Are Beyonce and Barack Obama dangerously in love? The short answer – no, they are not.
In the wake of their own president being surrounded by scandal, the French media is getting very over-excited about a rumour that Beyonce has been having an affair with President Obama – a claim the singer has swiftly denied.
The affair claims came as Francois Hollande arrived in America on an official state visit without his now-ex partner, Valérie Trierweiler.
Rumours of an affair between the American president and the pop superstar were first made this morning by a man with some expertise in the subject.
Pascal Rostain, a French paparazzo, who snapped Hollande cheating on his first lady with the actress Julie Gayet, spoke of the alleged relationship during a sensational interview on the Europe 1 radio station.
He said: "Indeed, it will come out tomorrow in the Washington Post. We cannot say that it is from the gutter press - a supposed liaison between President Barack Obama and Beyonce. I can assure you that the world will talk."
The Washington Post immediately denied any such report – saying the newspaper does not produce articles' of this kind and that it is "definitely not true."
But Rostain's claims were reported by a range of respected media in France, including respected newspaper Le Figaro, and Le Point.
Questioned about the Obama-Beyonce claims following the denial by the Washington Post, Rostain said they were a "joke."
Rostain backpedaled on his comments in a piece published on jeanmarcmorandini.com later on Monday, saying he "didn't say that at all" about Obama and Beyoncé. He clarified that "some American journalists were working on the case."
"It looks like things between Barack and Michelle Obama haven't been in the best of shape for a couple of weeks," Rostain said, according to a HuffPost translation. "From what I know, the atmosphere is pretty frigid between Barack and Michelle. But I know nothing more.”
Beyoncé and her rapper husband Jay Z have been friends with the Obamas for several years and she performed at Michelle Obama’s recent 50th birthday party.
A spokeswoman for Beyoncé dismissed the claim as "absurd."