Beabadoobee Has Finally Acknowledged Rob From Love Island, Her #1 Fan

Beabadoobee is having a moment right now, and it’s all thanks to a very unexpected superfan: Rob Rausch from Love Island USA. Normally, Love Island contestants have some pretty basic answers when asked about their favorite music, listing off instantly recognizable mainstream artists and bands. But not Rob. Throughout Season 6, the snake handler has been singing the praises of indie singer-songwriter Beabadoobee. And while the musician still isn’t totally clear on who Rob is, she finally acknowledged him in a recent Live.

Rob’s passion for Beabadoobee’s music has been an unexpectedly delightful subplot on this season of Love Island USA. When he was first getting to know Liv Walker, Rob detailed why Beabadoobee’s songs speak to him (despite Liv clearly having no idea who he was talking about): “It’s just, like, sweet music. The words are sad, but it sounds happy.”

Later in the competition, Rob excitedly declared Beabadoobee his favorite singer in a game, which his partner Kassy Castillo easily matched, despite also not really knowing who the musician is.

Luckily for Rob, all of his standom is about to pay off when he exits the villa and discovers his favorite artist has shown him some love.

Beabadoobee brought up all the comments she’s been seeing about Rob in a recent live chat with fans. Though she admitted she hasn’t seen the show, Beabadoobee stood up for Rob nonetheless. “I’m not gonna lie: I will not stand for the Rob hate, because that motherf*cker put so much people onto my music, and I rate it,” she said. “So love you, Rob. Hope you like the album. I haven’t watched the show, no. I don’t really know him, don’t know what he’s like. But, I mean, it’s flooding my f*cking comments section.”

The singer went on to ask her fans to appreciate the more mainstream recognition she’s been getting due to Rob’s shoutouts. “Gatekeeping is so two years ago. Give it a rest,” she said. “I also think it’s quite funny, because not many would think someone from Love Island would listen to my music, let alone a man, as well. That’s mad. But I see there’s more of a likeliness for that to happen in America than in the UK, if I’m being honest. I don’t know why.”

Here’s hoping for a meet-up between Beabadoobee and her No. 1 fan once Love Island USA ends.