NEW YORK: Rihanna is now Ambassador Rihanna, after her home country tasked her with promoting investment and tourism.
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley said that Rihanna — real name Robyn Rihanna Fenty — has been conferred the title of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary.
While the singer will not be formally accredited to another country, Mottley said that Rihanna — whose more colorful songs include “Bitch Better Have My Money” — would be in charge of bringing investment as well as encouraging education and tourism.
“I couldn’t be more proud to take on such a prestigious title in my home country. Every Barbadian is going to have to play their role in this current effort, and I’m ready and excited to take on the responsibility,” Rihanna said in a statement dated Thursday.
Rihanna, 30, grew up in a troubled home in Barbados and was propelled to fame after visiting US producer Evan Rogers recognized her talents.
The singer, who since achieving stardom has lived primarily in Los Angeles and New York, has scored 14 number-one singles on the US Billboard chart, more than any artist except The Beatles, Elvis Presley and Mariah Carey.
Barbados appoints Ambassador Rihanna
Barbados appoints Ambassador Rihanna
- Rihanna's home country tasked her with promoting investment and tourism
- The singer has scored 14 number-one singles on the US Billboard chart
Trunk snapped off famed Bernini statue in Rome square
ROME, Feb 18 (Reuters) - A marble elephant designed by Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini has been damaged, with its left tusk found snapped off and lying at the base of the monument in the heart of Rome, authorities said.
The damage was uncovered on Monday night and police said they would review video footage from Piazza della Minerva to determine whether the tusk was vandalised or simply fell off following weeks of unusually heavy rains.
Italy's Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli made clear he thought it was deliberate, saying the 17th statue, which supports an ancient Egyptian obelisk, was victim of an "absurd act of barbarity".
"It is unacceptable that once again the nation's artistic and cultural heritage must suffer such serious damage," he said in a statement.
It is not the first time the sculpture, popularly known as the Elefantino (little elephant), has been damaged.
In November 2016, the tip of the same tusk was similarly found broken off. The piece was reattached during restoration work.
The sculpture, created in 1667 by Ercole Ferrata based on a design by Bernini, stands a short distance from the Pantheon, one of most visited tourist sites in Rome. (Reporting by Francesca Piscioneri, editing by Crispian Balmer)
