ASAP Rocky Was Into Rihanna for ‘Years’ Before They Started Dating

Persistence pays off! A$AP Rocky finally made it out of Rihanna‘s friend zone, a source exclusively reveals in the new issue of Us Weekly.

The “Everyday” rapper and the “Love on the Brain” singer, both 32, have been romantically linked since December 2019 when they posed together at the Fashion Awards at Royal Albert Hall in London. Nearly one year later, the musicians were seen dining with friends in New York City, further fueling speculation that their relationship has reached the next level.

According to the source, “A$AP has been very into Rihanna for years” and “was always the instigator” in their flirtatious connection. The Grammy winner, however, “would brush off his advances and kept him in the friend zone” until recently.

“Things changed over the summer and they finally hooked up,” the insider adds. “They’ve been together ever since.”

Before testing the waters with the New York native, Rihanna dated Hassan Jameel for nearly three years. Us broke the news in January that the former pair, who began dating in June 2017, had called it quits.

One month after her split from the 32-year-old Saudi businessman, a source exclusively told Us that Rihanna was “hooking up” with Rocky. “They’re having fun and have always had chemistry,” the insider said in February.

The Ocean’s 8 star was previously linked to Chris Brown, who pleaded guilty to assaulting her in 2009. She later dated Drake on and off until 2016. Despite the ups and downs she’s faced in her love life, Rihanna has big plans for starting a family someday — and isn’t afraid of doing it alone.

“I know I will want to live differently. I’ll have kids — three or four of ’em,” she said in the May 2020 issue of British Vogue, describing her vision for the next decade of her life. “I feel like society makes me want to feel like, ‘Oh, you got it wrong.’ They diminish you as a mother if there’s not a dad in your kids’ lives. But the only thing that matters is happiness, that’s the only healthy relationship between a parent and a child. That’s the only thing that can raise a child truly, is love.”

For more on Rihanna’s budding romance with A$AP Rocky, watch the video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly, on newsstands now.

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