What Rihanna And A$AP Rocky Are Really Like As Parents

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky jumped into parenthood head first. The "Diamonds" singer and the Harlem rapper showed they were made for it when they decided to have not one but two babies back-to-back. In late January 2022, Rihanna announced her first pregnancy in style, baring her bump under an open pink padded jacket that immediately became a hot item on Google searches. Barely a year later, Rihanna shared her second pregnancy during her Super Bowl halftime show.

Despite all the guesses they were having a girl, Rihanna and Rocky welcomed a son, RZA, on May, 13, 2022 and expanded the brood 14 months later, when they welcomed a second son, Riot, on August 1, 2023. Rihanna first became pregnant just months after Rocky made the depths of his feelings for her known to the world. "The love of my life," he told GQ in May 2021. Rocky also showed he had no doubts about where he and Rihanna stood. 

"[A relationship is] so much better when you got the One. She amounts to probably, like, a million of the other ones," he said. "I think when you know, you know. She's the One." Parenting little ones is hard and can take a toll on couples, but welcoming two children in quick succession did nothing but strengthen Rihanna and Rocky bond. They both see their new role as parents as something bigger than themselves, and their mutual agreement on this has made them feel even more in love in each other. 

Watching A$AP Rocky become a father has been of the highlights of Rihanna's relationship with him. His parenting skills have even made her even more attracted to him. "I loved him differently as a dad," he told Access in December 2023. "This is major, major like, it's a turn-on. It's just like, 'Wow! What a leader, what a great, patient, loving [dad].'" Rocky's aptitude made him a fan favorite in their household. "My kids are obsessed with him," she said. "I'm just a background, like, I'm an extra."

But Rihanna is totally okay with that. "It doesn't matter if it's girls or boys, they love their dad differently and I love to see it," she gushed. Rihanna and Rocky surely seem to be thriving as parents. And it sounds like their sons help, too, as RZA was a pretty good sleeper. "Oh, he sleeps through the night now," she told Vogue U.K. in February 2023, when he was 9 months old.

Unlike other celebrities and people of means, Rihanna and Rocky chose to be hands-on parents from day one and take on all baby duties with no regular help. "We came home, cold turkey, had no one ... Man, you're a zombie for the most part," she said. In Rihanna's eyes, the effort and sacrifices are part of a bigger mission and, therefore, worth it. "I hope that I can be a part of a family that breaks generational curses," she told Access.

Both Rihanna and A$AP Rocky embraced parenthood with all they had. For Rocky, becoming a father has even helped propel his career forward. "Honestly, I think fatherhood gives me more time to do exactly what I want. I don't have time for anything that isn't priorities," he told Complex in December 2022. Besides, his love for RZA and Riot has bolstered his confidence, motivation, and even his creativity. "Everything is just based around my newfound love for being a dad and a family man. It's lit right now." he said.

Rihanna is no different. The revolution brought on by the birth of her children was so intense that she barely recognizes the life she had. "You just don't identify with it because you don't even allow yourself mentally to get that far, because — because it doesn't matter," Rihanna said in the Vogue U.K. interview, pausing to think of the right words. Fatherhood has also left Rocky at a loss for words. He tries to convey what he means, but, ultimately, it's too big. "It's so unexplainable," he said on the "The Zane Lowe Show" in January 2023 (via People).

He doesn't really need to, though. Rocky's love and aptitude for fatherhood can nearly be felt through the screen in an Instagram video he posted for RZA's first birthday that shows him rocking, playing with, and kissing RZA. And the boy's face illustrates what Rihanna meant when she described the father-son relationship in the Access interview.