When you think of people who are so unabashedly themselves — people who make being confident look so easy and sexy — Rihanna should be at the tippy top of your list (if she isn't already). This badass woman isn't afraid to speak her mind, and makes it known to everyone that she plays by her rules only.

Because what else is better in life than to be totally and completely yourself? And, believe it or not, there are certain Rihanna quotes that speak right into learning how to improve your confidence, love yourself, and become a better person in the process.

At one point, the Rihanna we all admire and look up to today wasn't always that confident person. Like all of us, she used to struggle with being comfortable in her own skin, but she never let that stop her from being the awesome and talented woman she is today.

She teaches us that sometimes, it takes time to figure out who you are and how to be happy with what you have.

Rihanna reminds us that you can't expect anyone else to love you until you learn to love yourself. If you're unhappy with the person you are, everyone else will be too. Harsh? Maybe. But if anyone is the right person to look up to in this situation, it's her.

Even Drake looks up to her. (No kidding!) Back in 2016, before accepting her Michael Jackson Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards, her long-time friend and ex-boyfriend professed his long-time love for her, saying, "She succeeds by doing something that no one in this music industry does, which is being herself... All of my adult life I've looked up to her, even though she's younger than me."

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If there were ever a truer statement than this one to describe the one and only Rihanna, we haven't found it yet. 

Drake loves Rihanna because she loves herself, which makes those of us who look up to her (myself included) determined to love ourselves even more. So, to celebrate this queen and her confidence, let these Rihanna quotes inspire you to be better for yourself, and to remind you that loving yourself is a requirement in life.

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1. Live your life for yourself, not anyone else.

"I don't do things for the response or the controversy. I just live my life."

2. Loving yourself comes first.

"The minute you learn to love yourself you won't want to be anyone else."

3. You don't have to answer to anyone for how you feel.

"No one can understand the way you're feeling unless they burn the way you burned."

4. Never hide any part of who you are.

"I'm crazy and I don't pretend to be anything else."

5. Success is about what you learn along the way, not what's at the end.

"Success to me isn't a destination, it's a journey."

6. Confidence comes from being yourself.

7. Sometimes you have to let yourself be vulnerable to someone else in order to experience the love you deserve.

"To me, it's tougher to be vulnerable than to be tough."

8. Don't let other people's opinions get in the way of your happiness.

"I think a lot of people are afraid of being happy because of what others might think of it."

9. Rock what you've got.

"For the first time, I don't want to get rid of the curves. My body is comfortable, it's not unhealthy, so I'm going to rock with it."

10. Love the body you've got.

"You just have to accept your body. You may not love it all the way, but you just have to be comfortable with it."

11. Keep doing you because people will talk no matter what you're doing.

"People are gonna talk whether you're doing bad or good."

12. Never regret life because you didn't do it for yourself.

"I'm gonna look back on my life and say that I enjoyed it and I lived for me."

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Emily Ratay is a full-time writer who focuses on entertainment, news, and confidence. She's passionate about the environment and feminism, and knows that anything is possible in the right pair of shoes.