Drake's dad insists his son and Rihanna are just friends

Drake's dad has laughed off reports suggesting his son and Rihanna are a loved-up item, insisting they're just friends.

The rapper professed his love for the Umbrella star as he presented her with the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards at the end of last month (Aug16) and the couple became inseparable for the days after the ceremony, with Rihanna locking lips with Drake onstage at one of his concerts in Miami, Florida last week (ends02Sep16).

There has also been talk of the couple getting matching shark tattoos to celebrate their love for each other, but as far as the rap star's dad, jazz musician Dennis Graham, is concerned, there's no romance.

Caught by TMZ cameras during a night out in Los Angeles on Tuesday (06Sep16), he said, "They're friends, they've been friends for years.

"I don't know about him (Drake) settling down... but there's no relationship. They're just friends."