Rihanna is suing her father, claiming that he’s tricking people into believing she’s involved with his company by giving it a name she made famous: Fenty.
Before digging into the details of the complaint, it’s important to note that the famous singer turned makeup mogul was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty. So her dad, Ronald Fenty, effectively named his company after himself. The bulk of Rihanna’s lawsuit, though, centers on allegations that her father and his business partner, Moses Joktan Perkins, took the implied association with her a step further and have been outright lying to investors about her involvement in Fenty Entertainment.
“Mr. Fenty and Mr. Perkins have used these lies in a fraudulent effort to solicit millions of dollars from unsuspecting third parties in exchange for the false promise that they were authorized to act on Rihanna’s behalf, and/or that Rihanna would perform at various locations throughout the world,” writes attorney Carla Wirtschafter in the complaint. “Simply put, Mr. Fenty, Mr. Perkins and the Company are not presently, nor have they ever been, authorized to exploit Rihanna’s name, her intellectual property or the goodwill associated with her well-known ‘Fenty’ brand, or to solicit any business on her behalf.”
Rihanna has told the men on multiple occasions to cease and desist, but her demands have been ignored.
The star has been using the “Fenty” mark in association with her businesses since 2012, and her Fenty Beauty line made Time magazine’s list of best inventions of 2017.
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According to the complaint, Fenty and Perkins launched Fenty Entertainment in April 2017 and lied about Rihanna’s involvement in a press release announcing the company. A company called SBS Entertainment offered the fledgling production company a deal in which it would pay $15.4 million in exchange for Rihanna to perform 15 shows in Latin America and two 15 minute sets at Calibash. Fenty Entertainment accepted the deal, according to the complaint, and represented to SBS that Rihanna and Roc Nation had approved it.
Rihanna’s team sent the first cease and desist last March, but the following fall, Fenty and Perkins tried to trademark “Fenty” for resort boutique hotels. A second cease and desist was sent in December.
Rihanna is suing for false designation of origin, false advertising and invasion of her rights of privacy and publicity, among other claims. She’s asking the court for a declaration that defendants can’t use the Fenty trademark or any other term that is confusingly similar to her name and that they can’t falsely promote a business affiliation with her, as well as an injunction barring them from such activities and damages.
