Does Rihanna not know how to pronounce her own name? For years, much of the world has been going with “Rih-AH-na,” which, as RihRih has told us, is not right. It’s actually pronounced “Rih-ANN-na,” though judging from her appearance in the legendary 2009 Saturday Night Live “Shy Ronnie” sketch, maybe we were right all along?
In the bit, Rihanna and Ronnie (Andy Samberg) are dropping knowledge to a group of grade schoolers with the singer crooning in her power range as timid Ronnie can barely rise above a whisper to her utter consternation. At the top, Rihanna introduces herself using what we’ve learned is the incorrect pronunciation of her name, so what gives?
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On the new episode of The Lonely Island and Seth Meyers Podcast — on which the Samberg-led trio and late night host break down some of their classic digital shorts and other comedy projects — Naked Gun director Schaffer finally untangled the “Shy Ronnie” moniker muddle. “Andy went, ‘Ree-awn-uh and Shy Ronnie,’” Schaffer explained of Samberg’s slip-up when recording the intro to the temp track that was meant to guide Rihanna’s performance. “And then she was so great at recording exactly Andy’s inflections to get the jokes perfect that she did that [too].”
In other words, blame Samberg and praise Rihanna for being a consummate professional.
Schaffer said on the pod that when he later heard Rihanna introduce herself using the right pronunciation he was even more confused. “I heard her say her name to somebody else out loud, and I went, ‘Why did you say “Ree-ANN-uh”? Wait, is your name Ree-ann-uh?’” Schaffer said, noting that her actual name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty.
When Schaffer asked what the singer’s mom calls her, he said Rihanna laughed, “‘Ree-ANN-ah,’ and I’m like, ‘Aw.’”
Samberg took the time to once again note that the trio are “huge Rihanna fans,” making sure it was clear that he now knows how to properly say her name. “She told us it’s ‘Rih-ANN-ah,’ and we were like, ‘Why don’t you correct people?’” Samberg recalled asking. “[And] she’s like, ‘I don’t care.’” They went on to gush about the singer’s flawless technique and joke about how her team basically kicked them out of their office and “put silks over all the lamps and dimmed all the lights and lit candles” to create a chilled-out atmosphere for the vocal recording session.
Her engineer then hopped on one of their computers and got to work as the trio asked if they needed to be talked through the bit. “She’s like, ‘I got it,’” Samberg said. “So we were sitting outside on the couch like little kids. And then we could sort of hear it happening,” noting that it only took 30-40 minutes for Rih to finish her bit. “And they played it back for us and we were like, ‘Oh s–t, it’s perfect!,’” Samberg added of the rushed shoot, which they then had to nail in just 45 minutes despite prepping a number of elaborate sets and waiting eight hours that day to get started.
It wasn’t that bad, since Samberg and Rihanna were back for a sequel a year later in “Shy Ronnie 2: Ronnie & Clyde.”
Watch the “Shy Ronnie” clip here and listen to the podcast below.
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