Who is Naomi Osaka's partner, Cordae?
Naomi Osaka is currently dating American rapper Cordae Amari Dunston, who is mononymously known as Cordae.
The 24-year-old from North Carolina first gained popularity for his remixes of popular rap tracks by Eminem and J. Cole.
In 2019, he was named as a member of hip hop magazine XXL's Freshman Class of emerging rappers alongside the likes of Megan Thee Stallion and Roddy Ricch.
That same year, he scored two Grammy nominations for his debut album, The Lost Boy. No small feat for the 21-year-old at the time.
How did Cordae and Naomi Osaka meet?
Cordae has revealed in previous interviews that he and Osaka met at a Los Angeles Clippers game, believed to be sometime in 2018 or 2019. At the time, he knew little about tennis, citing that his knowledge started and ended with the famous Williams sisters—little did he know he'd just brushed shoulders with international tennis royalty!
Lack of tennis knowledge aside, it seemed the pair hit it off immediately. In April 2019, TMZ Sports first reported that the pair were seeing each other, but they weren't "official" at that stage.
Shortly after, Osaka went Instagram official with Cordae by sharing a video of him to her Story. In December 2019, they then went fully public by attending another Clippers game together.
Once it was all out in the open, Cordae told GQ in 2021, "We were dating for almost a year before people knew about us. So we kind of move very reclusively. We don't really post intimate moments, because I feel as though they're sacred. A relationship is really a sacred thing. Once you let outside influences get into it, it becomes less sacred."
These days, the pair have frequently been spotted together in public, even attending the Met Gala together in September 2021 where Cordae supported Osaka as one of the evening's hosts.
Naomi Osaka and Cordae's relationship
Since they went public, Osaka and Cordae have been a little more liberal in publicly sharing their admiration for each other.
In the same GQ interview, Osaka said Cordae had been a pivotal support system who helped her win the 2020 US Open, which took place during one of the worst initial COVID-19 case peaks.
"During the whole New York thing and with everything that was going on, I started to feel really depressed. Sometimes I would call Cordae, and maybe in some of the calls I would cry. I don't remember," she told the publication.
"And he flew out, even though he was really busy. I really appreciated that. I'm not sure if I've told him that. I feel like he actually really helped me win just, like, keeping up the motivation."
In January 2022, Osaka shared a rare tribute on Instagram for her boyfriend as he released his second album, From A Birds Eye View.
"Getting closer to someone and seeing how much love and dedication they put into their craft is truly inspiring," she wrote.
"Makes you feel like some people are born to do certain things, @cordae you’re a star and a light, quite literally brighten up every room you walk in (or maybe it’s your hair lol). Congratulations on your 2nd album, proud of you."
A couple of days later, Osaka won her first match in the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne. Instead of writing her signature on the television camera lens as is tradition for winners Down Under, Osaka wrote across it: "F.A.B.E.V." with a heart . The acronym of course in reference to her boyfriend's new album.
