Rihanna is a Barbadian pop singer, who is a global musician known for her distinctive singing voice. As an R&B singer, she has produced many hits. Her last album came out in 2016, seven years ago. This doesn’t mean that the singer has quit music, she has just merely taken a pause after running non-stop for almost a decade, to focus on her other interests.
Apart from being a musician, she is also a businesswoman. She launched her own cosmetic and beauty brand, called Fenty Beauty. The brand is popular for its inclusivity of all kinds of skin tones. It was the word ‘Fenty’ that caused a lot of trouble for the musician. The ‘This Is What You Came For‘ singer sued her father after he caused quite a ruckus with his entertainment company called Fenty Entertainment.
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Rihanna Sued Her Father For False Advertising And Invasion Of Privacy
Rihanna, whose real name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, sued her father, Ronald Fenty in 2019. The legal lawsuit was triggered when her father, along with another man named Moses Perkins, established a company called Fenty Entertainment and repeatedly used Rihanna’s name for clout and deals. He repeatedly claimed that the company is affiliated with Rihanna, and therefore has the authority to act on her behalf. Considering the pop singer’s popularity and the success of her own cosmetics business, it was wrong yet a smart move by him to get his company into the limelight.
When Rihanna sued him for false advertising and invasion of privacy, the court documents revealed more to the story. Her lawyers said, “Mr Fenty and Mr Perkins have used these lies to solicit millions of dollars from unsuspecting third parties in exchange for the false promise that they were authorized to act on Rihanna’s behalf.” The lawyers also claimed that Fenty Entertainment even tried to book concerts for her without her consent, knowledge, or authorization. These bookings included a $15 million tour in Latin America, two concerts in Los Angeles and one in Las Vegas for $400,000. The suit also read, “Although Mr. Fenty is Rihanna’s father, he does not have, and never has had, authority to act on Rihanna’s behalf.”
Ronald Fenty tried to profit off the ‘Fenty’ trademark. He even applied for the trademark over ‘Fenty,’ but the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office denied his request since Rihanna already has exclusive trademark rights over it. According to the lawsuit, Rihanna has used the name Fenty for all her other businesses and cosmetics since 2012, while Fenty Entertainment was started in 2017.
All of this led Rihanna to file an injunction against her father and his business partner, since it posed “irreparable injuries,” to her brand and profited off of the singer’s own hard work.
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The Rocky Relationship Of The ‘Umbrella’ Singer With Her Father
The lawsuit also brings back the many statements the ‘Diamond,‘ singer has previously made about her father. The two have had a tumultuous relationship. In the 2011 Vogue interview, the singer shared some upsetting details of her relationship with her father. This was when she was assaulted by her ex Chris Brown. She said her father had babbled “a bunch of lies,” to the media instead of talking with her. She said, “It really makes me question what I have become to my father. Like, what do I even mean to him?” she asked. “He never called to find out how I was doing, if I was alive, nothing. He just never called. He went straight to the press and got a check.”
In 2012, speaking with Oprah Winfery, the singer gave a background story of her family. Her father was an alcoholic and did drugs. Growing up, she only witnessed violence in her house, especially violence perpetrated by her father against her mom. “I witnessed a lot of (violence) as a child in my household. My family broke up because of his addiction,” she shared. She also explained how the unstable environment in her house had affected her and followed her into adulthood to the point that she is not able to make meaningful relationships. “I remember one day, thinking, ’Why can’t I come to a place where I can let somebody in? Why can’t I love?’ … I wasn’t able to connect with a man past a certain point.”
However, she then added how she has been able to mend the connection between herself and her dad, “The minute I was able to realize that my father was probably one of the best fathers in the world – like, he taught me everything – and as awful as he was to my mom at times, it didn’t compare to how great he was as a father. And I had to come to terms with that and I was able to close that gap with him. All kinds of emotions started happening after that. All kinds of things started making sense.”
Rihanna dismissed the lawsuit she had filed against Ronald Fenty and his business partner. Neither of the party commented as to why the singer dissolved the lawsuit. However, the media reported that she reached an out-of-court settlement with her father and his business partner.
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