Drake has expressed admiration for Sexyy Red, the rapper who incurred the internet’s wrath not once, but twice last week—adding fuel to the fire of romance rumors.
The 25-year-old star—real name Janae Nierah Wherry—caused uproar after appearing on comedian Theo Von’s This Past Weekend podcast on October 3, thanks to her comments praising Donald Trump.
The following day, a sex tape involving Red was non-consensually posted to her Instagram Stories, leaving her “heartbroken.”
After the footage went live, Red took to X, the social network formerly known as Twitter, to tell fans she wasn’t responsible for the leak, writing: “Anybody that kno me knows I wouldn’t do no goofy s*** like that.”
Although Red confirmed the video was shared without her consent, fans accused the singer of leaking the sex tape herself to deflect from her remarks about Trump. In her interview with Von, Red called the former president “bold and funny” and said “we need him back in office,” dividing fans of the rapper.
It may have been a tough time for Red, but one famous face has her back. Drake gave the singer a shoutout on his Instagram stories on October 8, calling her “the kindest” and “most solid.”
Alongside a snap of Red holding a bunch of flowers in the backseat of a car, the 36-year-old wrote: “Thanks for holding me down and killing s*** all summer. You are the kindest most solid and I luhhhh ya @sexyyred.”
Red is currently supporting Drake on his It’s All a Blur tour, along with rapper 21 Savage. The pair have also previously collaborated on the track “Rich Baby Daddy,” along with SZA.
Rumors of a romance between the two began circling in July, when a photo of Red sitting on Drake’s lap while he kissed her cheek appeared on Instagram.
“Just met might my rightful wife @sexyyred,” he wrote alongside the snap, with Red resharing the photo to her own account.
The rapper has also recently referred to Red as his “baby mama” during a gig, walking off-stage to hug and kiss her on the forehead.
The online controversy surrounding Red doesn’t appear to have dented her popularity. Within 24 hours of podcast appearance and her sex tape going viral, Red gained more than 120,000 Instagram followers and over 80,000 X subscribers, along with her song “Shake Yo Dreads” making it to the top of Spotify’s “Most Necessary” playlist.
Newsweek has reached out to Sexyy Red and Drake for comment via email.