For six weeks, Love Island USA viewers have been glued to their screens watching as drama unfolded, connections developed, and of course, memes were made.
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The show is filmed and edited in real-time since the start of June, with new episodes dropping every day except Wednesday. Because of this, viewers get to participate in viewer votes throughout the season, which often results in more chaos.
On Sunday, fans voted one last time for their favorite couple, crowning Amaya Espinal and Bryan Arenales the winners of the season. The rest of the final four couples included Olandria Carthen and Nic Vansteenberghe, Huda Mustafa and Chris Seeley, as well as Iris Kendall and Jose “Pepe” Garcia-Gonzalez.
After Espinal and Arenales received their $100k prize, host Ariana Maddix revealed to the islanders it wouldn’t be the last time they see each other, as the cast would be reuniting in New York for the Love Island USA season 7 reunion, set to air on Peacock on August 25.
If you’re eager to relive the past 6 weeks or need a bit of a recap ahead of the reunion, here are some of the most memorable moments from Love Island USA season 7.
“I never said I was perfect”
In addition to its standard episodes Sunday-Tuesday and Thursday-Friday, Love Island USA also has an in-house talk show called “Aftersun.” During episode 17, guest host Sophie Munk, who also hosts the Australian Love Island franchise, introduced an unseen moment of Espinal, lovingly referred to by viewers as her self-appointed nickname “Amaya Papaya,” singing to herself alone in the makeup room.
“I never said I was perfect, I never said I didn’t have any flaws. But at least I’m pretty, and at least I’m a little funny, and at least I’m my own best friend,” sings Espinal as she gets ready for the evening. “You f—ing take me as you f—ing take me. This is who the f— I am.”
The clip took off on social media and quickly became a trending TikTok sound. It became so popular that for the final Aftersun episode on Saturday, July 12, the show released an extended version of the clip with more of Espinal’s sing-song affirmations.
@loveislandusa 1 billion likes and Amaya drops a mixtape.
#LoveIslandUSA @Amaya
#AmayaPapaya
Mommy? Mamacita.
This conversation between islanders Huda Mustafa and Nic Vansteenberghe became one of the most referenced moments of the season:
“I have a secret to tell you. All the girls know, Jeremiah knows but you have to promise me you’re not going to say anything to any of the other guys, cause it’s not their business, but… I’m a mommy,” says Mustafa.
“Mommy?” responds Vansteenberghe.
“I’m a mom,” she confirms.
“Mamacita,” he replies as the two share a laugh.
“No, I’m a mommy.”
“Mom of what? A dog?”
“I have a daughter.”
“Like in real life?”
“Yeah.”
“Like a daughter, like a real baby?”
“Yeah. Like a human child.”
@loveislandusa Huda is mommy to her daughter… Mamacita to Nic.
#LoveIslandUSA @hudabubbaaa @Nicolas Vansteenberghe
Nicolandria
Viewers noticed a spark between Carthen and Vansteenberghe from the first episode. While the islanders both remained in different couples for a majority of their time in the villa, they were first brought together in an unexpected plot twist. Both contestants were single and vulnerable during Casa Amor and were told to pack their bags, making the islanders believe they had been dumped from the show. Instead, Carthen and Vansteenberghe were given the ultimatum: couple up or leave the villa.
The first time they explored their connection, the two felt they were better off as friends, but after finding themselves both single again a few days later, they decided to give it a try for real. Additionally, both of their moms were flown in for family day, where they let the two islanders know that Nicolandria Nation was backing their connection.
@carolyn.burt Love Island USA fans react to shocking twist ending for season 7 episode 20 at Roosterfish in West Hollywood. @reality bar #loveislandusa #loveisland #loveislandseason7
Ariana’s Outfits
While Madix’s cameos are limited throughout the season, each one is memorable not only because of the bombshell information she drops, but because of the killer outfits she wears doing it.
