Why the Casa Amor Bombshells Could Change Everything on 'Love Island USA' Season 7
The latest episode, which aired June 24, showed a dramatic recoupling at both villas, leaving Olandria Carthen and Nicolas Vansteenberghe single. Both were forced to say tearful goodbyes at their respective abodes, but a cliffhanger suggested they might not be gone for good.
Casa Amor has always been a fan-favorite pressure cooker, but this time, it's more than that: It's a lifeline that could turn the season on its head. So far, viewers have watched some petty tiffs and full-blown crashouts unfold, most of which were centered on the former couple Jeremiah Brown, who was recently dumped, and Huda Mustafa. But holistically, the drama has been scant, and the romantic connections have been underwhelming.
Love Island's allure stems from watching Instagram model archetypes vie for love and affection, even if it means being messy and treading moral ambiguity. But this season's islanders seem a little too strategic and cautious of how viewers might perceive them, especially considering the cast of the previous season was so widely beloved. In the early episodes, some shied away from getting to know potential matches to show a suspiciously strong sense of loyalty to their newly minted friendships. Others have point-blank accused their villa mates of 'scamming,' prioritizing gameplay over romance, and not exploring enough connections. This hyper-awareness serves neither the islanders nor the viewers who would rather be a fly on the wall than a bug in the ear.
But the tides could turn. Love Island host Ariana Madix previously confirmed that everyone—the main contestants and the Casa additions—will return to the original villa. This could force the islanders to make decisions even the most calculated mind wouldn't anticipate. In turn, that could bring out the type of chaos and palpable chemistry that's been missing thus far.
Read ahead to learn more about the Casa contestants who could charge up this season.
Arenales (pictured right), 28, is a financial accountant, real estate agent, and bartender. The Boston native and marathon runner often shares training and workout videos on his Instagram. In his Love Island intro, he exuded confidence, saying, 'Just know if you're with me, you're taken care of. I'm always smiling. I'm the fucking vibe wherever the fuck I go. And if you hate me, that's a you problem.'
Bibas (pictured right), originally from Toronto, lives in Miami and works as a tech consultant. The 24-year-old bombshell also appears to be a health and wellness enthusiast, frequently posting fitness and motivational videos. 'I am one of those people that has a lot of hobbies,' he said on the show. 'I love to travel, I run ultramarathons, I like to meditate, and I'm looking for a life partner.'
Blackmore, 25, models for an energy drink company. The self-proclaimed 'Southern Belle' competed for Miss Virginia USA last year and made it to the top five. 'I got a little bit of attitude,' she said in her intro, adding, 'I love to play Blackjack. I'm a card shark, so I'm always beating them out.' Blackmore later shared that she recently moved to West Palm Beach, Florida.
Carraway, 24, hails from Charlotte, North Carolina. She introduced herself as a 'peer mentor' and experienced cheerleader. 'I'd rate myself a 'broke my scale' out of 10 for obvious reasons,' she said. 'As far as kissing goes, I haven't gotten complaints in that department.' Carraway added that she's interested in getting to know 'a few of the guys' and plans on getting what she wants, 'like I always do.'
Dodard (pictured right) is a 23-year-old athlete from Puerto Rico. 'I got a little island spice,' he said on the show. Heading into the villa, he wasn't shy about his expectations: 'Ladies love me,' he said. 'My coaches always told me, 'Let the game come to you.' When the girls see me, they're instantly going to go for me. I'm a magnet. My presence is a present.'
Duggar, 25, is a Seattle-based corporate investigator and a Swiftie, per her Instagram. According to her intro, Duggar wasted no time doing her research on her fellow islanders. 'I do have the boys in the villa already background checked,' she said. 'I'm excited to go in there knowing too much already.'
Einerson is a social media and brand ambassador from Salt Lake City, Utah. Based on her Instagram, the 21-year-old digital creator also appears to be an avid golfer. When describing her type on the show, Einerson listed one major qualification: 'I honestly just love a guy that's freaking obsessed with me.'
