Call it Adele Dazeem, round two.
Five years after John Travolta incorrectly pronounced Idina Menzel’s name at the 2014 Oscars, the singer took the stage at the 2019 VMAs to present the Video of the Year award to Taylor Swift.
And while Swift’s name was easy enough for him to handle, it was her face — or rather, that of Swift-impersonating drag queen Jade Jolie — that gave him trouble.
Twitter had a field day when the cameras captured Travolta handing the Moonman award to Jolie, who appeared in Swift’s “You Need to Calm Down” video and took the stage to accept the award along with several of the video co-stars, rather than the pop star herself.
“John Travolta just gave the VMA to ‘Drag Race’ alum Jade Jolie in Taylor Swift drag, FULLY not knowing that it was NOT Taylor Swift, thinking that it was IN FACT Taylor Swift,” GQ editor Brennan Carley tweeted. “I am....reeling.”
“John Travolta pulling another Adele Dazeem 💀💀😃” writer/podcaster/social media personality Ira Madison III wrote, with Entertainment Weekly writer Joey Nolfi sharing, “John Travolta mistaking Jade Jolie for Taylor Swift. 👏DRAG 👏RACE 👏EXCELLENCE”
Jolie, an alum of “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” told the USA TODAY Network in June that she was thrilled to play Swift’s drag doppelganger in the “You Need to Calm Down” video.
“It was even better than I imagined,” she said. “She came in our dressing room while we weren’t scheduled to do anything, she just like came in and hung out with us. She made sure she came over and talked to each one of us individually. It was so awesome.”
Read more at usatoday.com.
