A$AP Rocky has opened up about an awkward moment from his past involving his longtime partner, Rihanna.
The 37-year-old rapper shared the story during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on Monday night, revealing that their first-ever encounter was far from smooth.
Describing the moment as “embarrassing,” Rocky said they met outside a nightclub in New York long before he became famous.
“It was crazy,” he recalled. “We met outside of a nightclub, ironically, here in New York. I wasn’t famous at the time. She was obviously Rihanna.”
Rocky explained that he and his friends, including the late fashion icon Virgil Abloh and designer Matthew Williams, were denied entry into the exclusive club by security.
“I couldn’t get in,” he said. “The bouncers didn’t want to let me in.”
According to Rocky, tensions rose as they argued with the bouncers, until Rihanna unexpectedly stepped outside.
“We kind of was getting into it with the bouncers and she, kind of, came out and we locked eyes right away,” he said, adding that he was left “in a daze.”
The rapper admitted he felt embarrassed that their first interaction happened while he was visibly bickering with security.
“I was a little embarrassed that she caught me… bickering with the guard and stuff like that,” he told Fallon.
When asked if Rihanna helped him gain access into the club, Rocky simply answered “No,” drawing laughter from the audience.
Rocky and Rihanna, who became friends in 2012 and began dating years later, have since built a family together. They welcomed their first son, Rza, in May 2022, followed by their second son, Riot, in August 2023, and their daughter, Rocki, in September 2025.
