Bump on the Brain: Pop Culture’s Bad Girl Meets Maternity

It’s hard to look at Rihanna’s pregnancy looks and call them “maternity wear” because they simply are not. Since the Savage X Fenty designer announced her pregnancy in late January, her fashion has remained seemingly undisturbed.

As Rih’s pregnancy moves along, it has become almost a spectacle, waiting in anticipation for her next outfit. Her fashion has not met one maternity wear expectation, and has done so to such an extreme that popular culture’s attitudes towards how a pregnant body should be dressed are perhaps shifting.

It’s hard to come to a conclusion because Rihanna is in a very unique position. Even though celebrities have more space to experiment with maternity fashion than the majority of women, there is still a social expectation with mothers-to-be and how they present themselves to the world. For instance, during Kim Kardashian’s second pregnancy in 2015, her choice to go with a form fitting, bodycon silhouette was not received well. Even though her clothes were modest and covered her, she wasn’t hiding her body. Rihanna isn’t hiding her body either. She is, however, accessorizing her bump and making what’s supposed to be covered the statement piece of her looks. Kim did the same thing along with celebrities such as her sisters, Beyonce, Cardi B, and others. So why didn’t their fashion and uncovering of the bump create such a strong and overwhelming pop cultural reaction?

What’s different is the way Rihanna is using her body. She is not just emphasizing the bump but incorporating her body as an element of fashion. She is accessorizing her bump, and presenting pregnancy as something to be looked at rather than hidden. Her “bad girl” aesthetic is meeting maternity, and the fashion community can’t look away. In fact, they are accepting it (to an extent), something the previous listed celebs did not experience. With her due date coming up this spring, it seems that Rihanna will continue to embrace the bump and change what modern maternity wear can look like once and for all.