Barbados names Rihanna national hero

Rihanna

Danilo Lauria | Wikimedia Commons

Miosori Polanco

Rihanna was named a national hero in her home country of Barbados in a ceremony on Nov. 30.

The country established its complete freedom from Britain by removing Queen Elizabeth II as head of state on its 55th Independence Day and gave the music mogul the recognition during an event that celebrated the nation becoming a republic.

“May you continue to shine like a diamond and bring honor to your nation by your words, by your actions and to do credit wherever you shall go,” Prime Minister Mia Mottley said.   Rihanna was also bestowed the title of “the right excellent” during the event.

The singer has been recognized and celebrated by Barbados multiple times. According to Glamour, Feb. 22 was  declared as Rihanna Day in 2008 and the street she grew up on became “Rihanna Drive” in 2017. She also became an official ambassador of youth and culture to the country back in 2018.

Rihanna has been recognized for years as a humanitarian both in her home country and internationally. One of her most prominent acts of charity has been creating the Clara Lionel Foundation, which most recently donated $5 million dollars to COVID19 relief last spring.

Rihanna is no stranger to the spotlight, having begun her career as a singer who first made headlines with her 2005 hit “Pon De Replay.” She then went on to collect over 33 Grammy nominations and nine wins, a multitude of AMA and MTV awards, as well as holding six Guinness World Records. As an artist, she has had seven No. 1 songs and 14 top 10s across her decade in the music industry.

Aside from her musical endeavors, Rihanna recently became the wealthiest female musician in the world, with a net-worth of $1.7 billion from her business ventures in Fenty Beauty and Savage X Fenty.