Rihanna’s father, Ronald Fenty, has reportedly passed away at the age of 70.
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Fenty died early Saturday morning in Los Angeles, as reported by Starcom Network News, a radio station based in Barbados, Rihanna’s home country.
The official cause of death has not yet been confirmed, but the radio station reported that Fenty passed away after a “brief illness.” According to the outlet’s sources, family members have gathered in California to honor and celebrate his life.
Photos shared by TMZ and Page Six capture Rihanna’s brother, Rajad Fenty, arriving at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Wednesday to visit Ronald. While Rihanna is believed to have been in the car with him, she does not appear in the images.
Fenty and his ex-wife, Monica Braithwaite, had three children together: Rihanna, Rajad, and Rorrey. The couple parted ways in 2002, just as Rihanna’s career was beginning to soar.
The tragic news comes as Rihanna prepares to welcome her third child with her longtime partner, A$AP Rocky. She revealed her pregnancy earlier this month, proudly showcasing her baby bump at this year’s Met Gala.
Rihanna Reportedly Filed a Lawsuit Against Her Father, Ronald Fenty, in 2019
Rihanna, whose full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, had a difficult relationship with her father over the years.
Feny reportedly battled alcohol and drug addiction, which created tension between him and those around him. He also separated from Rihanna’s mother, Monica Braithwaite, when the singer was just 14 years old.
“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,” the singer told Winfrey, according to PEOPLE. “And I had to come to terms with that, and I was able to close that gap with him.”
According to Page Six, the father-daughter relationship appeared to sour again by 2019. That year, Rihanna filed a lawsuit against her father, accusing him of using her name for financial gain through his talent development company, Fenty Entertainment, which he claimed was connected to her.
Rihanna moved to dismiss the lawsuit just three weeks before it was set to go to trial in 2021. Following the settlement, Fenty claimed that the two had once again reconciled.