Ahead of her sure to be instantly iconic Super Bowl halftime performance, the Riri ensembles, memes and moments that speak to our souls.

Fashion girlie

I mean, duh. She has countless iconic fashion moments, but some looks of note: when she wore the heart-shaped fur Saint Laurent coat with denim cut offs, her pregnancy reveal, the pink tulle Giambattista Valli gown for the 2015 Grammys, every single Met Gala look, when she wore her own T-shirt merch, when she wore a T-shirt featuring a photo of herself wearing a Hillary Clinton T-shirt. That Guo Pei gown at the 2015 Met Gala, of course.

This is a true superstar who understands the power of fashion, whether she’s vamping it up on a red carpet, fronting her businesses, in a music video, on-stage or walking from restaurant to car while holding a glass of wine and being captured by the paps.

But my favourite look was in 2014 at the CFDAs: the Adam Selman sheer dress, opera gloves and durag covered in Swarovski crystals, nips out and proud. It was and still is unapologetically Rihanna: glamour, cool, a little shocking. She later admitted that the only regret she has in life was not wearing a matching bedazzled thong. - Zoe Walker Ahwa

Stoner Riri

Of all the genres of Riri I love (fashion icon RiRi, out for a 1am dinner date like it’s 6pm RiRi, business maverick Riri, zero fucks given RiRi), my absolute favourite is stoner RiRi. 

And nothing sums this up better than Rihanna, sitting atop her bodyguard’s shoulders while attending Coachella, and casually using his bald dome to pick through bud before expertly rolling and lighting a spliff.

She then just as casually posted the photos the Daily Mail et al were inciting outrage over to her Instagram, captioning it, “Memories don’t live like people do #coachella.” Bravo, woman of many, many talents. - Rebecca Wadey

R-rated

Above all else, I love Rihanna because she seems like a thoroughly good time. Remember her stint of keeping the party going by simply walking out of restaurants and clubs wine glass still in hand? Who amongst us doesn't want to get in on the fun.

Late Night TV host Seth Meyers, of all people, got closest to experiencing a night on the razz with RiRi when she took part in his Day Drinking segment in 2019. It's a series with an indulgently simple premise: Meyers gets drunk with superstars.The Rihanna episode is hands down the best. We get the full, and gloriously messy party Rihanna experience. It's the stuff of movie montages. There's a Fenty makeover, an enthusiastic karaoke session to Work and enough drinks to sink a ship. The highlight though, and the reason I re-watch the video regularly, is Ri dolling out universally effective R-rated relationship advice. 

"I want to blow my wife away with a romantic night out, what do I do?" asks Meyers.

"You said it," Rihanna replies immediately. "Blow your wife, away!" - Tyson Beckett

Pon De Replay era

I’ve gone way back to the first time I was ever captivated by Rihanna’s style. I was 11-years-old, with big dreams of becoming a hip hop dance teacher and small dreams of performing this very banger to a crowd of my fellow classmates and their outdoorsy parents at Year 11 school camp (a pre-iPhone era).

My friends and I gyrated round the campfire to Pon de Replay while parents looked on, so horrified they burnt their marshmallows. I had been playing the song on repeat in my sister's bedroom, choreographing my own moves before I saw the music video, which blew my mind. I saw Rihanna’s baby blue cropped zip-up hoodie and low rise baggy jeans and knew I would do whatever it took to get my own version of the look.

Luckily, Supré was well stocked with the tiniest hoodies you had ever seen, and 11-year-old me was rocking some serious abs. I felt so cool showing up to hip hop class in my big-pants-little-top combo, only to find everyone else (pre-pubescent white girls) wearing the same thing. The beginning of Riri’s influence! - Lara Daly

Glamour and blunts

I loved her baby reveal photos so much - it’s 100% Rihanna, a perfect blend of street style and glamour. Other iconic moments: Her blunt-smoking bridesmaid look, the paparazzi photos of her yelling at her billionaire ex-boyfriend, and swerving Drake’s kiss onstage at the VMAs. - Lyric Waiwiri-Smith

Shady tweets

Remember when celebrities were unguarded and a little unhinged on Twitter? This Rih tweet (in response to Ciara trying to shade her) deserves a spot in a museum. - ZWA

Master of balance

All the times she displayed her near superhuman ability to walk over sidewalk grates in pencil thin stiletto heels. We’ll sooner understand what an NFT is, then wrap our heads around HOW she does this. Make it make sense. - Tyson Beckett

Eye roll Queen

From her deep eye roll in black and white in the Four Five Seconds video to the many looks of disdain aimed at the paparazzi - Riri’s expressive face and refusal to look ‘nice and approachable’ at all times is just further proof of her genius. - ZWA

Her stick figure Instagram avatar

We hope she never changes it.

Iconic performances to watch

The 2015 iHeartRadio Awards was peak Bad Gal Riri on-stage swagger, where she performed Bitch Better Have My Money wearing a black Versace mini dress, green fur coat, sunglasses, choker and patent boots – an ode to rapper and icon Lil Kim.

A year later, at the 2016 MTV VMAs, she performed four times with medleys of her hits - and the best costume changes (this was also the year that she swerved Drake's cringe attempt at a kiss). The dancehall tribute is simply perfection.

Remember when she performed at the Victoria’s Secret show? That was way back in 2012 and yep, it does feel archaic compared to what Rihanna would create years later with her epic - and inclusive - Savage x Fenty shows. But any excuse to listen to Phresh Out the Runway again, and watch Rih’s runway walk at the end.