Janet Caperna had to do a double take when she saw photos of her The Valley costar Michelle Saniei holding hands with Dr. Dre.
“The first photo I saw was, like, kind of blurry and grainy,” Janet, 40, exclusively told Us Weekly on Wednesday, April 29, referring to the now-viral pics of Michelle, 37, out with Dre, 61, in Los Angeles. “And I was like, ‘Is that Michelle?’ I’m, like, zooming in. And I was like, ‘Or is it AI?’”
Janet joked “you never know these days with the AI stuff” when it comes to photos potentially being doctored. However, upon closer inspection, Janet determined her castmate was indeed spotted with the music mogul.
“Once I saw it was her, I was like, ‘All right, well, I have not talked to Michelle today, but I’m going to be calling her,’” she continued, noting she saw the pictures while traveling to New York City to promote season 3 of The Valley, which is currently airing. “So I have not connected with her and gotten the tea yet, but I’m excited to know.”
Janet confessed that she “would love to know” whether Michelle is actually dating Dre after the two were seen hand in hand on Monday, April 27.
“One of the things I love about L.A. is, like, all of a sudden I’m getting texts from my mom, my old boss, like, ‘Is Michelle dating Dr. Dre?’ And I’m like, ‘What? What is this?’” she recalled while describing the moment she heard about the pictures. “I’m like, ‘I gotta call Michelle.’ And I gotta ask [her] myself.”
While Janet didn’t have all the answers about Michelle’s possible romance with the “Forget About Dre” rapper, she told Us it’s not surprising that they crossed paths.
“I feel like in L.A., the six degrees of separation are always shorter,” Janet explained. “So I know that we have a couple mutual friends that know some of his people. So it must have been through some of that, I guess.”
Janet also confirmed that she’s seen the clip of Vanderpump Rules alum Scheana Shay joking that Dre is her “hall pass,” noting that their friend group “is just too small.”
“We need less overlap with stuff like that,” Janet said with a laugh.
Janet’s comments come two days after DeuxMoi posted photos of Michelle and Dre walking around Malibu after reportedly leaving Nobu restaurant.
Us reached out to Dre and Michelle’s representatives for comment.
Prior to being spotted with Michelle in L.A., Dre was married to Nicole Young from 1996 to 2021. The exes share son Truice, 28, and daughter Truly, 24. Dre is also a father figure to Young’s son Tyler from a previous relationship.
The Grammy winner is also the father of son Curtis, 44, whom he shares with ex Cassandra Joy Greene and daughters LaTanya, 43, LaToya, 41, and Ashley, 40, whom he shares with ex Lisa Johnson. Dre also shares daughter Trya, 41, with ex LaVetta Washington, and son Marcel, 35, with ex Michel’le. He shared late son Andre Jr. with ex Jenita Porter. (Andre Jr. died of an overdose in 1988 at the age of 20.)
Michelle, for her part, married The Valley costar Jesse Lally in 2018. The pair, who share daughter Isabella, 6, announced their split in March 2024.
The Valley airs on Bravo Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET.
