You've Probably Been Pronouncing "Rihanna" Wrong This Whole Time

BY Josiah HughesPublished May 31, 2019

Rihanna is about to return with a new reggae album, which will mark her ninth LP overall. Yes, Rihanna's been a pop culture mainstay for a long time, but many of us have likely been pronouncing her name wrong.

Riri recently announced her new Fenty collection via a video on British Vogue, and it was one of the few times we've heard her say her own name out loud on camera:
 

While linguistic punishers love to correct those that pronounce "Nirvana" with the ahh sound, Rihanna's pronunciation is the opposite. It's not "ree-AH-nuh" but in fact "ree-ANN-uh."

The discovery has shaken a large swath of people who realized they've been pronouncing the name wrong all these years:
 
 
 

Of course, there's also been a backlash to the reaction:
 
 
 

Latest Coverage