Coco Gauff knows how to shut down critics. Remember how she proved them wrong at the 2023 US Open? “A month ago I won a 500 title & people said I’d stop at that. 2 weeks ago I won a 1000 title & people said that was as big as it’d get. 3 weeks later, I’m here,” Coco said, after winning her maiden Grand Slam title on home turf. And being a confident personality, the 20-year-old likes to resonate with those who are bold and spirited just like her. For example, the globally acclaimed artist Rihanna. Recently, the pop star’s strong reaction following the judgment in her partner and rapper A$AP Rocky’s court case caught a lot of eyeballs. When Gauff saw it, she was left in awe of RiRi!

On Thursday, American rapper A$AP Rocky was released in a long-running case by the court in Los Angeles. After the verdict, where he was termed not guilty, the rapper gave a public statement to the media. He was flooded with reporters. Among them, however, was one unidentified individual who tried to ask him some disturbing personal questions. Seeing that, his partner and singer Rihanna had a perfect reply as she said, “How do you think it feels?”

Coco Gauff was left mesmerized by RiRi’s firm stance in defending her partner. Taking to her Instagram, in a story dated February 21, the World No. 3 shared an image of the power couple and captioned it, “Mood.”

It’s not the first time, though, that the 2024 WTA Finals winner has praised Rihanna. She’s always been an admirer of the superstar singer and her emphatic rise. Back in March 2024, after making a winning start to her Indian Wells Campaign, at the BNP Paribas Open, she was asked to pick one dinner companion. Gauff narrowed it down to her two favorites: Beyonce and Rihanna. And who did she choose at the end? Well, no prizes for guessing. It was Rihanna.

“I’m going to go with Rihanna,” said Coco. She further explained the reason as well. “Because I would love to hear how, like, she started Fenty Beauty, because that was kind of one of the first makeup brands to provide a full shade range of foundation for all skin tones,” she added, as reported by the BNP Paribas Open’s website in March 2024.

Thanks to her cosmetic company, launched in 2017, Rihanna was able to mint over $550 million in just three years of its emergence in the market. On similar lines, Coco Gauff has also made a name for herself. Last season ended on a great note for her as she pocketed over $30 million in prize money. It was mainly boosted by her victory in Riyadh which gave her a whopping paycheck of $4.8 million. But is she also interested in starting up her own business someday?

Coco Gauff’s response to starting her own beauty brand in the future

In the same press conference at the BNP Paribas Open, Coco Gauff was asked whether similar to Rihanna, she would like to launch her own brand. And what did she say? “I haven’t done any brainstorming or anything like that. But it’s definitely something I want to do later on in my career.”

Continuing further she added, “You know, I don’t know in what world that would be in. I mean, yeah, I can’t tell you. I love beauty and fashion, so maybe something in that world. But, like, again, I haven’t really brainstormed. I’m not planning on starting anything anytime soon. I think I just want to focus on tennis.”

While there’s time for Cocco’s beauty business to show up, if at all, she did make a collaboration last season with a prominent brand. Back in April 2024, the 20-year-old joined forces with the pioneering hair care brand Carol’s Daughter. It’s a multi-year deal, but its worth is not revealed officially. After partnering with the beauty brand, the American tennis star said, “Their expertise in natural hair care is unparalleled, and I’m proud to align with a brand that shares my values. Together, we’ll continue empowering women and girls to embrace their natural curls with confidence and authenticity,” as reported by Loreal’s website in April 2024.

Now speaking of some on-court action, Gauff will look to find her lost form sooner than later this season. After crashing out in the QF round down under, she failed to impress in the following two WTA events. While she couldn’t move past the first round at the Qatar Open, losing to Marta Kostyuk in straight sets by 6-2, 7-5, her fortunes remained unchanged in Dubai as well, where she lost against compatriot McCartney Kessler in straight sets again, by 6-4, 7-5 to be precise.

Do you think Coco will be able to turn it around at Indian Wells where she features next? Share your thoughts in the comments below.