Ellen Degeneres is notorious for inviting the most adorable children to her show. There was the “Listen, Linda!” boy, mini Bruno Mars and, probably the most famous of the tots that got to run around Ellen’s soundstage, Sophia Grace and Rosie.
What drew us to the little English duo and their tutus, I think, was their no-shame dynamic. Sophia Grace was always the showstopper, with her killer verses (Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass” was her specialty), stage presence and facial expressions that would make Tyra Banks proud. But Rosie was always just as entertaining, her presence being more of a hype girl role that only accentuated the performance her cousin was, obviously, running.
I couldn’t tell you why I hadn’t thought of it, but of course the two superstars would be grown up by now. They were only 8 and 5 years old when they first went viral on YouTube, prompting Degeneres’s attention, and have done everything from hanging out at the Teen Choice Awards to starring in a feature-length film. They’re 15 and 12 now, and we are all old as hell.
Rosie hangs out in a little dimmer of a spotlight (her YouTube channel has 600,000 subscribers while Sophia Grace is inching toward 3.5 million), but Sophia Grace is just getting started. Their YouTube personas, posting things like shopping hauls, challenge videos and music videos, also includes content above the grade of a typical tween, like Sophia Grace’s interview with Lily James.
Sophia Grace is coming into her own as a young woman, and that means long, acrylic nails and selfies taken with a perfected pout. Her music is starting to take form, and we definitely shouldn’t be surprised that she’s taken to hip-hop. Her song “Can’t Wait” was released earlier this month.
They all really do grow up.