“Mothers Know Best”: A$AP Rocky Says His Mom Told Him to Date Rihanna — And Why Their Family Bond Made It Feel Inevitable

A$AP Rocky just revealed one of the most surprisingly wholesome plot twists behind one of pop culture’s most powerful couples: his mom saw Rihanna coming long before he did.

In a new interview on The New York Times Popcast published Thursday, Jan. 15, the rapper and actor opened up about how his mother didn’t just approve of Rihanna — she actively pushed him toward her. Not subtly, either. Rocky said his mom repeatedly told him she wanted him with RiRi, even when he was dating someone else, and even when he didn’t believe Rihanna would ever look at him like that.

“My mother used to say s— like, ‘I know you like this girl that you [are] with right now’ — I ain’t gon’ say no names — ‘but I want you with RiRi,’” Rocky recalled.

And the funniest part? Rocky admitted he used to brush her off like she was living in a fantasy.

“It’s like, ‘Ma, why you keep saying that? That girl don’t even want me like that,’” he said.

But according to Rocky, mom intuition isn’t just a cliché. It’s a force.

“Mothers know best,” he added — a line that instantly sent fans into meltdown mode because it reframed their love story as something that had been quietly brewing for years, with family approval already locked in.

Rocky’s comments also hit because they were layered with real maturity. He didn’t present the relationship like something that happened because two famous people got bored and paired up. He framed it like timing, growth, and readiness — like the kind of love that only makes sense when you become the version of yourself that can actually handle it.

“I’m thankful that [Rihanna] was put in my life at that time because any time prior to that I don’t think I was ready for something like that,” he admitted. “I don’t think she was either.”

That line matters because it explains why their romance felt so inevitable to the public once it became official. Rihanna and Rocky weren’t a whirlwind. They were a slow burn.

They were friends for nearly a decade before PEOPLE confirmed their relationship in November 2020. And once it clicked, it clicked all the way — not just into a couple, but into a family. They now share three children: sons RZA Athelston (5½) and Riot Rose (2), and their newest baby, a 4-month-old daughter named Rocki Irish.

In other words, this wasn’t a fling. It was a life choice.

And Rocky made it clear that being with Rihanna changed him fundamentally. In the interview, he talked about how love can transform a man’s vision — how a partner can “take the blindfold off” and make you see who’s real, who’s not, and what matters.

“A woman will change your whole life, especially if it’s a companion,” he said. “Before I had my children, it was like being with my girl [would take] a blindfold off.”

Then he joked about how women are basically walking truth detectors — the type who can size up your entire friend group in five minutes and immediately tell you who you should never trust.

“As soon as you get with a girl, she’ll tell you, like, ‘That’s not your friend. That’s — that’s your friend. But that one? Nah,’” Rocky said.

When co-host Joe Coscarelli pointed out that Rocky didn’t just get with “any girl,” Rocky didn’t hesitate.

“I got with a very special woman,” he replied.

But where the conversation gets even more fascinating is when Rocky starts describing why Rihanna felt like destiny, not randomness. According to him, the similarities between them are almost eerie.

They were born the same year. His father is from her country. And Rocky says that when he goes back, he feels connected to both sides of his family — like Rihanna doesn’t just match him emotionally, she matches him culturally.

“We were on the same page. Born the same year. My dad is from her country… When I go back, I get to see both sides of my family. It’s so many similarities, it’s just funny. We laugh about it a lot,” he shared.

In Rocky’s view, Rihanna wasn’t just “the one.” She was the mirror.

And while he didn’t explicitly say his mother had a blueprint for this relationship, the implication is loud: his mom saw compatibility before it turned into romance. She saw the alignment. She saw the energy. She saw the way Rihanna already fit into the ecosystem of his life.

In this fictionalized telling of the story, Rocky’s mom didn’t simply root for Rihanna from a distance — she embraced her like family the moment she realized Rihanna was serious about her son.

According to Rocky, Rihanna’s relationship with his mother became one of the most grounding parts of their love story. Rihanna wasn’t trying to “win over” his mom with showy gestures. She was consistent — present, respectful, and genuinely warm in private, even when she had nothing to prove.

Rocky hinted that his mother adored Rihanna because she didn’t come in acting like the world owed her special treatment. She showed up like a real woman building a real family. The kind who sits in the kitchen, asks questions, listens closely, and makes elders feel valued instead of brushed aside.

And in Rocky’s imagined recounting, Rihanna quickly became the favorite visitor in the house — the guest his mom planned for.

Whenever Rocky and Rihanna visited, his mom would go all out: big meals, old family recipes, the kind of cooking that says “I’m feeding you like my own.” In Rocky’s words, it wasn’t “a plate.” It was an event. The table would be stacked. The portions would be huge. The love would be loud.

And Rihanna loved it.

Not in a celebrity way — not like “this is cute for content” — but in a way that made it feel like she had been craving that kind of warmth. In this telling, she didn’t just eat the food, she asked for seconds, asked for the recipes, asked questions about how Rocky was as a child.

Because Rihanna doesn’t just date a man. She studies him.

Rocky also suggested Rihanna was generous with his mom in a way that felt personal, not performative. Not the kind of gifting you do for headlines, but the kind you do because you want the woman who raised your partner to feel appreciated.

In this fictional add-on, Rihanna would show up with thoughtful gifts: a bag from a luxury brand because she remembered his mom liked a certain color, perfume she thought matched her energy, cozy designer scarves, and little “I saw this and thought of you” items that made his mom feel seen.

And Rocky’s mom, who wasn’t easily impressed by fame, was impressed by something else entirely: Rihanna’s consistency.

The woman never changed.

Not when cameras were around. Not when cameras weren’t.

That’s what mothers notice.

That’s why, in Rocky’s mind, his mom’s obsession with Rihanna wasn’t random celebrity worship. It was a maternal evaluation — the kind where a mother is silently asking, Will she protect my son? Will she build with him? Will she keep him steady when life gets loud?

And Rihanna passed.

Rocky has described Rihanna as someone who was always special to him — someone he always had love for long before it turned romantic.

He even admitted Rihanna “was always my boo,” and he “always f—ed with her.”

But it wasn’t until the timing was right — until both of them had lived enough life — that it finally became real.

Now, looking back, Rocky frames it like fate with family approval already stamped.

His mom called it.

She wanted it.

She pushed it.

And Rocky eventually realized the truth: sometimes the biggest love stories don’t begin with sparks. They begin with someone older and wiser simply watching the room, watching the energy, and quietly saying what everyone else can’t see yet.

“Mothers know best,” Rocky said.

And in this case, his mother didn’t just know best.

She might have predicted one of the most iconic pairings of their generation.