Seeley (pictured right), 27, is a professional basketball player who joined the Rajawali Medan, a team in the Indonesian league, earlier this year. The 6'8' athlete is from Los Angeles and has seven sisters. Seeley said he's still single 'because I'm picky,' and he hasn't found 'the right woman' yet. But he's hopeful that Love Island will help him meet his match.
Srakaew (pictured right), 29, is a full-time international model. The tatted contestant is originally from Thailand but grew up in Manchester, England. He entered the villa with clear intentions: 'I'm here to try and find my potential wife,' he said. He added that people often assume he's a bad boy, but deep down, 'I'm a bit of a softie.'
Watson is a 24-year-old makeup artist, hairstylist, and model from Los Angeles. She made a sultry entrance on the show, saying, 'I'm serving looks, I'm serving personality' before declaring, 'the baddie is here.'
Woodworth (pictured right), 26, lives in Scottsdale, Arizona. He didn't disclose his profession, but he has a strong presence on Instagram and TikTok where he shares snapshots of his life and travels. 'When I'm in a relationship, I'm locked in,' Woodworth said on Love Island, adding that he wants to find someone to 'take over the world with.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
15 minutes ago
- USA Today
e.l.f. Cosmetics, under fire for Matt Rife ad, says 'we missed the mark'
Move over, American Eagle: popular beauty company e.l.f. Cosmetics is the latest brand to come under fire for an ad campaign. The budget beauty brand shared the campaign on Aug. 11, starring comedian Matt Rife and drag queen Heidi N Closet playing the role of lawyers. The video is set at the fictional 'Law Offices of & Schmarnes," a play on the real-life law firm Cellino & Barnes. In a parody of the real firm's iconic commercials of the 1990s and 2000s, Rife and Closet act as 'affordable beauty attorneys" who have gone to "e.l.f. court for millions of clients, helping them to access beauty products they deserve at prices that won't injure their livelihoods." 'I know a thing or two about red flags. And pricey makeup? You deserve better than that,' Rife says in the ad, which ends with the pair encouraging viewers to call '1-855-COLD-HARD-LASH." Many fans quickly took issue with the inclusion of Rife, who has previously sparked controversy and backlash from women, particularly after a domestic violence joke he made in his debut Netflix special. Here's what to know about the latest incident involving e.l.f. Who is Matt Rife and why is he controversial? Rife, 29, gained widespread popularity in 2022 when videos of his stand-up comedy, specifically his crowd work, went viral on TikTok. He had previously appeared in a few small roles on reality and traditional television, making it to the semifinals of the comedy competition show "Bring the Funny" in 2019. Rife had ruffled some feathers with his quips over the years, but the real backlash came with the release of his Netflix special "Natural Selection" in November 2023. The special, which received mixed reviews, was what Rife himself described as an attempt at appealing to a male audience after his rise to fame was largely attributed to female supporters. "And that's one thing that I wanted to tackle in this special was showing people that, like, despite what you think about me online, I don't pander my career to women," he said in an interview with Variety. "I would argue this special is way more for guys." Rife opened the special with a joke about domestic violence, telling a story about visiting a "ratchet" restaurant in Baltimore with his friend and noticing a female server had a black eye. As the story goes, the duo wondered why the establishment wouldn't keep the server in the kitchen to avoid customers seeing her injury. "Yeah, but I feel like if she could cook, she wouldn't have that black eye," he quipped. "I figure if we start the show with domestic violence, the rest of the show should be smooth sailing." Continued backlash Rife's response to subsequent backlash landed him in even deeper water when he posted a fake apology on his Instagram story. "If you've ever been offended by a joke I've told, here's a link to my official apology," he wrote alongside a link that led to a website selling "special needs helmets." These jokes, paired with several others disparaging women throughout the special, left a bad taste in the mouths of people who were once his core audience. Rife, who later faced a controversy over allegedly making inappropriate comments to a 6-year-old child online, acknowledged again on an episode of the "BFF's Pod" podcast that while women were responsible for his success, he was steering away from catering to that audience. "Without women, I would've never gained the momentum I did on social media, and I'm so grateful for that," he said. "But in doing that, a lot of dudes didn't like that. ... I feel like my comedy is more for guys than women." e.l.f controversy Rife's alienation of his