LOS ANGELES (AP) — Rihanna appeared for the primary time on the trial of her longtime companion A$AP Rocky, on the day of its most vital testimony — the outline by a former pal of the second Rocky allegedly fired a gun at him.
The singer famous person, who has two toddler sons with the rapper Rocky, sat out of view of the courtroom’s cameras, between Rocky’s mom and sister, within the downtown Los Angeles legal courthouse. Safety introduced her in surreptitiously to keep away from crowds Wednesday morning.
Rocky, whose authorized identify is Rakim Athelston Mayers, has been standing trial on two felony prices that he fired a handgun on the former pal, who is understood by the identify A$AP Relli and was born Terell Ephron. If convicted, Rocky might stand up to 24 years in jail.
Rihanna watched Wednesday as Relli testified in regards to the second Rocky allegedly fired a gun at him on a Hollywood avenue in 2021.
He had been shouting angrily at Rocky, who was strolling away after an preliminary confrontation and scuffle, when Rocky pulled a gun from his waistband and held it within the air, Relli testified.
“He turned around and then it was like BOOM!” he instructed the jury. “The whole thing was like a movie, he kind of like pointed down and he shot the first shot.”
He stated “I felt my hand hot” and later added, “I was hit. Or I was grazed. I didn’t have a hole or nothing.”
The trial’s key witness stated he grabbed certainly one of their mutual pals who have been with Rocky after the primary shot was fired and stood behind him for cover. He stated he didn’t see Rocky hearth the second shot, and Rocky ran away moments later.
When jurors have been being chosen, prosecutors requested them whether or not Rihanna’s connection to the case, particularly if she appeared in court docket, would have an effect on their means to ship a responsible verdict.
Almost all these questioned had heard of her — way over had heard of Rocky — and a few described themselves as followers, however all stated they felt it could not have an effect on their selections.
It was not clear whether or not they might see Rihanna or have been conscious of her presence as they watched the testimony. She wore an extended black costume with buttons on the entrance that resembled a winter overcoat, and had a pair of glasses on her head that she placed on throughout the prosecution’s questioning.
Earlier within the trial, which started on Jan. 21, Relli stated he and Rocky, members of A$AP, a crew of creators at a New York highschool, had been shut however their relationship eroded after Rocky turned well-known.
He stated their relationship had been strained for years and was getting worse within the days main as much as the incident, however he was nonetheless “furious” when Rocky pulled a gun on him after a scuffle that started the second the 2 met up close to the W Lodge. He dared him to make use of it.
When Rocky walked away, he testified that he adopted and shouted after him, till the photographs have been fired.
Rocky’s lawyer says the photographs he fired weren’t even from an actual gun — they have been blanks from a starter pistol that he carried as a prop. The lawyer stated Relli knew this, and that was why he was so fearless strolling after him.
“Oh it was a real gun,” Relli testified Wednesday, saying he knew due to his scraped hand.
He stated he felt free to observe and shout at Rocky as a result of “I felt like because he put it away and we’re on a busy street in Hollywood. He’s definitely not gonna shoot it.”
For the reason that taking pictures, and his resolution to go to police and testify, he has gotten dying threats and has been shunned as a snitch, he stated, and the modest music administration profession he constructed fell aside.
“It’s been a living hell,” Relli stated.
About an hour after the taking pictures, Relli returned to the scene and stated he photographed and recovered two shell casings. Earlier, whereas responding to a report of a taking pictures, police didn’t discover any.
He despatched a textual content to Rocky that was proven in court docket saying “U try killing me.”
Rocky denied it in his reply.
“Bro wtf is u talkin bout why u tell ppl I shot at u.”
He despatched Rocky pictures of the shell casings and his grazed hand.
Rocky stated he was making stuff up and talking “all type of nonsense” and was making an attempt to “extort” him.
The court docket day ended after only a few hours of testimony due to scheduling points. Rihanna was shuffled out by means of a restricted exit by deputies, and Rocky left individually by means of the principle courthouse doorways.
The protection will start their cross-examination of Relli on Thursday.
Raised in Harlem, Rocky’s rap songs turned a phenomenon in New York in 2011. He had his mainstream breakthrough when his first studio album went to No. 1 on the Billboard 200 in 2013. The second, in 2015, did the identical.
He’s set to have his greatest profession 12 months as a multimedia star. This Sunday, he’s nominated for a Grammy Award for finest music video for his tune “Tailor Swif,” on the ceremony at Crypto.com Enviornment simply two miles (3 kilometers) from the Los Angeles courthouse the place his trial’s being held.
He’s additionally set to headline the Rolling Loud Music Pageant, to star reverse Denzel Washington in a movie directed by Spike Lee, and to co-chair the Met Gala in Might.
However the prospect of a conviction and the potential for a prolonged jail sentence casts a shadow over all of it.
Rocky and Rihanna, each 36, have two sons collectively: 2-year-old RZA Athelston Mayers and 1-year-old Riot Rose Mayers. She revealed she was pregnant with the youthful boy after headlining the Tremendous Bowl halftime present in 2023 with a visual child bump.
The singer and the rapper, who’re each trend moguls, first turned shut when he supplied a verse to her 2012 tune “Cockiness (Love It)” and so they carried out it on the MTV Video Music Awards. They turned a pair in 2020.
