If there was any more anticipated event than Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty show on Wednesday night, it was Thursday night’s fourth annual Diamond Ball, benefitting the star’s Clara Lionel Foundation.
Hosted by Insecure star Issa Rae with Atlanta star Daniel Glover’s alter ego, Childish Gambino, as the featured performer, followed by DJ Mustard, the evening, which took place at New York City venue Cipriani Wall Street, was both philanthropic and downright fabulous (in fact, Fabolous was in attendance).
“Rihanna knows my name y’all!” Rae happily announced while hosting, as reported by USA Today. It was a humorous take on a more serious sentiment she shared with the Associated Press on the event’s red carpet:
“I’m excited to be hosting this,” she said. “It’s not only good as a platform, [Rihanna’s] just such an example ... I think about that every day—like, ‘what’s going to be my legacy?’ I don’t just want to be just known as a writer. You know, when you have these opportunities and these eyeballs, you need to use them. I love what [Rihanna’s] doing, and I love her.”
Advertisement
With worldwide education, emergency response and healthcare as its focus, the Clara Lionel Foundation has so far raised millions in donations, providing resources and micro grants to residents of lower income countries, as well as establishing a scholarship fund and oncology and nuclear medicine in Rihanna’s native Barbados. Their current goal is to raise $25 million for an emergency response fund by next year’s Diamond Ball.
Advertisement
Rihanna told The Associated Press:
In the past I’ve wanted to support so many causes and you go to one foundation for this and one foundation for that. And I don’t think it’s fair to turn your back on someone else who needs help just because it doesn’t fit into the bracket of your mold. And I don’t think charities should be molded like that—not for me, anyways. Some people, it works for them, but for me personally, I couldn’t sleep knowing that I can’t help someone with AIDS because my charity’s about cancer. Everybody needs help, you don’t even know what that means, it could be schools supplies, it could be something as light as that. But we would always, always reach out and support, so this going to be an ever-growing charity.
Taking place between Fashion Week and next Monday night’s Emmy Awards, the Diamond Ball drew an already dressed-to impress crowd, as celebs from all sectors of the entertainment industry came out to support our resident bad gal’s good works.
Advertisement
Who was there? To name a few: supermodels Joan Smalls and Duckie Thot, Odell Beckhams Jr. and Sr., Trevor Noah, Tiffany Haddish (who reportedly bid $75,000 on a pair of earrings from event sponsor Chopard during the evening’s auction), Meek Mill, Tarana Burke and Teyana Taylor (putting to bed any residual rumors of beef between herself and Rihanna). And all were dressed in their gala finest, proving that pretty is as pretty does.
“We have a mission that we want to accomplish, but also people can have a good time,” Rihanna told Vogue, before stepping onto the event’s red carpet. “[This is] so they can feel good about doing something great.”
