Rihanna has been forced to take her own father to court. TMZ reports that Rihanna is suing her dad, Ronald Fenty, for using her Fenty brand and name for his own financial gain. According to the lawsuit, her father and his business partner, Moses Joktan Perkins, started a talent development company called Fenty Entertainment in 2017, many years after the only Fenty we recognize is Rihanna, and after she’d already trademarked the name “Fenty†for her beauty empire and other business ventures. Rihanna claims her father is falsely promoting his business as affiliated with her and authorized to act on her behalf, going so far as to pose as her rep and fraudulently book her for 15 shows in Latin America, without her consent, for $15 million. The lawsuit states that Ronald Fenty also tried to trademark the Fenty name himself for a franchise of boutique resort hotels. TMZ reports that Rihanna has sent her dad multiple cease-and-desist orders but he hasn’t complied, so she’s now taking legal action to get an injunction to stop his use of the name Fenty. She’s also suing for damages.
Sadly, Rihanna and her father have long had a rocky relationship. She opened up in the past to Oprah about how his abusive behavior toward her mother and issues with addiction broke up her parents’ marriage, and the years of work it took to reconcile with him. She also recalled to Vogue in 2011 that she felt betrayed when her father went to tabloids following her Chris Brown assault and sold them information instead of coming to her first. She seemingly patched things up with her father last August, sharing a photo of her reunited with her parents. But, alas, that didn’t last long. Trust no man, not even flesh and blood!