Why Rihanna Is Named a National Hero of Barbados?

Rihanna, a Barbadian songstress, has been named the new National Hero of Barbados. The announcement was made by Prime Minister Mia Mottley on Saturday during a public ceremony at the Cenotaph in Bridgetown during which she said this is to honor Rihanna’s commitment and selfless service to her country and humanity. Since bursting from obscurity from an unlikely reality show in 2005 “Survival Star” she has done nothing but serves her community through generous donations over the years. In 2011, when asked about being an ambassador for Jamaica’s tourism industry, Rihanna answered that there was no greater honor than promoting Jamaica’s rich culture and natural beauty around the world. From film to fashion, literature, and music, Rihanna is a true ambassador for her country and continues to push the boundaries of world music. She has sold over 200 million records worldwide and still counting.

Rihanna is a Barbadian singer and fashion designer.

Since 2005, when she released her first album Music of the Sun, Rihanna has sold over 200 million records worldwide and is the only artist to have eight studio albums debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart.

She is known for constantly reinventing both her music and image and she has become a pop culture icon.

In 2016, Rihanna was ranked second on VH1’s 100 Greatest Women in Music list following Aretha Franklin and placed third on Time’s 2011 Most Influential People List, behind Lady Gaga and Beyonce Knowles respectively.

Born in Saint Michael Parish Berbice, Saint Michael, Barbados (then British West Indies), on February 20, 1988, Robyn Rihanna Fenty was raised in a creative, religious household. Her mother, Monica Braithwaite, is a retired accountant of Afro-Guyanese descent who worked at an investment firm, and her father, Ronald Fenty, is a warehouse supervisor of Irish and Afro-Barbadian descent. Rihanna has two younger brothers, Rorrey and Rajab. She attended Charles F. Broome Memorial School where she studied classical music; the school choir director first recognized her vocal abilities.

In 2003, Rihanna was discovered by American record producer Evan Rogers when he vacationed in Barbados with his wife. They invited her to audition for Rogers at his home in (New York City). She sang Aretha Franklin’s “Respect” and Mary J Blige’s “Real Love”. Rihanna was signed to Rogers and his production company, The Rogers Connection.

In 2005, she released her debut studio album Music of the Sun. It peaked at number ten on the Billboard 200 chart and features the top-twenty single “Pon de Replay”. During that year, Rihanna also released her first mixtape, Barbadianchiktape Vol. 1.

Beginning in 2006, Rihanna was featured on six singles that became top ten hits: Pon De Replay”, SOS”, “Unfaithful”, “Break It Off” with Sean Paul and “Let Me”.

Her second studio album, A Girl like Me (2006), featured three top ten singles: “SOS”, “Unfaithful” and “Break It Off”.

In 2007, Rihanna released her third studio album Good Girl Gone Bad. The album spawned six singles including the international hits “Umbrella”, “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia”. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States selling 219,000 copies in its first week.

Rihanna’s fourth studio album Rated R (2009) produced five singles including the international hit, “Rude Boy”. The album debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States selling,000 copies in its first week.

In 2010, Rihanna released her fifth studio album Loud. The lead single, “Only Girl (In the World)”, reached number one in fifteen countries including the United States and the United Kingdom. The album spawned three additional singles: “What’s My Name?”, featuring Drake; “S&M”, which samples “Sweet Little Willie” by Sylvester; and “California King Bed”.

In 2011, Rihanna was named a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador. That year she also became an ambassador for Barbados’ tourism industry.

Rihanna’s sixth studio album Talk That Talk (2011) spawned five singles including the international hits “We Found Love” and “Where Have You Been?”. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 chart, selling 700 copies in its first week.

In 2012, Rihanna released her seventh studio album Unapologetic (2012). The lead single, “Diamonds” topped the charts in over twenty countries worldwide. It gave Rihanna her tenth number one song on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart making Rihanna become tied with Madonna and The Beatles for most number ones songs by a female solo artist.

Rihanna’s eighth studio album was Anti (2016). The album jumped to number one on iTunes just minutes after it was released on Tidal. .The music video for “Work”, which opened with an anti-Donald Trump speech, has become her most viewed YouTube video, surpassing 1.5 billion views.

In Barbados, Rihanna is seen as a national hero and has been honored with the country’s highest award for her music and humanitarian work, the Order of Cultural Merit. In 2015, she was awarded the Harvard Foundation Humanitarian of the Year Award.

Rihanna’s philanthropic work includes donations to education and health programs in Barbados and elsewhere in the world. She founded the Clara Lionel Foundation in 2012 in honor of her grandparents, Clara and Lionel Braithwaite. The foundation supports education and health initiatives worldwide, with a primary focus on providing training and support to students in underserved countries. Rihanna also supports Global Partnership for Education and Global Citizen Project, two organizations that work to provide children with education.

The Grammy Award winner has amassed an impressive music catalog, which includes the above-listed albums and singles. Rihanna is one of the most streamed artists in Spotify history having “110 million monthly listeners” more than any other artist worldwide on Spotify. With almost 28 million followers on Twitter, she has become a social media sensation amassing the largest celebrity follower count on Twitter for 5 consecutive years (2009-2014).

Rihanna acts as the face of many brands including Gucci, Armani Exchange, Stance, Puma SE, and Luxottica Group’s portfolio of fashion brands including Ray-Ban and Oakley. She was also recently announced as LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s first-ever global ambassador.

Rihanna is undeniably one of the most successful and well-known recording artists in the world. She has received numerous awards and accolades for her music, philanthropy, and business ventures. With a massively successful music career that spans over a decade, Rihanna has become an international icon and is widely recognized as one of the greatest singers of our time.