‘They had a meeting before attending actually’: A lovelorn trio accidentally recreated the ‘Taste’ music video at the VMAs

The music industry might not produce love triangles with the drama and pizzazz the likes of Lindsey Buckingham, Stevie Nicks, and Mick Fleetwood anymore, but Sabrina Carpenter, Camila Cabello, and Shawn Mendes have done their best to up the tension in the last few months.

All three showed up to the VMAs on Tuesday amid rumors Carpenter’s new chart-topping album was written nearly entirely about Mendes and his desertion of the “Espresso” singer in favor of his old flame. Not only did they all perform songs about one another (allegedly), but they also accidentally re-enacted Carpenter’s “Taste” music video where the musician sings about her man going back to his ex-girlfriend, played by Beetlejuice Beetlejuice‘s Jenna Ortega in the clip.

The ladies’ vintage red carpet glamour coincidentally (we’re assuming) mirrored the classic blonde vs. brunette contrast of the music video characters. Carpenter opted for “Old Hollywood bombshell” by bringing back Madonna’s vintage Bob Mackie gown worn by the music icon at the 1991 Oscars as Cabello went for a gothic princess look in a stunning Tony Ward Fall 2024 embroidered gown.

Mendes, meanwhile, showed up to the event wearing an all-black Dolce and Gabbana pantsuit. When he shared photos of his look, the Canadian singer quipped on X that he was “Pulling up to [his] own funeral” — seemingly a direct comment to both Carpenter’s “Taste” music video, where she and the “other woman” kill their flip-flopping boyfriend and then attend his funeral arm in arm, and to Cabello’s description of her own look at the MTV awards. The “Havana” singer told Billboard her dark attire signified a “funeral (…) for just everything that is negative. “Death to the people and the situations that try to bring you down,” she continued.

The former couple was dressed for the occasion, then, as they watched Carpenter perform the chatter-igniting mega-hit on stage to a crowd of roaring fans. The 26-year-old singer carried the torch by singing a song about Cabello (“Nobody Knows” off his upcoming self-titled album), which he then passed to the Cojímar, Cuba native. Cabello took her VMA stage as an opportunity to say “Goodspeed” to a past relationship in a fittingly theatrical performance.

Accident or plan, we’re living for this subtle shade.

Cabello and Mendes’ on-and-off love affair dates back to their first collab “I Know What You Did Last Summer” in 2015, during which the latter is rumored to have developed an unrequited crush on the former. They finally took their romance public in 2019, quickly becoming one of the most loved-up celebrity couples out there, and stayed together until 2021. The “Stitches” singer then had a fling with Carpenter in early 2023, but by April he was seen out and about with Cabello again. The two called it off for good (… for now) the following June. “They gave things a try, but ultimately the timing isn’t right for either of them,” a source told Entertainment Weekly at the time.

Each of the musicians’ 2024 albums, Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet,” Cabello’s “C, XOXO,” and Mendes’ upcoming “Shawn,” gives their individual perspective on the whirlwind love triangle, allowing the more curious to get a glimpse into what actually went down, from all sides. It’s a whole different ball game when it’s singer-songwriters going through heartbreak.