R&B star August Alsina denies he’s dating his close male friend, Zu, after flirty TikTok goes viral

New Orleans-born hip hop and R&B artist August Alsina has denied allegations that he’s gay and in a relationship with his close friend Zu, after comments made by Zu on social media went viral recently.

Alsina’s rise to fame began in 2012, when he released his first mixtape The Product. He’s since gone on to collaborate with Lil Wayne and Chris Brown. His most recent album, released in 2023, is called MySelf.

On 1 January, the phrase ‘is August Alsina gay’ began trending on Google and also on social media, after Alsina’s friend Zu posted a video on TikTok, which showed Zu sitting in a car beside August Alsina, HollywoodUnlocked reports.

The viral video, shared to the channel @OneLookZu, shows Zu pursing his lips at the camera before panning over to Alsina, with the caption, “I’m going to climb this (n-word) as soon as we get in the crib.”

@onelookzu

Lè joce got him looking right🤷🏽‍♂️

♬ original sound – ً

The clip has had over two million views so far, and nearly 9000 comments.

Zu first caught the public’s attention in 2021, when Alsina starred on VH1’s reality TV show The Surreal Life, which records celebrities as they co-habit for a number of weeks. The seventh season starred August Alsina, CJ Perry, Dennis Rodman, Frankie Muniz, Kim Coles, Manny MUA, Stormy Daniels, and Tamar Braxton.

Zu featured in one of the episodes, with Alsina sharing in a confessional that he wanted to honour Zu for the love they share, which he described as “defying all the constructs.” Since then, rumours have swirled around the pair’s relationship, with some people speculating that they’re actually dating each other.

“Let that man troll in peace!”

However, August Alsina has denied the claims, saying that the recent TikTok video was just Zu “trolling” fans.

In a response to one curious fan on X (formerly Twitter), Alsina said, “Aht! Don’t do detttt.. Erybody else [already] be trollin’… so let that man troll in peace! For 2025, what everyone needs to know is, if somebody is gonna support you, they’re gonna support you.

“If they’re not, they’re not. No ideation or perceived condition is going to either alter somebody’s investment or lack thereof. In other words, people who enjoy low-hanging fruit, just enjoy low-hanging fruit, and for that, there’s trolling.”

However, the fact Zu was “trolling” seemed to pass some fans by, with many reacting positively (and thirstily) to the viral TikTok. One commenter said, hopefully: “Y’all sure y’all don’t need a third?” and another asked: “CAN WE WATCH?” A third simply said: “Y’all look so cute together.”

Alsina isn’t the first R&B, rap or hip hop star to face rumours about his sexuality recently. In November 2024, “Sl*t Me Out 2” rapper NLE Choppa confirmed his sexuality after months of speculation – sparked by his avid support for the LGBTQ+ community.

Speaking to fellow US rapper Yung Miami on her Revolt web show Caresha Please, he explained that though he has “love” for queer men, when it comes to sexual intimacy, he’s only interested in women.