At the 2025 MTV VMAs, KATSEYE’s leader, Sophia Laforteza, had what she describes as a surreal moment when she unexpectedly met Ariana Grande.
The encounter took place during KATSEYE’s debut appearance at the VMAs, where they performed “Gnarly” and “Gabriela” in the preshow and turned heads with bold Dolce & Gabbana outfits on the red carpet.
The 22-year-old star, who was channeling Ariana Grande with a high ponytail, had a dream ‘Arianator’ moment when KATSEYE met the “Into You” singer at the MTV VMAs and posed for photos.
On Weverse, Sophia shared her excitement about meeting her idol on September 10: “Bro WTF, I wanted to channel Ari with the high pony and everything while having no idea that she was gonna be at the VMAs.”
She admitted that she’d joked with her fellow members that she’d “be a mess” if she actually met her idol—only to have Ariana appear a few hours later. She described her as “perfect, so kind, so bright, so light, so charming, my actual everything, an angel so full of kindness.”
Sophia continued, “When we got back to our seats after meeting her, I started crying, so all my members had to calm me down. I also don’t really cry like I have no tears left to cry, but Ariana got me,” and concluded, “Got a migraine holding back my tears.”
Anyone who is a fan of Sophia knows she has long admired Ariana Grande. She frequently mentions the pop star as someone she hopes to collaborate with, and that she even styled her hair in tribute to Ariana that night.
Meanwhile, KATSEYE not only lit up the MTV VMAs pre-show with their performance but also claimed the ‘Push Performance of the Year’ award. Looking ahead, they will open their first North American tour, The Beautiful Chaos, in November and wrap it in mid-December in Mexico.
