It has been reported that Rihanna’s father, Ronald Fenty, has passed away at the age of 70. Fenty’s death is said to have taken place on Saturday morning in Los Angeles. The news of his passing was first shared by a local radio station in Barbados, Rihanna’s native country. Fenty’s cause of death has not yet been revealed, however, it was reported he was suffering from a “brief illness” prior to his passing

Sources informed the radio station that family members have gathered in California to celebrate Fenty’s life. Rihanna’s brother, Rajad Fenty, was spotted visiting his sick father at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre on Wednesday. Rihanna is believed to have been in the car during the visit.  Rihanna and Ronald Fenty have been known to have a rocky relationship following his divorce from her mother, Monica Braithwaite. It has also been reported that Fenty faced a battle with alcoholism and drug abuse.

In a 2011 interview with Vogue, Rihanna described her relationship with Fenty as “strange”, adding: “That’s the only word I can think of to describe it, because you grow up with your father, you know him, you are a part of him, for goodness’ sakes!”

She added, “And then he does something so bizarre that I can’t begin to wrap my mind around it. You hear the horror stories about people going behind people’s backs and doing strange things, but you always think, Not my family. My father would never do that to me,”. This was in reference to Fenty selling details of Rihanna’s assault by her ex-boyfriend, Chris Brown, in 2009. The pair allegedly also fell out over Rihanna using the Fenty name for her brand.

In a 2012 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Rihanna announced that she and her father had “repaired” their broken relationship. The Love On The Bain singer said: “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,”.

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Things once again became frayed between the two in 2019, when Rihanna sued Fenty for allegedly using her name for financial gain through his talent agency, Fenty Entertainment. After the pair settled the issue in 2021, Fenty claimed the pair had reconciled their differences. Fenty even alleged that Rihanna had brought her baby to Barbados twice. When discussing Rihanna’s new chapter into motherhood, Fenty said: “She’s loving it. She’s a very overprotective mother.” The news of Fenty’s tragic passing comes as Rihanna is pregnant with her third child, which she shares with US rapper A$AP Rocky. Rihanna is yet to comment on her father’s death publicly.