Showbiz

Rihanna debuts braids as she goes makeup-free at a NYC Target while partner A$AP Rocky faces gun charges

Rihanna debuts braids as she goes makeup-free at a NYC Target while partner A$AP Rocky faces gun charges

Rihanna showed off a new look while in New York City on Thursday.

The Pon de Replay singer, 36, was spotted leaving the retail chain Target in a simple black hoodie and sweatpants.

She wore black framed glᴀsses while makeup-free and carried a Louis Vuitton Speedy handbag.

But most noticeably, the Umbrella hitmaker’s new hairstyle was on display.

Rihanna wore her hair in long black cornrows that cascaded down her back. 

The sighting comes the day after the judge in A$AP Rocky’s gun ᴀssault case attempted to discern if the power couple were married or not.  

Rihanna showed off a new look in New York City this week. The Pon de Replay singer, 36, was spotted at Target in a simple black hoodie and sweatpants

Rihanna showed off a new look in New York City this week. The Pon de Replay singer, 36, was spotted at Target in a simple black hoodie and sweatpants

She wore black framed glᴀsses and carried a Louis Vuitton Speedy handbag. But most noticeably, the Umbrella hitmaker's new hairstyle was on display

She wore black framed glᴀsses and carried a Louis Vuitton Speedy handbag. But most noticeably, the Umbrella hitmaker’s new hairstyle was on display

Judge Mark S. Arnold simply questioned how the Grammy winner should be addressed. 

The judge asked if Rihanna should be referred to as Rocky’s ‘common-law wife,’ and Rocky’s attorney Joe Tacopina replied: ‘Just wife, your honor.’

Read More Rihanna makes eye-popping display in red lingerie article image

But when Judge Arnold asked him ‘Are they legally married somewhere then?’ Tacopina answered, ‘I don’t know.’

Deputy District Attorney John Lewin at that point said that if the two are not legally married, then during the trial the prosecution would prefer to call them ‘partners or significant others.’ The judge agreed.

The charges against Rocky, whose real name is Rakim Mayers, stemmed from a confrontation in Hollywood in November 2021 between him and fellow rapper Terell Ephron.

Ephron’s stage name is A$AP Relli. He was a member of the ASAP Mob rap collective that started in Harlem, New York, in 2006 alongside Rocky.

A$AP Rocky’s lawyer says ‘he’s not interested’ in cutting a deal with the prosecution, less than a week before he goes to trial for the alleged shooting of Ephron.

Lawyers on both sides got together on Wednesday to potentially come to an agreement on a plea deal. But his defense attorneys and prosecutors were unable to reach an agreement.

Rihanna wore her hair in long black cornrows that cascaded down her back

Rihanna wore her hair in long black cornrows that cascaded down her back

The trial is scheduled to go ahead on January 21, starting with the selection of a 12-person jury.

Rocky has pleaded not guilty to two felony charges of ᴀssault with a semiautomatic firearm.

The rapper is facing up to 24 years in prison if convicted of both.

The idea was that Rocky would plead guilty to a lesser charge and avoid a trial that’s expected to take up to three weeks.

Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Paul Przelomiec told DailyMail.com outside the courtroom after the meeting: ‘We discussed the possibility of a settlement but no specific offer was made.’

Rocky’s attorney Tacopina indicated that his client is not interested in making a deal with prosecutors, telling DailyMail.com: ‘He did not commit a crime.’

Calling the prosecution’s case ‘fundamentally weak’, he added: ‘Ten police officers searched the scene and didn’t find shell casings there.’

When asked if Rocky will testify at his trial, Tacopina said: ‘I wouldn’t make a decision like that before trial. But he is eager to tell his story.’

The sighting comes the day after the judge in A$AP Rocky 's gun ᴀssault case attempted to discern if the power couple were married or not. Rihanna and A$AP seen here on January 2

The sighting comes the day after the judge in A$AP Rocky ‘s gun ᴀssault case attempted to discern if the power couple were married or not. Rihanna and A$AP seen here on January 2 

At a preliminary hearing, prosecutors presented surveillance camera footage and testimony from Ephron and cops to support their allegations that during the argument, Rocky pointed a handgun at Ephron, then fired it twice toward him – injuring his hand.

Ephron himself testified that Rocky held the gun to his stomach and said ‘I’ll kill you right now,’ before firing off rounds.

Tacopina has challenged the prosecution’s case, saying there wasn’t enough proof that a shooting had even happened and called the surveillance video evidence and witness testimony ‘inconclusive.’

Rocky was arrested in April 2022 at LAX as he stepped off a private plane from Barbados where he had been on vacation with multiple Grammy-winner Rihanna.

Cops held him for a few hours on suspicion of ᴀssault with a ᴅᴇᴀᴅly weapon, then released him on the $550,000 bail and sent the case to LA’s District Attorney to prosecute.

It wasn’t till the following August that then DA George Gascon decided that the charges were serious enough to press for felony status, rather than misdemeanor, which would have meant only a maximum of one year jail time for each count.

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