During Usher’s Las Vegas residency and his last tour, one of the R&B vet’s signature moves was picking a lucky lady in the crowd and suggestively dipping a cherry into her open mouth.
Well, after Monday’s Met Gala, it became apparent that the tradition continued, even in a room full of well-dressed celebrities. Thanks to Getty Images, we also know which of the women in attendance Usher chose for his cherry trick: Sabrina Carpenter, who is herself no stranger to salacious onstage antics.
Carpenter, who was dressed by Louis Vuitton head designer Pharrell Williams for the gala, has had her fair share of pearl-clutching moments on tour, from her tradition of “arresting” attendees like Salma Hayek and Millie Bobby Brown for being “too hot” to her literal reenactments of the positions from her hit song “Juno.” Her risqué stagecraft has sparked complaints from concerned parents about her barely-there ensembles and suggestive choreography, but that hasn’t stopped her from doubling down on her dirty jokes.
Maybe that’s what prompted Usher to pick her from the finely-coiffed crowd to keep his own suggestive stage tradition alive. Perhaps they’ll be able to put any chemistry they’ve conjured up from the interaction to use in the studio for a coy collaboration.