It’s one of those headlines that makes you stop scrolling. In May 2025, news broke that Ronald Fenty, the man who helped shape the early life of a global icon, had passed away. He was 70. For years, we watched the push-and-pull between him and his daughter, Rihanna. One minute they were suing each other over the Fenty brand name; the next, she was buying him a mansion in Barbados or sending him a ventilator during the pandemic.
People wanted answers immediately. When a high-profile figure dies in a Los Angeles hospital like Cedars-Sinai, the rumor mill starts spinning at 100 mph. Initially, all we heard from outlets like Starcom Network was that it followed a "brief illness." That’s celebrity PR-speak for "we aren't ready to talk about it yet."
The Official Breakdown: Ronald Fenty Cause of Death
Honestly, the "brief illness" label didn't stay vague for long. By late June 2025, documents obtained by TMZ and later confirmed by People magazine laid out the clinical reality. Ronald Fenty cause of death was officially listed as acute respiratory failure triggered by a brutal combination of pancreatic cancer and aspiration pneumonia.
It wasn't just one thing. It was a cascade.
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- Pancreatic Cancer: This was the underlying monster. It’s notoriously aggressive and often goes undetected until it's too late to stop.
- Aspiration Pneumonia: This happens when food, saliva, or stomach acid gets inhaled into the lungs instead of swallowed. In patients weakened by cancer, it’s often the "final straw" for the immune system.
- Acute Respiratory Failure: Basically, his lungs could no longer get enough oxygen into his blood.
- Organ Complications: The death certificate also noted acute renal failure (kidneys) and acute tubular necrosis, showing that his body was effectively shutting down across the board.
The Final Days at Cedars-Sinai
Timeline matters here. On May 28, 2025, paparazzi caught photos of Rihanna’s brother, Rajad Fenty, pulling up to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in LA. Rihanna was reportedly in the car too, shielded from the cameras. They were there because things had turned critical.
He passed away on May 30, 2025.
While the world knows him as the guy Rihanna had a "strange" (her words) relationship with, his final moments were reportedly very quiet. He was surrounded by family. Despite the years of lawsuits and public spats, it seems they dropped the gloves when it actually counted.
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Why Pancreatic Cancer Caught People Off Guard
Most fans remember Ronald's health scare back in 2020. He caught COVID-19 and famously told the Sun that "Robyn" (Rihanna's real name) sent a ventilator to his home in Barbados and checked on him every day. Because he survived that, many assumed he was indestructible.
Pancreatic cancer is different. It doesn't care how tough you are. It’s a "silent" disease. By the time he was hospitalized in California, the battle was already uphill.
A Legacy of "Struggle and Growth"
Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley didn't hold back in her tribute. She called him a "son of Barbadian soil" and acknowledged that his path "was not without struggle." That’s a polite way of referencing the well-documented history of addiction and domestic issues that Rihanna has talked about since her 2011 Vogue interview.
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But the 2020s were a different chapter.
- The Legal Truce: Rihanna sued him in 2019 for using the "Fenty" name for his talent company. She dropped that suit in 2021, just weeks before they were supposed to meet in court.
- The Grandfather Era: He lived to see her become a mother to RZA and Riot.
- The Final Homecoming: After his death in LA, his body was returned to Barbados. He had a private service at the Garfield Sobers Sports Complex before being buried at Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens.
What This Means for the Fenty Family Now
Losing a parent is heavy, but losing one with this much history is a whole different weight. Rihanna was pregnant with her third child when he passed. You've got to wonder how that timing hits—bringing new life in while saying goodbye to the man who, for better or worse, started her story.
If you’re looking for a takeaway, it’s probably this: health isn't just about the headlines we see. Even with all the money and resources in the world—and let's be real, Rihanna has more than most—some things like pancreatic cancer move faster than medicine can keep up with.
Next Steps for Readers:
- Understand the signs: Pancreatic cancer is often caught late because symptoms like jaundice or mid-back pain are easily ignored. If you have a family history, talk to a doctor about screening.
- Check your documents: Like the Fenty family, having clear medical directives and a will simplifies things during the "brief illness" window that can happen to anyone.
- Reconcile while you can: The fact that Rihanna dropped her lawsuit and was at his bedside shows that some things are more important than branding or old grudges.