Mihlali vs Rihanna: Why are people comparing women's looks?

South African beauty influencer Mihlali Ndamase was a hot topic on social media this week. An innocent picture of herself posing with Rihanna turned into a debate about beauty. 

The image was taken at the recent launch of Fenty Beauty's Soft'Lit Naturally Luminous Longwear Foundation in Los Angeles. 

Rihanna, the company's founder, invited influencers from all over the world, including some from SA. 

Actress Linda Mtoba and Cape Town model Carmen Solomons, who is based in LA, were also spotted at the event. 

Rihanna took pictures with most of the guests, and many of them, including Mihlali, shared them on social media. 

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While most of Mihlali's two-million followers were thrilled that she got to meet Riri, others started commenting about how beautiful she looked in comparison to the singer. 

"Trust Mihlali to look prettier than Rihanna," one wrote. Another fan added: "Imagine going face to face with Riri and coming out victorious." 

Mihlali allegedly started liking the comments, not necessarily because she thinks she is hotter, but because she was happy that people loved her look.

However, some thought Mihlali was co-signing comments that she looks better than Rihanna. This led to Rihanna's American fans dragging her on social media. 

Some accused the 27-year-old of editing the image to make herself look flawless, while others told her she wished she looked as good as Rihanna. 

"The real issue is how she edited her own pic and left Riri bare, which screamed mean girl energy," one X user said.

"Liking comments of people saying she’s way prettier than Riri told me everything I need to know bout her," another user commented.

A third wrote: "Fenty beauty needs to stop inviting these african girls. Enough."

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One Twitter user even went as far as finding a picture of Mihlali that was "not airbrushed" as proof that she didn't look as good as the 'Umbrella' singer.

But Mihlali's fans noted that she still looked gorgeous! 

'Mihlali' was trending on X, formerly known as Twitter, as the debate about the two women's looks raged on. She eventually had to turn off the comments on her Instagram post. 

But many wondered why the topic was even up for debate. Why are women's looks being compared?

"Rihanna & Mihlali are both beautiful and that's just it," one X user wrote.

Another user commented: "Beauty is subjective and it lies in the eyes of the beholder. Some people don't think Mihlali is beautiful same way others don't think Rihanna is beautiful that's how the human mind works no one will ever be satisfied with anything on both ends this topic is honestly overrated."

A third wrote: "Rihanna and Mihlali are both beautiful BLACK women. Let’s end it."

Hear, hear to that!

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Main image credit: Instagram/@mihlali_n