Vanessa (name) name became more and more popular and was the 7th most popular name for girls in the 1990s. In the following years its popularity dropped and the name is ranked in 42nd place for the decade 2000–2009. Vanessa (name) Vanessa is a feminine given name, especially popular in the United States, Germany and Brazil. It was invented by the Anglo-Irish writer Jonathan Swift for Esther Vanhomrigh, whom Swift had met in 1708 and whom he tutored. The name was created by taking "Van" from Vanhomrigh's last name and adding "Essa", a pet form of Esther. In 1726 the name Vanessa
Where Have You Been The performance was in "Cleopatra" style. The singer performed the song on "American Idol"'s season 11 finale on May 23, 2012. Rihanna performed "Where Have You Been" at Radio 1's Hackney Weekend on June 24, 2012, as the tenth song on the set list. The performance featured a giant sphinx on the stage. She also performed the song at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. Credits adapted from the liner notes of "Talk That Talk", Def Jam Recordings, SRP Records. Where Have You Been "Where Have You Been" is a song by Barbadian singer Rihanna, from her sixth studio album,