Award for 'Best Female R&B/Pop Artist' and the GRAMMY Award for 'Best Urban Contemporary Album'...you know, just to name a few.
2016 - 'Anti'
After three years of waiting, fans were not disappointed with Rihanna's surprise release of 'Anti' - her eighth studio album. Shooting to number 1 just two weeks after its initial debut, going on to spend 159 weeks on the Billboard Hot 200. 'Anti' graced us with hits such as 'Work', 'Kiss It Better' and 'Love on the Brain'.
2014 - Puma
2014 saw the superstar named the creative director of, and a brand ambassador for, Puma. These roles lead to her launching the 'Fenty x Puma' range, responsible for fashion trends such as fur sliders and suede creepers.
2017
Welcoming 2017 by being awarded Humanitarian of the Year by Harvard University, it was set to be a good year for the singer/actor/fashionista extraordinaire with her also launching her incredibly successful beauty line Fenty Beauty. September 8th, 2017 saw the line officially hit Sephora's website. The line was praised for boasting 40 different foundation shades, with many describing this as the new 'standard of inclusivity for skin tones'. Fenty Beauty went onto be listed by Time Magazine as one of the best inventions of 2017. The brand has gone onto release body shimmers, eye shadows, highlighters, concealers and the infamous Fenty Beauty Fairy Bomb (ie a massive fluffy pink pom pom full of glitter).
2018 - Savage Fenty
In 2018, the the popstar-turned-entrepreneur launched her largely anticipated lingerie line 'Savage x Fenty'. The collection was launched with 90 pieces of lingerie, sleepwear, and accessories with an extensive sizing range. "I can only hope to encourage confidence and strength by showing lingerie in another light," she told Vogue.
Rihanna revealed last month that the reason she's so successful isn't because she focuses on profit - but because she follows her passions and works on what she believes in.
She told The New York Times, "Money is happening along the way, but I’m working out of what I love to do, what I’m passionate about."
Although RiRi's beauty and fashion lines have been incredible popular - with Fenty Beauty raking in a reported €500 million last year - fans are absolutely desperate to hear new music from her.
But it looks as though she could be in the process of making new sounds, as it's being reported that she has rented out an entire island in the Essex estuary - which apparently costs £20,000 to rent per day!
Please grace us with new tunes soon, RiRi!
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