Meet Tefi Pessoa, host of Love Island USA’s companion show Aftersun
The influencer joined TikTok in 2020 and has amassed some 2 million followers there – she’s also been vocal about what it means to her to be Latina
Following the Islanders’ every step were not just the millions of viewers, but the hosts of companion show Love Island USA: Aftersun, Ciara Miller and Tefi Pessoa. The pair delivered weekly insights into all the villa drama, conducting interviews with dumped Islanders.
How did Tefi Pessoa become famous on TikTok?
Tefi Pessoa’s media profile began gaining traction in 2020, when the influencer joined TikTok during the lockdown to talk about pop culture. Her following has since grown to 2 million followers on TikTok, and 479,000 on Instagram. “I feel like I was put on Earth to make everybody feel more comfortable at the dinner party that is life,” she told People in 2022.
The influencer contributes a column to The Cut, in which she gives dating and friendship advice on topics such as open relationships and cheating. She also hosts the weekly podcast Tefi Talks, where she covers celebrities, astrology and contemporary life.
Prior to her Aftersun appearance, Pessoa fronted Prime Video’s 2024 Influenced variety show, alongside influencer co-hosts Achieng Agutu, Eyal Booker, Taryn Delanie Smith and Cyrus Veyssi.
She’s proud of her Latina roots
Pessoa, 35, whose full name is Estefanía Vanegas Pessoa, was born in Miami to a Colombian mother and a Brazilian father. Her parents separated when she was young, and she was raised primarily by her mother and her grandparents, per Mitú, an LA-based publication on Latino culture.
Back in 2022, Pessoa shared on her Medium blog what it felt like to be a first-generation Latina born and raised in America. “Our family’s immigration stories are stories about survival and unconditional love – not just juicy plots for TV,” she wrote, reflecting on her experience of being perceived through a “spicy Latina” cliché.
Is Tefi Pessoa in a relationship?
Pessoa has been linked to YouTuber Shannon Beveridge; fans have been speculating about their relationship since her appearance on Beveridge’s Now This Is Living podcast early last year, in which the two seemed flirty. They were seen this year at an Apple TV event for Imperfect Women in New York, with Marie Claire branding them a “power couple”.