Rihanna’s latest trip home turned into a family history lesson with a pretty remarkable backdrop.
The Barbados-born superstar brought her three children to Rihanna Drive, the street in St. Michael where she grew up before becoming one of the world’s most recognizable entertainers.
Formerly known as Westbury New Road, the street was officially renamed Rihanna Drive in 2017 to honor the singer and entrepreneur and her extraordinary rise from Barbados to international stardom.
This time, Rihanna returned not for a ceremony or major public event, but with the next generation of her family.
Her sons RZA, 4, and Riot, 3, joined their mother for the visit, along with their younger sister Rocki Irish, who turns 1 in September. Rihanna shares all three children with rapper A$AP Rocky.
Rihanna documented the homecoming on social media, sharing images of herself and the children gathered around signage bearing her name. She reflected on the unusual experience of remembering herself as a child growing up in the neighborhood while now being able to bring her own children back to a street named in her honor.
The family outing offered a rare look at Rihanna with all three of her children. She and Rocky have generally kept their family life relatively private, making appearances involving the entire family less common than the couple’s individual outings.
The visit also came during a busy stretch in Rihanna’s home country. Earlier in August, she took part in Barbados’ Grand Kadooment Day parade, one of the signature celebrations marking the conclusion of the island’s Crop Over festival.
For Rihanna, however, the return to her old neighborhood carried a significance beyond celebrity.
Long before the hit records, global tours and business empire, Barbados was home. Taking her children back to the same neighborhood provided a tangible connection between where their mother’s story started and where that story has taken her.
Few childhood streets end up carrying the name of the kid who grew up there. Rihanna now gets the even rarer experience of showing that street to her own children.
