Rihanna has made her first appearance at the Los Angeles trial of her partner, rapper A$AP Rocky, with whom she has two toddlers. The singer sat out of view of the courtroom's cameras, next to Rocky's mother and sister in the downtown Los Angeles criminal courthouse Wednesday morning. Security brought her into the courtroom surreptitiously to avoid crowds.
Rocky, whose legal name is Rakim Athelston Mayer, has been standing trial on two felony charges that he fired a handgun at a former friend, known as A$AP Relli, who testified Wednesday about the moment Rocky allegedly fired a gun at him on a Hollywood street in 2021. "I was hit. Or I was grazed.
I didn't have a hole or nothing," Relli, whose real name is Terell Ephron, told jurors. The trial's key witness said he grabbed one of their mutual friends who were with Rocky after the first shot was fired and stood behind him for protection. He said he did not see Rocky fire the second shot, and Rocky ran away moments later.
Relli then testified he was walking after Rocky and shouting at him when Rocky turned around and fired. Rocky had lifted the gun up and aimed downward, Relli said. Jurors asked about Rihanna When jurors were being selected, prosecutors asked them whether Rihanna's connection to the case, especially if she appeared in court, would affect their ability to deliver a guilty verdict.
Nearly all those questioned had heard of her — far more than had heard of Rocky — and some described themselves as fans, but all .