Fan vote leads to a crash out
This season, the viewers were tasked with pairing up new bombshells Jalen Brown, Garcia-Gonzalez, and Kendall with current islanders. Kendall was coupled up with Jeremiah Brown, sending shockwaves through the villa. Jeremiah Brown and Mustafa had been coupled up since the first day, telling others that they were “basically closed off” and were the “mom and dad” of the group.
Viewers, however, felt (and voted) differently, posting that the conversations between the two appeared to be somewhat toxic at times and that the couple’s connection didn’t appear to be all it was made out to be. This resulted in a few days of friction between the pair, with growing concern amongst viewers around Mustafa’s mental health.
Megan Thee Stallion surprises the islanders
The Grammy award-winning rapper, and super fan of the show, made a cameo to host a challenge for the contestants and promote her new swimwear line “Hot Girl Summer.” The appearance also came at the perfect time for viewers, providing a fun change of pace from the dramatic episodes that had played out the days before.
Cast’s past leads to their removal from the villa
While this season has been nothing short of dramatic onscreen, there’s also been controversy after resurfaced clips and social media posts began to circulate outside of the villa.
After the season 7 cast was revealed online, viewers began digging into the contestants’ pasts. A clip of day one contestant Yulissa Escobar using a racial slur in a podcast was found, and Escobar was promptly removed from the show in episode 2.
Additionally, Cierra Ortega, who was brought in as a bombshell during the first episode, was removed in episode 30 after a resurfaced social media post of her using a racial slur was discovered.
The show didn’t address why the contestants had been removed beyond the announcement of them leaving the villa via narrator Iain Stirling. Both Escobar and Ortega took to their social media after returning home to apologize for their actions and take accountability.
Honesty box challenge gets a little too honest
During the standing on business challenge, each islander wrote postcards to one another to get what they needed to say off their chest. Additionally, they had the option to sign their name or leave it anonymous. With the opportunity in front of them to tell one another how they really felt, the challenge took a heavy turn.
Espinoal was told by each of the men that she had been paired up with that she moved too quickly with them, and it was too much, too early on. This was made more emotional as Espinoal had been seen in earlier episodes having conversations with her previous partner, Austin Shepard, and her current partner, Zak Srakaew, asking how they felt their connection was going and if there were areas of improvement they needed from her.
The moment did have a silver lining as Arenales spoke up in defense of Espinoal, informing the guys that her affectionate ways were also a part of their culture, and sparking a romantic connection between Arenales and Espinoal.
Amaya’s got a case of the zoomies
Fans quickly began recognizing that each time Espinal was too excited for words, she would run around in a circle, which viewers and contestants began referring to as “the zoomies.” It happened in challenges, such as when the girls built their bombshell before the guys, as well as when the girls found out they were headed to Casa Amor. Espinal got one final case of the zoomies when, after being crowned the winners, Arenales joined her for a celebratory lap around the villa.
Breakup during the finale
While Mustafa had a loyal fan base throughout the show who voted for her to make it to the finale, not everyone was in support of how she handled herself in her connections, noting a pattern of negative behavior.
While some viewers agreed she made for captivating reality TV and had shown growth throughout the summer, the bubbling friction between her and Seeley also led to discourse online, as many felt it didn’t make sense for the pair to stay on the show over other couples, such as Chelley Bissainthe and Ace Greene.
During the finale episode, each of the final couples shared a romantic date in Fiji. While it’s typically a moment for the couple to appreciate their journey, for Mustafa and Seeley, it was a time to decide what their future had in store. Seeley put the decision on Mustafa as to whether or not they should continue to work on their relationship outside of the villa.
Knowing the foundation wasn’t there, and that they’d be long distance, Mustafa decided that they’d be better off as friends. The moment was made more dramatic as their date had taken place in the middle of a pond. Seeley had carried Mustafa in, but decided not to carry her back out, leaving her to take off her shoes, grab a class of champagne and walk out alone down the water-covered path.
The Love Island USA Season 7 Reunion airs on Peacock on August 25. Love Island Games, with Madix taking over as the host, will return for season two on September 16.