Billionaire singer and entrepreneur Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin have been accused of promoting colourism in Africa.
The controversy comes just a few days after the 34-year-old announced that she will officially launch her beauty and skincare products in Africa later this month.
On Tuesday, Rihanna announced that Botswana, Ghana, Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe will be the first African countries to welcome the Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin products.
However, some people have accused Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin of promoting colourism in Zimbabwe.
This comes after several local celebrities and media personalities announced they had participated in the Face of Fenty Zimbabwe masterclass.
Eagle-eyed social media users quickly noted that all of the celebrities reportedly chosen to be the brand ambassadors or face of Fenty have one thing in common. They are all ‘yellow bones,’ local parlance for light-skinned women.
Some Zimbabweans on social media questioned why there were no dark-skinned beauties among the reported Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin ambassadors.
They accused Rihanna’s brand of going against its own values by promoting colourism in Africa. They called on the brand to be more inclusive by including more skin tones that people can relate to.
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| Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty In Colourism Controversy, Accused Of Selecting Only “Yellowbones” In Africa |
In a related issue, Lady Gaga has received major blowback from Africans after praising Rihanna for having a big heart for bringing Fenty Beauty and Fenty Skin to Africa.
Lady Gaga gushed over Rihanna and praised the “Pon De Replay” singer for having such a big heart to bring Fenty to Africa.
Most people were not impressed with Lady Gaga’s words saying that she made it seem as if Rihanna would be handing out the Fenty beauty products to Africans for free.
Rihanna was inspired to create Fenty Beauty & Fenty Skin after years of experimenting with the best-of-the-best in beauty—and still seeing a void in the industry for products that performed across all skin types and tones.
Lady Gaga gushed over Rihanna and praised the “Pon De Replay” singer for having such a big heart to bring Fenty to Africa.
Most people were not impressed with Lady Gaga’s words saying that she made it seem as if Rihanna would be handing out the Fenty beauty products to Africans for free.
Rihanna was inspired to create Fenty Beauty & Fenty Skin after years of experimenting with the best-of-the-best in beauty—and still seeing a void in the industry for products that performed across all skin types and tones.
Starting with Fenty Beauty foundation, face primer and Gloss Bomb, she launched a makeup line “so that people everywhere would be included,” focusing on a wide range of traditionally hard-to-match skin tones, creating formulas that work for all skin types, and pinpointing universal shades.
