When pop star Rihanna was declared a national hero in Barbados, the country that bears her roots, the crowd in her hometown of Bridgetown cheered.
Rihanna too was very much grateful for the honour.
Born Robyn Rihanna Fenty, the singer was conferred the honour by Barbados Prime Minister, Mia Mottley.
"God bless you, my dear."
The Caribbean Island has made the historic move to become a republic, removing Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state, and inaugurating President Sandra Mason in that role.
But the "new Queen" of Barbados is arguably Rihanna, who expressed surprise when crowned a national hero.
"This is a day that I will never, ever forget. It's also a day that I never saw coming."
The singer said the people of Barbados are the true heroes, and she takes pride in calling Barbados home.
"I love you guys and I pray that the youth continue to push Barbados forward."
Rihanna, the global superstar
Rihanna became a worldwide star when her distinctive voice hit airwaves across the world, after she was signed to rapper Jay-Z's record label.
Pon de Replay was the song that propelled her into international stardom in 2005.
She won a Grammy a couple of years later for the single Umbrella featuring Jay-Z, with her 2007 album Good Girl Gone Bad selling several million copies worldwide. She's since won multiple Grammys.
Rihanna is also an entrepreneur. Her Beauty line Fenty has been described by Essence magazine as "a love song to women of colour", in the way it's inclusive of shades that "all women of colour can find themselves in."
Forbes announced her billionaire status earlier this year, saying she's "the wealthiest female musician in the world".
Her album Rated R contained lyrics that touched on revenge, and was released after fellow star Chris Brown was convicted of a 2009 assault against her when the two were dating.
Rihanna has always repped Barbados
Rihanna was born in St Michael parish, Barbados to a Barbadian father and a Guyanese mother in February 1988.
She grew up in Barbados, and won a high school talent show there with a rendition of Hero by Mariah Carey.
A fan of reggae, hip hop and R'n'B, Rihanna was in a girl group, before attracting the attention of an American record producer, who helped shop her demo to Jay-Z.
She's now a bonafide superstar, a billionaire, and a National Hero.
