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Rihanna dresses her boy in pink – which actually makes her old-fashioned

22.9.2023

Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson

The internet’s practically breaking because Rihanna’s baby boy’s wearing pink. High time to delve into the history of how girls’ and boys’ colours came into being, why pink was once for men and what Juventus Turin has to do with all of this.

Riot Rose is the name of the latest addition to the family of singer Rihanna and rapper A$AP Rocky. And he’s really living up to his second name. In the first ever picture published of the four, the boy, who was born in early August, is sporting pink dungarees and a pink hat with a bow.

First family photo for the public: Rihanna and A$AP Rocky with their children RZA Athelston and Riot Rose.
Source: Instagram/diggzy

So far, so unspectacular. At least that’s what you’d think in times of girls’ wearing dinosaur tops and boys rocking sweaters with sequin unicorns. Nevertheless, the Instagram community’s going crazy in the comments field below star photographer Diggzy’s post. Hundreds of fans are engaging in a discussion about gender and colour.

Let me give you an example: «So he’s a boy, right?», one user wonders, only to receive numerous comments ranging from «What’s your problem?» to «I’m totally confused, too.» Speculations are made, «They were probably expecting a girl and bought tons of pink dresses.» Or «Maybe she wanted a girl.»

Pink for masculinity, blue for feminine grace

The expectations are clear: pink’s for girls, blue’s for boys. That’s what the fashion rule of colours has always said. Because that’s what our kids want, right?

Well, it’s not that simple. Back in the day, the colour order was the other way round. Until a hundred years ago – so well before Barbies and Paw Patrol – the colour pink was reserved for boys in many cultures. And sky blue was for girls. That’s because blue is the colour of Mary, the Mother of God.

Red, on the other hand, was considered a sign of masculinity and strength. Pink, or the «little red», was therefore used for boys. «The delicate shade of red resembled the bloody stains found on the shirts of soldiers returning from war and became the male convention in the clothes department of many department stores,» writes Geo.de (article in German).

The German popular science magazine underpins the colour theory of the time with two famous examples: players of Juventus Turin, a soccer club founded in 1897, wore pink jerseys. And the «Ladies’ Home Journal», once a leading U.S. women’s magazine, wrote the following in 1918: «The generally accepted rule is pink for the boys, and blue for the girls. The reason is that pink, being a more decided and stronger colour, is more suitable for the boys, while blue, which is more delicate and dainty, is prettier for the girls.»

Late 19th century: the players of newly founded football club Juventus Turin wearing pink shirts.
Source: Wikipedia

The «Süddeutsche Zeitung» gives the example of pregnant Belgian princess Astrid, who, back in 1927, decorated her cradle in the «boy colour pink». She was convinced she was having a boy. In the same year, Time magazine printed a chart of big department stores’ recommendations for gender-appropriate colours: pink for boys and blue for girls.

The gendered colour reversal

This means, there’s no innate pink or blue gene. When parents say they can buy as many blue and green clothes as they want, but their daughter will still insist on wearing pink, this has less to do with nature and more to do with external influences and group affiliation. They just want to wear what their schoolmates and heroines from their favourite series and films are wearing. But also because the pink sequin items in the clothes shop are basically screaming, «Pick me!». Advertising wants us to believe that certain colours belong to certain genders.

Pink and unicorns: in the clothes department, girls soon understand which colourscape and themes they belong in.
Source: Shutterstock/doublelee

It remains unclear why the colour scheme changed over the years. There are different ideas and theories about it. Perhaps it had to do with the jeans that came to Europe from the U.S. in the 1940s. Initially, these were work trousers for craftspeople, who would’ve been almost exclusively men at the time. Perhaps sailors’ uniforms contributed to the fact that blue was increasingly interpreted as a boy’s colour. Or the blue coats that the workers wore in the new factories. Blue stood for power, strength and performance.

And delicate, soft and graceful pink, in turn, became the number one girls’ colour. The launch of Barbie in the 1950’s would have fuelled this idea. With the gender reveal party boom, this new colour order has been further cemented over the last few years.

Background information
Gender reveals – and when they become a spectacle
by Katja Fischer

Rihanna’s secret

One thing’s for sure. Society has changed, and so has the perception of colour. Things that used to be considered beautiful aren’t today. Basically, it’s down to chance what’s considered right or wrong. It could have turned out differently. Depending on what sticks in our minds, or depending on what the fashion and marketing world wants us to believe.

With this historical background in mind, Rihanna is definitely old-fashioned. Or cutting edge. It just depends which way you look at it. In any case, it remains her and Rocky’s little secret if they were trying to break gender norms with the outfit of her newborn son or if they were just alluding to his middle name. At least she immediately reacted to the wacky theory she’d been messing with the public and had actually given birth to a girl by writing: «The Mayers Boyz» under the post. Nuff said.

Header image: Shutterstock/Lev Kropotov

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Katja Fischer

Senior Editor

Katja.Fischer@digitecgalaxus.ch

Mom of Anna and Elsa, aperitif expert, group fitness fanatic, aspiring dancer and gossip lover. Often a multitasker and a person who wants it all, sometimes a chocolate chef and queen of the couch.

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