Rihanna Life

AKA Robyn Rihanna Fenty

Born: 20-Feb-1988
Birthplace: St.
Michael, Barbados

Gender: Female
Race or Ethnicity: Multiracial
Sexual
orientation: Straight
Occupation: Singer

Nationality: Barbados
Executive summary:
Caribbean/hip-hop/soul vocalist





The eldest child of a Barbadan father and a Guyanese mother, Robyn Rihanna
Fenty spent a quiet, average childhood in the Parish of St. Michael on the small
Carribean island of Barbados. Although her vocal abilities became apparent at an
early age, for the first decade-and-a-half of Rihanna's life her musical
experience did not extend beyond singing for her own enjoyment (or, on occasion,
with friends at school). In her early teens she made her first attempts at
public performance, beginning with her entry in the Miss Combermere Beauty
Pageant (which she won) and followed by a rendition of Marin Carey's Hero as part of the
Colours of Combermere School talent show (which she also won)

A dramatic change in Rihanna's life took place at the end of 2003, set in
motion by a chance introduction to New York-based producer Evan Rogers.
Vacationing on the island at the time with his Barbadan-born wife, Rogers was
introduced to the young singer by a mutual friend; after an impromptu
demonstration of her vocal skills, he immediately recognized her potential and
arranged a recording session back in the States the following spring with his
production/writing partner Carl Sturken. A 12-song demo tape was compiled over
the next several months, and in January of 2005 Rihanna relocated to New York
City to more effectively pursue whatever opportunities presented themselves. The
demo recordings quickly generated a lot of interest -- the most enthusiastic
response being from Def Jam CEO Jay-Z, who
arranged a meeting with the then-17-year-old in February and signed her on the spot.

Rihanna's debut single Pon De Replay was issued in the summer of 2005,
rapidly climbing to the #2 position on both the US and UK mainstream charts. Her
first album Music of the Sun arrived at #10 a month later, with a
subsequent promotional tour in support of Gwen
Stefani helping to push it towards gold status. Filming for her first acting
role (albeit as herself) in the straight-to-video cheerleading flick Bring It
On: All or Nothing was undertaken between sessions for her second album A
Girl Like Me (2006), which arrived a mere 8 months after the first. This
second collection's lead single S.O.S. (Rescue Me) (featuring a sample
from Soft Cell's Tainted Love)
repeated Pon De Replay's rapid journey up to the #2 slot, while the album
itself surpassed it's successor by reaching #5 and almost doubling it's sales
figures. A second single, Unfaithful, found it's way to #6 upon it's
release in July, providing the singer with her third top 10 song less than a
year after her arrival on the music scene.



In the midst of the considerable developments taking place in her career, the
singer moved out of New York and took up residence at the Connecticut home of
Rogers and his wife. Numerous television and sporting event appearances
successfully maintained her public exposure throughout 2005 and 2006, including
performances at both the 2005 US Lawn Tennis Open Championships and the 2005 NFL
launch game, and a guest appearance on the long-running soap opera All My
Children in July of 2006.







Father: Ronald Fenty (store supervisor)
Mother: Monica
(accountant)
Brother: Rorrey
Brother: Rajad