Having parents who are successful athletes, entertainers or entrepreneurs can get you far (and a hefty trust fund). But for women like Linda Johnson Rice, Hannah Bronfman and Sasha and Malia Obama, having a famous last name can make you even more determined to show and prove what you can do on your own.
We’ve rounded up some of our favorite Black heiresses who have carved their own paths to success.
Hannah Bronfman is a 37-year-old angel investor, lifestyle influencer and DJ. If the Bronfman name sounds familiar, that’s because it is. Hannah’s father, Edgar Miles Bronfman, Jr., former CEO of Warner Music Group, ran the family business – spirits brand Seagrams – until they sold it to Vivendi for 30 billion dollars in 2000.
These days, Hannah shares her fashion, beauty and lifestyle tips with her over 1.2 million Instagram followers and subscribers to her wildly popular lifestyle newsletter.
For Fatima Aliko-Dangote, business is a family affair. Her father is Aliko Dangote, the founder and CEO of the Dangote Group, the largest corporation in West Africa.
A member of the Nigerian Bar, Fatima currently serves as Group Executive Director Commercial Operations at Dangote Industries Limited.
Kimberly Steward is the daughter of billionaire businessman David Steward, founder and chairman of IT provider World Wide Technology.
A businesswoman in her own right, Steward launched her media company, K Period Media to support rising talent on both sides of the camera in 2013. Steward and K Period scored a major win in 2016, producing the hit film, “Manchester by the Sea,” which was nominated for six Academy Awards.
Media mogul Linda Johnson Rice is the daughter of John H. Johnson, founder of Johnson Publishing Company, and Eunice Johnson, producer and director of the Ebony Fashion Fair.
Although she comes from a famous family, Rice has made a name for herself in business, taking over the family business as CEO of Johnson Publishing and being named among Chicago’s “100 Most Powerful Women” and one of the “Top 10 Women in Media” by the Chicago Sun Times.
Abimbola Fernandez is the daughter of African diamond, oil, and gold tycoon Ambassador Deinde Fernandez and Chief Aduke Fernandez. Born in France, Fernandez’s family moved to New York to be closer to the United Nations, where her father worked as a representative.
These days, Fernandez is trying to make a name for herself. She is the star of The Africa Channel’s series “African Royale,” which follows her journey to find her way in Los Angeles, while preserving her family’s legacy.
The beauty business is in A’Leila Bundles’ blood – literally. She is the great-great-granddaughter of legendary Madam C.J. Walker, who became the first American self-made millionaire from her line of homemade hair care products for African Americans.
Bundles has kept her great-great-grandmother’s name alive and continued the family legacy of creating hair care products for people of color, launching her MADAM line in 2022.
Philanthropist and producer Nicole Avant is the daughter of daughter of legendary music mogul Clarence Avant and philanthropist Jacqueline Avant.
From 2009 to 2011, she served as United States Ambassador to the Bahamas, making her the first and youngest African American female to hold the position. In 2023 Avant released her bestselling memoir, “Think You’ll be Happy: Moving Through Grief with Grit, Grace and Gratitude,” about dealing with the grief she experienced after her mother’s tragic murder in 2021.
Sam Alexis Woods is the oldest child of billionaire golf great Tiger Woods and ex-wife Elin Nordegren. The 17 year old is always there to cheer on her dad, even introducing him during his induction into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. Although Sam says she’s not interested in a career in golf herself, she was her dad’s caddy at the PNC Championship’s Pro-Am in 2023.
Fashion designer and reality star Nicole Richie is the daughter of singer Lionel Richie. Nicole found her own fame, starring with friend and heir to the Hilton hotel empire, Paris Hilton in the reality series “The Simple Life” from 2003 to 2007.
These days, Richie is doing her thing in the fashion industry as designer of the lifestyle brand House of Harlow 1960 and clothing line Winter Kate.
Tracee Ellis Ross is a Golden Globe-winning actress known for her roles in the hit television series “Girlfriends” and “Black-ish.” But she also comes from an incredibly famous family. She is the daughter of GRAMMY award-winning singer and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Diana Ross and music manager Robert Ellis Silberstein.
Although they would probably take issue with being included in this list, it’s hard to deny that Sasha and Malia Obama are American royalty. The daughters of former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama, the girls have grown up in the public eye. These days, the girls are doing their best to carve their own paths – Malia as a filmmaker and Sasha as a recent USC grad. Their father says they are determined to make it without using their famous last name.
“The challenge for us is letting us give them any help at all,” President Obama said on the October 31 episode of “The Pivot.” “They’re very sensitive about this stuff. They’re very stubborn about it.”
