Halle Bailey and DDG’s romance is still the talk of the internet. The pair have been dating for over a year now, and though they try to keep their relationship low-key, curious fans can’t help but inquire about it. Bailey shared an update on their romance in her September 2023 cover story with Cosmopolitan, telling the outlet it’s her “first deep, deep, real love.”
Back in May, ahead of her Disney film’s debut, Bailey offered a smile and laugh when People asked if her rapper beau has the makings of a prince, like the fictional one she falls for in “The Little Mermaid.” “People love to talk about this,” she told the outlet, adding, “Yeah. I would say that.”
This doesn’t mean the couple’s relationship has been without obstacles, though. On July 13, DDG released his track “Famous,” in which he seemingly admits to feeling “insecure” about being in a relationship with a famous star, though he doesn’t name-drop Bailey. The song, of course, still got a lot of backlash from “The Little Mermaid” actor’s fans, though DDG later shut down claims that it was aimed at his girlfriend.
Despite rumblings about breakup rumors between Bailey, 23, and DDG, 26, (real name Darryl Grandberry Jr.), the actor seems pleased with the state of her love life. “I think the best thing about young love is that you’re able to continue to find yourself through this journey of loving somebody else,” Bailey added in her People interview, published on May 17. “And you’re discovering new parts of yourself and maybe things that you didn’t notice before about your heart.”
Bailey and DDG’s relationship understandably bubbled up amid buzz around “The Little Mermaid.” Though fans noticed the two didn’t pose for any photos together at the Los Angeles premiere of Bailey’s film on May 8, the two have still been each other’s red carpet companions. The pair posed together at Vanity Fair’s Oscars afterparty on March 12, and prior to that, they were photographed at premiere events for “Avatar 2: The Way of Water” in December and “Creed III” in February. Most recently, the two attended Milan Fashion Week together in September.
The couple’s 2023 public outings come after Bailey spoke about their romance in her September/October 2022 cover story with Essence, in which she shared details about how the pair first got acquainted, revealing that music brought them together. “I grew up being on YouTube and would always see the young Black creators and was constantly inspired by them. He was one of them,” said Bailey. She added that she first noticed DDG online in 2015, but they didn’t connect until she heard of his new music. “. . . I saw that he was dropping music, and I really gravitated toward this one song. Coincidentally he messaged me — and the rest is history.”
Bailey and DDG made their glamorous red carpet debut as a couple at the 2022 BET Awards, but the pair have been dating for quite some time. Romance rumors first began swirling when they were spotted together at an Usher concert in January 2022. Two months later, on March 27 (Bailey’s birthday), they went Instagram official.
Since then, the couple have only had good things to say about each other. “She honestly motivated me to be better and work harder and get to certain levels,” DDG said of his girlfriend in a July 2022 interview with DJ Akademiks. Sitting down with “The Breakfast Club” in November 2022, he also said of Bailey, “I’ve never been with nobody that’s, like, really motivated me like she do.”
From posting cute snaps of each other on social media to Bailey giving DDG singing lessons on TikTok, read more about the couple’s relationship timeline ahead.
