From Fiji to Maryland, iconic players Austin Shepard, Nic Vansteenberghe and Olandria Carthen from Season 7 of Love Island landed in College Park this week. To see these three contestants who didn’t even win the show, people needed to buy tickets. 

And those events? They sold out fast. 

I found out Nic was coming to Maryland through an Instagram post my mom sent me, telling me to buy tickets. Although I watched Love Island every night this summer with her and my sisters, I am surprised that Nic was even on her feed. Why are hers and so many others’ feeds still trapped in the Love Island summer? 

Season 7 of Love Island USA wrapped up in early July with a reunion episode airing in August. In most cases, reality TV contestants fade once cameras cut. But Love Island stars this year didn’t disappear a few days after the season concluded. Instead, they continued their daily broadcast through social media, creating a stronger connection with fans who felt like they lived by their side for weeks in the villa.  

Unlike most reality TV shows, which span over the course of a few months with weekly episodes, Love Island is rather fast-paced with a new episode airing five days a week. Viewers watch the islanders wake up, argue, make up and go to bed. 

[Relax from midterm stress, doomscrolling with these 5 books]

This sense of routine blurred the line between reality and entertainment. Season 5 gained a lot of traction through players like Rob Rausch, a guy whose sarcasm and looks turned him into a fan favorite.

Season 6 maintained the momentum by drawing viewers in with the show’s classic strong suspense and many cliff hangers. But by the time season 7 premiered, fans were fully sucked in and the show became a bonding opportunity as opposed to just entertainment.  

Many, like myself, watched with their families (creating awkward moments of course),  streamed in bars and viewed clips on TikTok.

When fans invest that much repetitive time into characters —  sorry, real people — they form attachments which stick. But now, the inclusion of social media introduces a parasocial relationship to this dynamic. The show feels real in a way reality TV, ironically, often doesn’t. 

For example, TJ Palma left the villa while being in a couple with Iris Kendall, but he didn’t just fade away. He posted a TikTok to “Iris” by the Goo Goo Dolls, making mine and many fans’ hearts break for him. 

Even though they were trapped in a tropical paradise together for less than two weeks, their connection on the show felt genuine and his post aimed to prove that, giving fans hope.

A month later, Iris ended the show with Pepe Garcia, but when rumors that he cheated surfaced, TJ came back into the picture. Soon, the pair posted on social media together, giving fans what they wanted months ago. It felt like I was watching this drama unfold in my own friend group. 

Viewers built a connection with cast members while watching the show, and that feeling has only gotten stronger through seeing their daily social media posts. All summer long we watched the cast do everything from making breakfast to getting ready together. Now on social media, everything feels familiar, like we deeply know each other. 

Very likely, Nic could be strolling through College Park with fans going up to him like they are best friends that hung out together all summer. Although Nic and Olandria placed second and left the show as a couple, their College Park presence doesn’t feel like a crazy big celebrity spotting — they just seem like normal people.

[Zara Larsson is fun, but dated on ‘Midnight Sun’]

After each episode, viewers bond over shared thoughts and feelings on TikTok and Instagram comment sections, making assumptions and predictions about the players and their motives – something that show producers seemed to take into consideration, making the reality TV show not so reality TV. 

That’s the thing with Love Island. The finale doesn’t end the story, it creates a second season on social media, where contestants compete on maintaining their fame through social media and fan events, at places where the majority of their fanbase spend their time — college bars.