female audience is the crux of the criticism surrounding e.l.f.'s new ad campaign. With the brand and its products being overwhelmingly targeted at women, fans expressed confusion with Rife's involvement. Even without taking his past comments into consideration, said some netizens, Rife has never before been associated with makeup, cosmetics or the beauty space, unlike his commercial co-star. "Elf Cosmetics says on their 'elf cares' site that elf stands for empowering legendary females while also simultaneously hiring someone who makes light of DV," said one commenter underneath e.l.f.'s YouTube upload of the ad. "You can't claim diversity and feeling safe and inclusion while also wasting your marketing budget." "Literally any other guy could have done this, Matt rife sucks," said another. "So… Rife was the only one y'all could get?" said one more. "You didn't have the budget for a comedian who doesn't joke about abuse?" said a commenter under the brand's Instagram post. Another wrote, "Oooooh. Matt Rife? The guy who jokes about DV? In an ad targeted to women? That's, um. A choice." One commenter half-joked, "Who will you hire next? Andrew Tate? You just lost a lot of customers." Calls to boycott the brand have taken off on several social media platforms, with beauty influencers, including those who have previously partnered with e.l.f., leading the charge. Some even posted videos of themselves throwing out their e.l.f. products. Creators like James Welsh, Katie Raymond, Jillie Clark and Nikkie de Jager made videos and comments decrying the choice and publicly rescinding support for the brand. e.l.f. responds to backlash e.l.f. released a statement on its Instagram account on Aug. 15, offering an apology to its customers. 'You know us, we're always listening and we've heard you,' it said. 'This campaign aimed to humorously spotlight beauty injustice. We understand we missed the mark with people we care about in our e.l.f. community. while & schmarnes closes today, we'll continue to make the case against overpriced beauty." The post, which received more than 64k likes, was flooded with more than 6,000 comments, many of which were not satisfied with the veracity of the apology. "'Missed the mark' is a pretty loose way of saying 'we intentionally alienated our audience by hiring a man who torpedoed his career by alienating his audience,'" said one comment with more than 8,000 likes. "Are you seriously trying to add humour to your apology? Take down the original ads from all platforms. How tone deaf can you be?" said another. e.l.f. Beauty's Global Chief of Marketing Officer Kory Marchisotto told trade publication The Business of Beauty in an Aug. 14 interview that the brand was "surprised" by the poor reception. "Obviously we're very surprised,' said Marchisotto, who explained that they chose Rife because of the alignment between his TikTok followers and the brand's target audience. 'There is a big gap between our intention and how this missed the mark for some people." "We always aim to deliver positivity, and this one didn't. So we find ourselves in a position where, quite honestly, that doesn't feel good for us," she said. USA TODAY has reached out to e.l.f. and Rife for comment.
Los Angeles Times
44 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
Rapper T-Hood's slaying may have been self-defense as police suspect girlfriend's brother
The shooting death of 33-year-old rapper T-Hood at his residence in Georgia is being investigated as a possible self-defense case, according to police in Gwinnett County, northeast of Atlanta. Police have identified the alleged shooter as Ky Lasheed Frost, 24, the son of 'Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta' stars Rasheeda and Kirk Frost. Ky Frost was detained at the scene of the shooting and interviewed, but no charges have been filed against him. A representative for Rasheeda did not reply immediately to The Times' request for comment Friday. Authorities responded to a domestic dispute at approximately 7 p.m. on Aug. 8 and discovered the rapper — real name Tevin Hood — suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital, where he died from his injuries. Hood was dating Ky Frost's sister, Kelsie Frost, according to TMZ. The entertainment news site also published surveillance video recorded earlier this year in their apartment that showed them in a physical altercation. In the video, Hood walks around the bedroom while Kelsie Frost is lying on the bed. The video appears to show Hood as he leaps toward her and begins to choke her. Ky Frost and a witness, Ariel Miranda Hutchinson, 25, remained on the scene of the shooting last Friday and cooperated with investigators, police said. Meanwhile, a female victim sustained physical injuries, police said. Kelsie Frost posted a carousel of photos of herself and Hood last Saturday on Instagram with the caption, 'Just come get me baby please….. I can't even type this. I love you papa. I can't wait to hold you again.' The investigation is ongoing.
