Meet Andele Lara, the 22-year-old student who is the mirror-image of superstar Rihanna.

Andele, from Boston, Massachusetts is such a dead-ringer for the Bajan beauty that she can't step out the house without being mobbed by screaming Rihanna fans.

 

Strangers follow Andele on her way to work and send her fan mail whilst companies pay her thousands of pounds to endorse their products - making her life not too dissimilar to the Umbrella singer.

 

                              Andele

 

                              Rihanna

Mirror image: Her similarity to the singer means that companies pay her thousands of pounds to endorse their products

Guess who? A selfie from Andele Lara's Instagram account where she has a huge following because of her resemblance to Rihanna

Her success has prompted Andele to become a full-time Rihanna lookalike.

She explains: 'The moment I step out anywhere, everyone starts staring and whispering before I get bombarded by strangers asking to take their photo with me.

'This happens every day - It doesn't matter what I do. I can't go twenty-four hours without hearing Rihanna's name.

'I know I could happily give up my part-time job and studies to have a career as a Rihanna lookalike.'

As a child, Andele always felt like the ugly ducking. However she became more confident in her looks during her teens.

She says: 'Growing up, I was a very shy girl. I was known as the skinny girl with the big forehead.

'But as I got older, I went through many stages to find myself and experimented with different hairstyles and fashion trends.'

Andele - who is single and dating - was fifteen years old when friends at school first noticed her remarkable likeness to the world-famous diva.

She explains: 'The comments started in my sophomore year. My friend had a magazine with Rihanna on the cover. He held it up to my face and was like "You look like her!"

'I wasn't really sure. She was glammed up in a magazine and here I was in my school uniform.

'Personally, I never realized I looked like Rihanna. I do see some resemblance but not as much as everyone else I think.'

But as Rihanna's fame increased, Andele could not escape the comparisons to the star and her day-to-day life changed forever.

Blossomed: Andele, pictured right, out clubbing with friend, says she felt like an ugly duckling as a child 

She explains: 'When 'Umbrella' came out, a lot more people began commenting that I looked like Rihanna.

'But after Ri-Ri released her album 'Loud' in 2010, the attention I started to receive for looking like her was undeniable.

'People began approaching me in the street asking if I was her and I would see photos of myself going viral on social media.'

Now, Andele's incredible likeness to the singer means she is regularly swarmed by strangers believing her to be Rihanna.

Resemblance pays off: Andele has landed over £13,000 worth of clothing contracts in the last year due to her uncanny resemblance 

'Literally, people mistake me for her all the time! I only have to step out of the house for an hour before I hear someone say, "Oh my god, is that Rihanna?"

'At first, I thought it was funny to take a picture with someone who believed I was her and then make their day. But as Rihanna gets even more famous, the attention just intensifies.

'Some people follow me into stores or as I'm driving. Other times fifteen people will swarm at me all at once to take a picture with me.

'I do think the attention I get is cool but there have been some scary occasions when some super-fans have followed me on my way to work everyday.

'And I must admit there have also been moments when I couldn't face taking a photo with yet another Rihanna fan. But it really makes their day to think they met Ri-Ri. I've never denied anyone a picture.'

Andele says the attention is most extreme when she goes out clubbing.

'When I go on a night out, that's when the attention is at its highest. Even my friends get annoyed by the number of people that come up to me.

'Men come up to me all the time, thinking I'm Rihanna and buying me drinks! They chat me up and try to get my number.'

Last year, Andele was even mistaken for Rihanna when she happened to be partying at the same nightclub as the star's bad boy ex Chris Brown.

She says: 'I was at a club in Boston and Chris Brown was there. Because he was there, I guess everyone assumed I was Rihanna!

'I was casually walking around and all these star-struck people were holding their hand to their hearts backing away from me and staring.

Rihanna mania: People regularly follow the 22-year-old as she goes about her life believing her to be the star 

Andele now plans on becoming a professional Rihanna lookalike, but says unfortunately she can't sing 

'At first, I was confused but then I realised what was going on. In the end, I spent the whole night taking fun pictures with groups of people who had mistaken me for Rihanna.'

Andele's resemblance to the singer has thrust her into the limelight and made her well-known on social media.

As a result of the similarities, Andele has landed over £13,000 worth of clothing contracts in the last year and over 18,000 followers on Instagram.

She says: 'I wouldn't really say I've gone out looking for opportunities, they've just come along naturally. I reckon if I put more effort, I would get even more!

'I've scored hair contracts as well as sneaker, mascara, hair accessories and apparel deals. I also get into clubs for free and I get a lot of free drinks too!

'I am grateful for my followers and I love the chance to give them advice. I get tons of fan-mail and messages from people.

'After Rihanna was banned from Instagram in April, some of her fans have written to me saying that my profile had replaced hers in their lives.'

Even Rihanna herself has inadvertently come across Andele on social media.

'One Rihanna fan page on Instagram mistakenly posted my picture with the caption, 'Rare pic of Rihanna' and Rihanna actually commented on it with 'OH?!'

'But that was the closest I'd say to her knowing me. It was a brief moment but the comments and followers on my Instagram that came after that was unbelievable.

'Every time I refreshed my page, I had at least thirty new followers and some really hateful comments too.

'In the end, the attention and mean comments from some users was a bit too much. I had to turn my notifications off on Instagram and make my account private.'

She added: 'I'm a big fan of Rihanna though. A lot of celebrities become someone they aren't but she seems to have stayed true to herself.

'I would love to meet Ri-Ri and take a selfie with her!'

Andele plans on becoming a professional Rihanna lookalike but says she'll have to draw the line at performing like the popstar.

She said: 'I know I could make a career of it. I'm pretty much a lookalike in my daily life now! But unfortunately I can't sing though so I might have to take singing lessons!' 

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