Fans have praised Jenna Ortega for getting Rihanna’s name right at the Golden Globes this week.
At Tuesday’s 80th annual awards ceremony, Ortega took the stage to present the award for Best Song in a Motion Picture. Before announcing RRR’s “Naatu Naatu” as the winner, the 20-year-old introduced some of the other artists in the category who were nominated, including Rihanna for her song “Lift Me Up.” The song was featured in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. .
“I’ll get straight to the original song, we have artists like Taylor Swift and Rihanna vying for this award,” he said at the beginning of his speech, as seen in a video shared on TikTok.
Her comment was then applauded by the audience before adding, “I know I’m so excited.”
On stage, Ortega pronounced the singer’s name as “Ri-An-ah,” though it’s sometimes pronounced “Ri-Awhn-Ah.”
In comments accompanying the TikTok clip, fans praised the Merlina star for pronouncing Rihanna’s name correctly.
“He actually said it correctly,” one wrote, while another added, “Ree-ah-nah, that’s what I say. Just a few years ago I heard Rihanna say her name and it was me [alucinado].
Rihanna’s makeup brand Fenty Beauty applauded Ortega in the comments, writing, “Miss Merlina got the job done.”
In 2012, during an interview with Showbiz Tonight, Rihanna confirmed that the correct way to say her name is “Ree-an-nah.”
During Tuesday’s ceremony, viewers continued to celebrate the two women on Twitter and expressed disappointment when the singer didn’t win the award.
Jenna Ortega got Rihanna’s name right. Iconic,” tweeted one.
“Even Jenna Ortega was disappointed after pronouncing Rihanna’s name CORRECTLY,” wrote another.
A third person explained: “@jennaortega she was the only one to get @rihanna’s name right tonight. One day we will have a community meeting about how the Queen prefers her name to be pronounced.”
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Rihanna and boyfriend A$AP Rocky also made headlines on Tuesday when they were late for the ceremony after deciding not to walk the red carpet. For the occasion, Rihanna chose an off-the-shoulder black velvet dress with voluminous statement sleeves, while the rapper rocked a classic tuxedo.
BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 10: 80TH ANNUAL GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS – Pictured: (L-R) Rihanna and A$AP Rocky attend the 80th Annual Golden Globe Awards held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on January 10, 2023 in Beverly Hills, California. – (Photo by Christopher Polk/NBC via Getty Images)