Rihanna is opening up about the powerful, personal reason why she decided to braid her young sons' hair "immediately."
"This is a form of protection by our ancestors," the singer explained during a recent interview with Vogue China. "(It) makes us realize where we've come from. This is our lost history. I immediately wanted my children to have their hair braided...it's something in our blood."
According to an Instagram post by Vogue China celebrating the issue's cover story, "braids have been a channel" for Rihanna's "self-expression and creative experimentation."
"But, motherhood and a greater understanding of the history of braiding from different regions and ethnic groups, stemming in part from partner A$AP Rocky's fascination with the subject, reframed the power of hair for the 36-year-old beauty mogul," the caption reads in part.
Rihanna is the proud mom of two sons—RZA, 22 months, and Riot, 7 months—whom she shares with her partner, A$AP Rocky.
In a 2023 interview with British Vogue, the mogul opened up about motherhood and what becoming a parent does to a person.
"Having a kid honestly unlocks another side of life where you're now in the matrix with the people who've already had kids," she told the outlet at the time. "You come to have a different respect for moms and dads."
The fashion designer went on to say that "everything changes when you have a baby," adding that "it's legendary" and "it's everything."
"You really don't remember life before, that's the craziest thing ever," she continued. "You literally try to remember it—and there are photos of my life before—but the feeling, the desires, the things that you enjoy, everything, you just don't identify with it because you don't even allow yourself mentally to get that far because... Because it doesn't matter."
In the same Vogue China interview, Rihanna told Editor-in-Chief Margaret Zhang that it's the "most beautiful thing" to have children "come into the world with their own individuality and sincerity, without any logic or conformity, which usually makes you feel like you must fit into a certain group.
""It's really beautiful to see and I want to continue to help them navigate that and make sure that they know they can be whoever they want to be... they should embrace it completely, because it's beautiful, and it's unique," she said. "I love them just that way."