Business Upturn
an hour ago
- Business Upturn
Logan Paul and Nina Agdal are officially married: A look into their relationship timeline
Logan Paul and Nina Agdal are officially married. The WWE superstar and Sports Illustrated swimsuit model got married in a lavish ceremony in Italy on August 15, 2025. Their journey from meeting to marriage has captivated fans worldwide, blending romance, glamour, and a touch of social media flair. In this article, we explore their relationship timeline, highlighting key milestones that led to their stunning wedding day. Early 2022: A Chance Encounter Sparks Romance Logan Paul and Nina Agdal's love story began in early 2022 at an event in New York City. According to Agdal, she felt an instant connection and convinced Logan to join her and her friends for a drink. 'It instantly felt like I had known him for years,' she shared in an interview with the Daily Front Row . Their chemistry was undeniable, and by the end of the year, they were ready to share their relationship with the world. December 2022: Going Instagram Official In December 2022, Logan and Nina confirmed their romance on social media. Logan posted a heartfelt caption, 'Lucky me,' alongside a video of the couple sharing a hug and enjoying a cozy breakfast in bed. Nina followed suit, posting on December 31 with the caption, '2022, the beginning of me and you,' alongside cuddled-up photos. These posts marked their relationship as a public love story, delighting fans of both the YouTube star and the Danish model. May 2023: Celebrating One Year Together By May 2023, Logan and Nina celebrated their first anniversary. Logan shared a sweet Instagram tribute, writing, 'One very special year with my Danish queen @ninaagdal,' accompanied by a carousel of romantic moments. Nina responded in the comments, calling it the 'best year of my life.' Their bond, built on shared interests in fitness, travel, and entrepreneurship, continued to grow stronger. July 2023: A Romantic Proposal in Lake Como Logan took their relationship to the next level with a dreamy proposal in Lake Como, Italy, in July 2023. He got down on one knee, surprising Nina with a ring hidden in the bushes. 'You are the love of my life. You are the girl of my dreams,' Logan said, holding back tears as he asked, 'Baby girl, will you marry me?' Nina's joyful reaction was captured on video, which Logan shared on Instagram with the caption, 'Engaged to my best friend 💍.' The romantic setting of Lake Como foreshadowed their future wedding venue. April 2024: Announcing Their First Child In April 2024, Logan and Nina shared exciting news: they were expecting their first child. The couple announced Nina's pregnancy with a heartfelt social media post, showcasing their growing love and anticipation for parenthood. In September 2024, they welcomed their daughter, Esme, adding a new chapter to their journey together. May 2025: Inviting a Fan to Their Wedding In a unique move, Logan and Nina announced in a May 28, 2025, vlog that they would invite one lucky fan and their plus-one to their multi-million-dollar wedding. Fans were encouraged to comment on the vlog, with the couple promising to choose their favorite comment as the winner. Logan hinted at the wedding's grandeur, saying, 'It's affecting my net worth, but my God, it is going to be incredible.' This gesture highlighted their desire to share their special day with their loyal supporters. August 15, 2025: A Lavish Wedding in Lake Como On August 15, 2025, Logan and Nina exchanged vows in a luxurious ceremony in Lake Como, Italy. Logan wore a white tuxedo jacket with black pants, while Nina stunned in a breathtaking wedding dress. Jake Paul, Logan's younger brother, shared a glimpse of the emotional nuptials, captioning a video, 'I've seriously been crying.' Mike Majlak, Logan's Impaulsive podcast co-host, officiated the ceremony, adding a personal touch to the star-studded event. The couple's wedding was a blend of elegance and fun, with pre-wedding activities like kayaking in Lake Como. Ahmedabad Plane Crash
