Rihanna is back with her revolutionary take on maternity-wear. After redefining what it meant to show off her bump during her first pregnancy, she’s keeping the surprising looks coming during her second with her outfit for the 2023 Oscars awards ceremony.
Before her highly anticipated performance at tonight’s ceremony (Rihanna scored her very first Academy Award nomination this year), she walked the red carpet in a sheer bodycon custom Alaïa gown, featuring a leather bandeau halter top and a low-rise draped leather floor-length skirt with a sheer turtleneck underneath. The whole thing put her growing belly on display.
The Grammy-winner wore her raven tresses up in a messy top-knot bun, and added a bit of bling with diamond, emerald, and ruby gemstone teardrop earrings, and an assortment of dazzling rings. The makeup mogul maintained a glowing and natural complexion with a bold, statement-making red lip courtesy of her makeup brand, Fenty Beauty.
The Savage X Fenty mogul sang her song, “Lift Me Up” — the lead single of the Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever original soundtrack that has been nominated for Best Original Song. Rihanna was nominated alongside co-writers Tems, Ludwig Göransson and director Ryan Coogler for the highly celebrated track.
Rihanna took the stage in a custom sheer black embellished ensemble from Maison Margiela’s Artisanal line. Her top featured an empire silhouette (which further showed off her baby bump), with a silver beading embroidered throughout, worn with jacquard trousers. The bespoke creation was made specifically for Rihanna by designer John Galliano.
Drenched in De Beers diamonds, Rihanna layered shimmering necklaces and wore glittering drop earrings and a dazzling assortment of bracelets and rings over her black leather opera gloves. The Anti artist wore her hair in a glossy blowout with a sweeping side-part and maintained a luminescent complexion with shimmering eyeshadow.
Rihanna’s song was her first new track in six years and pays homage to the life of actor Chadwick Boseman, who portrayed King T’Challa in the first installment of Black Panther. Boseman passed away in 2020 from colon cancer at the age of 43.
Earlier this week, Rihanna shared photos of her son on social media, teasing tonight’s performance. “My son when he found out his sibling is going to the Oscars and now him,” she captioned the post before tagging, “@theacademy #oscarnominee #oscarperformancein1week.”
The first slide of the carousel showed her baby looking up from his crib with a sour look on his face before showcasing pictures and videos of him and his mom watching the “Lift Me Up” music video in preparation for tonight’s milestone.
