Actress, Lupita Nyong’o reacts to dating rumors with her ‘best friend’ Janelle Monáe

The duo first met at the 2014 Met Gala, shortly after Lupita won an Oscar for her stellar acting in “12 Years a Slave”, and over the years, there have been speculations that they are romantically involved.

See one of the instances below,

Reacting to the rumours in a recent cover story on Rolling Stone magazine, Lupita said she totally understands why people might assume she is in a romantic relationship with Monae, who is pansexual. However, she did not confirm or dismiss the rumour.

“She has magnetism that they were obviously picking up on,” Nyong’o began.

“She is that enigmatic. I was not surprised. And I don’t mind being associated with her in any capacity.”

She also recounted how Monae treated her during their first meeting when she was still new to Hollywood.

“This world was still extremely new to me and unbelievable,” she continued. “[Janelle] came up to me and just gave me the realest hug.

“I think we may have swayed to the music. She was just like, ‘I’m so proud of you, and just thank you for being you’.

“At some point, [Janelle] asked me for my phone, put her number in and said, ‘Let’s stay in touch’. She was like, ‘I really mean it. If you need anything, I’m here for you’.”

Despite their strong bond of friendship, Nyong’o admitted that she doesn’t ‘know everything’ about Janelle Monae.

“Just because you’re a close friend doesn’t mean you get to know everything about her. That’s what makes her interesting as an artist.”

Meanwhile, Lupita is currently dating television host Selema Masekela.