If you admire Rihanna and are obsessed with her cosmetics, you need to give thanks to Mrs. Monica Braithwaite. During a video interview for Vogue, RiRi partnered with Fenty Skin ambassador A$AP Rocky to answer 15 questions about recent purchases, fashion, favorite shows, and who is her ultimate beauty icon. “This is going to sound very redundant and very cliché, but [it’s] my mother,” Rihanna says about Mrs. Braithwaite.
“My entire concept of beauty came from her. I was always so intrigued there. I wanted to dress like her. I wanted to look like her, do my hair like her, do my makeup like her,” she continues. According to the singer and businesswoman, her mom used to be a salesperson for makeup and perfume. This job inspired Rihanna to expand her career and use her platform to build a beauty empire. “I learned from the best,” she said to A$AP Rocky. “I had the best teacher: My mom.”
The music, fashion, and beauty icon shared on Fenty Beauty how watching her mother applying lipstick was a game-changer for her. According to the brand, after experiencing makeup for herself, she never looked back.
The Bajan beauty also revealed that Mrs. Braithwaite encouraged her and her siblings, Rorrey and Rajad Fenty, always to take care of their image. “My idea of beauty has always been [by] a Black woman, so the way that I’ve expanded that idea is doing skincare in a more gender-neutral idea, where men feel included as well,” she explained adding that “men love their skin and they take care of it, but they feel obligated almost to only use products that are ‘for men,’ because anything beyond that seems like it’s too feminine ... it’s not for them ... they’re not allowed. They don’t really allow themselves to be until they see their representation, and you’ve represented a lot of those men for me,” she said, referring to why she chose the rapper as the face of her skincare line.
The “work” interpreter has access to the best cosmetologists globally; however, this doesn’t mean she can’t still struggle with skin imperfections or skin conditions. “My skin type is just as complicated as men,” Rihanna says. “I’ve gone through many skincare changes within my journey. I started with acne all the way to sensitivity and melasma as a Black woman, not knowing to use SPF. I’ve learned a lot.”
Rihanna noticed a gap in the beauty industry. After not finding a brand that suits her needs, she decided to break boundaries by launching a line so diverse “that people everywhere would be included,” as she once said a brand to “make skin look like skin.”
Rih focused on creating a cosmetic line that targets “hard-to-match skin tones,” but also work for all skin types, all while inviting people to express themselves no matter what. “Makeup is there for you to have fun with,” she says. “It should never feel like pressure. It should never feel like a uniform. Feel free to take chances, and take risks, and dare to do something new or different.”
