It took only one Instagram post to turn a 7-year-old girl in Roanoke, Virginia, into an “insta-sensation.”
Of course, it helps that the post was by Rihanna, who was blown away at how much little Ala’a Baytops looks like her.
“Almost drop my phone. how?” was Rihanna’s reaction.
Others apparently felt the same. Rihanna’s post has been liked more than 7 million times since Tuesday.
Ala’a’s mom, Bria Baytops, said Rihanna’s mention was a real surprise.
She was at work when “a coworker walked in and was like, ‘Rihanna just posted your daughter,’” Baytops told ABC News.
“I was just star struck,” Baytops said. “Like it was surreal and still is.”
As for Ala’a? Her reaction was a little more restrained.
“She didn’t really realize what was going on until I showed her who she is, and she was like, ‘Woah!’” Baytops told BET.com. “We originally took the pictures because she said she wanted to model.”
Baytops said she has reached out to Rihanna and hopes she can arrange a meeting between the singer and her daughter.
“I am just appreciative she shared it because she didn’t have to. I would love for them to do a photo shoot, and if that doesn’t happen, I am just thankful that she shared her picture, that is amazing,” Baytops told Inside Edition.
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