ASAP Rocky Says Rihanna Romance Changed Dynamics Within ASAP Mob

BY Erika Marie
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Dior Homme: Outside Arrivals - Paris Fashion Week - Menswear Spring/Summer 2026
PARIS, FRANCE - JUNE 27: Rihanna and A$AP Rocky attend the Dior Homme Menswear Spring/Summer 2026 show as part of Paris Fashion Week on June 27, 2025 in Paris, France. (Photo by Marc Piasecki/WireImage)
The trial may be over, but ASAP Rocky says he has not moved past ASAP Relli’s betrayal in court.

Being cleared by a jury did not erase the personal damage ASAP Rocky says he carried out of the courtroom. During a conversation with Jason Lee, the Harlem rapper described seeing former friend ASAP Relli testify against him as one of several betrayals that fractured relationships inside ASAP Mob.

“That was f*cked up,” Rocky said when Lee mentioned Relli. “I’m still hurt. I’m hurt about him, I’m hurt about Bari, hurt about a lot of them n*ggas. I mean, it is what it is, I know they don’t give a f*ck. But I’m hurt.” Relli was not merely another associate from the collective. The two knew each other in high school, and that history made Relli’s testimony feel especially personal to Rocky, who accused his former friend of trying to turn their relationship into a payday.

“It was just a nightmare,” Rocky told Lee. “Looking at somebody I know on the stand, forever gon’ be labeled as a rat. Just tryin’ to come up off of me. Stop being a bum and being lazy. That’s just bum mentality.”

Read More: A$AP Rocky Admits To Dissing Drake & Relli While On Tour

Inside The Case Against Rocky

A Los Angeles jury acquitted Rocky in February 2025 of two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm. Prosecutors alleged that he fired at Relli during a November 2021 confrontation in Hollywood. Yet, the defense maintained that Rocky carried a prop gun loaded with blanks and used it to protect himself and other members of his group. Relli’s credibility became the central dispute at trial, where jurors also heard about his financial demands and civil lawsuit. Rocky faced as many as 24 years in prison before the panel returned its verdict after roughly three hours of deliberations.

“He tried to kill me,” he said of Relli. “Take me away from my kids. If I would have done twenty-four years in jail, I’m dead.” Rocky and Rihanna had two children when the trial began and welcomed their daughter, Rocki Irish Mayers, later in 2025. His relationship with Rihanna also became part of Rocky’s explanation for why the Mob began splintering. Once the couple committed to building a life together, he said much of his attention shifted toward her, leaving some members uncertain about their own place beside the group’s biggest star.

Read More: A$AP Relli Admits Deleting Texts Before Alleged A$AP Rocky Shooting

“When me and Rih became a couple, all of my time, I was just with her, and she was with me,” Rocky explained. “I think a lot of them got nervous, like, ‘Oh, so what that mean for me? What that mean for my opportunities?’” While ASAP Mob had already lost its central architect when ASAP Yams died in 2015, Rocky told Lee he could imagine them reuniting in some form. Relli, however, would not be included.

About The Author
Since 2019, Erika Marie has worked as a journalist for HotNewHipHop, covering music, film, television, art, fashion, politics, and all things regarding entertainment. With 20 years in the industry under her belt, Erika Marie moved from a writer on the graveyard shift at HNHH to becoming the Co-Head of Original Content. She has had the pleasure of sitting down with artists and personalities like DJ Jazzy Jeff, Salt ’N Pepa, Nick Cannon, Rah Digga, Rakim, Rapsody, Ari Lennox, Jacquees, Roxanne Shante, Yo-Yo, Sean Paul, Raven Symoné, Queen Naija, Ryan Destiny, DreamDoll, DaniLeigh, Sean Kingston, Reginae Carter, Jason Lee, Kamaiyah, Rome Flynn, Zonnique, Fantasia, and Just Blaze—just to name a few. In addition to one-on-one chats with influential public figures, Erika Marie also covers content connected to the culture. She’s attended and covered the BET Awards as well as private listening parties, the Rolling Loud festival, and other events that emphasize established and rising talents. Detroit-born and Long Beach (CA)-raised, Erika Marie has eclectic music taste that often helps direct the interests she focuses on here at HNHH. She finds it necessary to report on cultural conversations with respect and honor those on the mic and the hardworking teams that help get them there. Moreover, as an advocate for women, Erika Marie pays particular attention to the impact of femcees. She sits down with rising rappers for HNHH—like Big Jade, Kali, Rubi Rose, Armani Caesar, and Amy Luciani—to gain their perspectives on a fast-paced industry.

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