Rihanna, Shakira are among 'TIME''s biggest philanthropists

Rihanna attends the 2026 Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 4, 2026 in New York City. (Theo Wargo/FilmMagic)

Rihanna and Shakira are global music stars, but they're also very generous. Both artists have landed on the TIME100 Philanthropy list, which highlights the “world’s most influential givers, leaders, advocates, and thinkers.”

The mag notes that the people on the list are “representing the most compelling stories in philanthropy today, in a field that moves more than $1 trillion globally each year.”

Rihanna made the cut thanks to her Clara Lionel Foundation, founded in 2012 after her grandmother's death and named after her grandparents. Over the years, the charity has donated over $100 million toward climate resilience, women’s entrepreneurship, arts and culture, education and healthcare, not just in her native Caribbean, but also in the U.S. and East Africa.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the foundation gave away $33 million in a single year. Most recently, when Hurricane Melissa made landfall in Jamaica in October 2025, the foundation started a fund to rebuild the island's impacted health care services and improve access to water and education.

As for Rihanna's "Can't Remember to Forget You" duet partner Shakira, she's been building schools in her native Colombia via her charity, the Barefoot Foundation, for almost 30 years. Nineteen schools have been built, 12,000 teachers have been trained and 224,000 children have been helped thanks to the charity, according to TIME.

Other musicians on TIME's list include Elton John, Chance the Rapper and country music icon Willie Nelson.

Friday, May 15, 2026 at 6:00AM by Andrea Dresdale Permalink