I believe it is the first commandment that says, “Thou shalt not cross Rihanna.”
This week, the internet had a collective meltdown after a rumor spread that Rihanna and A$AP Rocky, who are expecting a child together any day, had split after the rapper had cheated on her. The likes of TMZ and Page Six, citing several anonymous sources close to the couple, quickly shut down the gossip, which was started by a tweet from a writer who has snarkily been dubbed “Instagram’s Messiest Fashion Influencer” by Interview magazine.
After a tornado of backlash and, one can imagine, a firestorm of pressure from the couple’s teams, the originator of the rumor has publicly walked by his initial statement in a new tweet.
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Fashion writer Louis Pisano stirred the pot yesterday after he tweeted, “Rihanna & ASAP Rocky have split. Rihanna broke up with him after she caught him cheating with shoe designer Amina Muaddi.” The tweet has since been deleted, but not before several gossip columns and news outlets could circulate the story.
In a new tweet, Pisano has walked back his decision to make break the news: “Last night I made a dumb decision to tweet some information I had received. I’m not going to talk about sources, blame others for a discussion that was started, etc because at the end of the day I made the decision to draft that tweet, press send and put that out with my name on it.”
He continues: “So I’d like to formally apologize to all parties I involved with my actions and for my reckless tweets. I fully accept the consequences of my actions for my tweets and any harm they caused. I have no excuse for it, I’ve been way too wrapped up in Twitter drama and unfortunately leaned into being messy as a brand which is something going forward I’m going to move away from. I’m going to take some time away from Twitter to figure out what that looks like and how I can start using my platforms better as I’ve gotten away from using them for more positive work. Again I apologize to them for this unnecessary drama.”
If the rumor did turn out to be true, the drama would be extra spicy: Amina Muaddi, the reported other woman, has recently collaborated with both Rihanna and A$AP Rocky.
Neither Rihanna nor A$AP Rocky has given a statement addressing the rumor. Muaddi, however, did speak against it, saying it was an “unfounded lie.”
“I’ve always believed that an unfounded lie spread on social media doesn’t deserve any response or clarification, especially one that is so vile,” she said via her Instagram story. “I initially assumed that this fake gossip—fabricated with such malicious intent—would not be taken seriously. However in the last 24 hr I’ve been reminded that we live in a society that is so quick to speak on topics regardless of factual basis and that nothing is off limits.”
