10 music artists who expertly surprised their biggest fans

Artists often love to have the chance to surprise their fans and show them how much they mean to them. Here are a few we picked out.

It’s no secret that “meeting my favorite artist/celebrity” is often on our bucket lists. Sometimes it even becomes a lifelong goal. We fantasize how we would meet them by becoming rich and buying backstage passes, or having a chance encounter them in a coffee shop. For some lucky people, however, it’s a lot easier than one would think.

So, while I continue wishing on shooting stars to meet Charlie Puth, here are ten of the best artist-fan encounters that have happened so far.

1. Justin Timberlake

Justin gave 88-year-old Bette Maloney the surprise of a lifetime by inviting her backstage before the show. Maloney originally went viral when her granddaughter recorded her reaction to getting tickets to Justin’s show back in April. Needless to say, we’re sure she was pretty excited. The pure joy on her face says it all. I hope I’m this lucky when I’m 88.

2. Ed Sheeran

Wedding days are known as one of the happiest days in someone’s life, and we’re sure the same applies to this young couple here. They had absolutely no idea that the biggest surprise of all, Mr. Ed Sheeran, was waiting to serenade them for their first dance as husband and wife. The British singer sang “Thinking Out Loud,” which is arguably one of the most romantic songs on the planet. Ed, if you’re reading this, keep doing what you’re doing. We’re loving it!

3. Adele

Ah, Adele… what a gal. The singer hilariously, yet expertly, adopted a new persona and was temporarily known as “Jenny” in an effort to surprise her doting fans. Her fans were in (what they thought was) an Adele impersonator contest. In reality, it turned out to be one big surprise for them. They didn’t realize she was the real Adele at first… until she started singing.

4. Liam Payne

Okay, let’s get real here. We’re all insanely jealous. Liam surprised his fans who thought they were only filming a video to congratulate him on releasing his new single “Strip That Down.” As the song plays, he dances on in and the screaming, tears, and “Oh my god”s ensue. Well done, Liam! We’d definitely call that surprise a success.

5. Ariana Grande

Jimmy Fallon is well known for surprising people with their idols, from Tina Fey to Black Panther’s Chadwick Boseman. Most recently, he surprised some lucky Ariana Grande fans by bringing in the star herself as they covered her song “One Last Time.” And of course, the segment wasn’t without its comedic elements as well.

6. Selena Gomez

Looks like we better “keep an eye out for Selener,” because she’s pretty good at surprising people. The 25-year-old singer surprised one of her biggest fans in Australia and showed up in the middle of her rendition of “Kill Em With Kindness.” Something tells us that the young fan will remember this day for the rest of her life.

7. Janet Jackson

Who would have thought that competing in a dance competition could bring you so much more than you would have expected? Talk show host Anderson Cooper brought three lucky Janet Jackson fans to his show for a “dance competition” which turned out to be one big prank to get them and the singer together. The interaction turned out to be both adorable and very sweet.

8. Bruno Mars

This one was too cute to pass up, and it’s clear to see why. Ellen Degeneres had one of her favorite youngsters on the show to sing for her and, knowing that young Kai was a fan of Bruno Mars, made his dreams come true. Donning his signature fedora, he had a mini jam session with Bruno backstage, singing “Uptown Funk.”

9. Beyoncé

You didn’t think we’d compile this list of celebrity-fan encounters without including the Queen Bey herself, did you? Well, not only are we doing just that, we’re putting a little twist on things. The goddess herself showed up to the 2016 Music Video Awards and surprised none other than Chance the Rapper during an interview. I think it’s safe to say that Chance was all of us meeting Beyoncé in this moment.

10. Fifth Harmony

And finally, we’re ending with yet another example of celebrities surprising celebrities. This time we’ve got Fifth Harmony surprising the one and only Sam Smith. While filming James Corden’s critically acclaimed Carpool Karaoke, Smith admitted that he is a huge fan of the girl group. Just as Corden begins to play “Work From Home,” he pauses and says that something isn’t quite right…

So, it just goes to show you that whoever you are, wherever you are, the possibility of meeting your idols isn’t as impossible as you may think.

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