A photo of Selena Gomez with her new boyfriend Benny Blanco is raising eyebrows online.
After months of speculation, the pop star and record producer went public with their relationship in December. After sharing a series of loved-up photos to instagram, the couple was snapped on their first public date Wednesday. However, one picture has grabbed the internet’s attention for a strange reason.
Gomez and Blanco—real name Benjamin Levin—sat courtside at LA’s Crypto.com Arena to watch the Lakers take on the Miami Heat.
Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images Sport
One sweet snap shows the 31-year-old actress giggling while Blanco whispers into her ear. In another she can be seen resting her head on her shoulder.
A third photo showed the couple cuddling up while watching the Jumbotron, but Instagram users had their eyes on Blanco’s feet. The 35-year-old wore white pants, a T-shirt and a pink and orange floral jacket, but he appears to have taken his Croc sandals off during the game.
“Why are his feet out,” asked madeline quesadilla wasson on Instagram.
“Got his dawgs out and about,” said Kat Kelley.
“I would have got the ICK with him taking his shoes off,” wrote Angelina Marie Zarate.
“I can’t deal with his feet…. I mean make some effort please,” Cara Elizabeth agreed.
“Dude put your shoes on,” Parker demanded, while Mia said: “Have some class.”
Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images Sport
Other users found the obsession with Blanco’s shoeless feet bizarre, with @taypacwilson commenting: “[The] “world is a weird place.”
“Imagine being upset over someone’s feet resting on the back of their shoes,” said Kayla Noel.
“Why is everyone concentrating on his feet look at that glow? Does he use rare?” asked miss_new_to_insta, referencing Gomez’s beauty brand.
“What she finds attractive might not be attractive for others,” wrote Melissa De Alba. “He treats her right is all that matters.”
Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco’s Relationship Timeline
Gomez and Blanco reportedly met in 2015, when he worked on the singer’s second solo album Revival. The producer is credited on the tracks “Kill Em with Kindness” and “Same Old Love.”
The pair teamed up again in 2016, when Gomez featured on Cashmere Cat’s single “Trust Nobody.” In 2019, they reunited for the song “I Can’t Get Enough,” alongside Puerto Rican reggaeton star Tainy and Colombian singer J Balvin.
However, Blanco appeared to throw shade at the Teen Choice Award winner in 2020.
Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images Sport
After collaborating with his long-time pal and Gomez’s ex-boyfriend, Justin Bieber, Blanco said on the Zach Sang Show: “Justin’s not one of those cookie-cutter pop artists. Like you know, they’re like, ‘this is my new single and here’s my makeup line.'”
As the former disney star had just launched her cosmetics line, Rare Beauty, fans assumed the remark was a dig at Gomez.
Whether it was just speculation or Blanco apologized behind the scenes, the duo were soon working together again. Gomez’s latest tune “Single Soon” was released in August, with Blanco helping out with the track’s production.
Fans noticed subtle clues that Gomez and Blanco might be dating. The record executive attended a benefit for the Rare Impact Fund, her mental health charityin October.
When Blanco shared a photo of his new cookbook, Open Wide, to Instagram in November, Gomez liked the image. She also posted a snap with Blanco—with the pair looking very cozy—while describing the songwriter as her “fav” in the caption.
Allen Berezovsky/Getty Images Sport
Although a source told Entertainment Tonight that Gomez was not in a relationship at the time, they did claim that the Only Murders in the Building star was “casually dating.”
“She is just focusing on what’s best for her right now and has been very in tune with maintaining her own boundaries,” the insider said. “Her friends and family support her and just want her to be happy.”
In December, Gomez liked a series of posts on social media claiming she is in a relationship with Blanco, commenting “facts” on one now-deleted post.
Later that month, Blanco appeared to confirm the relationship in an Instagram Story, sharing a photo of the star browsing in an art gallery. Gomez was soon spotted wearing a ring adorned with a diamond letter “B” while cuddling up with Blanco, which was the first in a series of cute couple photos she shared.
Their courtside date is being dubbed the pair’s first public outing as a couple—even it was overshadowed by a pair of Crocs—with reports that the romance has been kept under wraps for at least six months.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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