Paige Neimann has been a well-known figure within the Ariana Grande fandom for a while now. The Instagrammer rose to semi-fame because of what some people regard as an uncanny resemblance to the "Positions" singer.
But others think that Neimann only attracts these comparisons by her "disturbing" tendency to recreate almost every single one of Grande's outfits and makeup looks.
The 28-year-old songstress has undoubtedly crafted a signature look for herself — the crop top, high ponytail, and meticulous cat-eye combo has quickly worked its way into mainstream fashion. But fans like Neimann take it to the extreme in their imitations of the star, with the Instagrammer recently receiving backlash for her recreation of Grande's wedding photoshoot, from when she tied the knot with Dalton Gomez earlier this year. Fans of Grande have since labeled Neimann "annoying" and "sick," with one tweeting, "she needs to be sued for identity theft".
And Grande herself has spoken out in the past on her many doppëlgangers, of whom Neimann is arguably the most infamous. In a since-deleted TikTok, the pop star called impressions of her "degrading," and in reply to a fan's tweet on the subject, she also labeled the phenomenon "bizarre." Neimann responded to these comments in a 2020 Instagram Live, where she said, "I'm used to Ariana shading me so... [It's] kinda why I'm not a fan of her anymore honestly."
However, Neimann has since continued to recreate Grande's every look, leading Twitter users to dub her a hypocrite for claiming not to be a fan of the former Nickelodeon actress. One wrote, "paige isn't even a fan anymore, she's some obsessed freak. she says that she's not a fan of ariana anymore, but still continues to impersonate ariana? weird behaviour".
Some fans of Grande are even concerned for the star's personal safety, especially after an armed stalker was recently apprehended on her property. One Twitter user wrote, half-jokingly, "if ari goes missing she's in this girl's basement," and another tweeted, "I want her jailed !!! This isn't even funny."
Although there were also a few Twitter users who didn't see the big deal in Neimann's frequent and exaggerated imitations of the 28-year-old singer-songwriter, with one writing, "Is she hurting anyone? if it makes her happy and it's not hurting anyone then maybe just leave it?"
As a public figure, there must be some extent to which copycats and doppëlgangers just come with the territory. But perhaps Paige Neimann is an example of how that old saying, "imitation is the most sincere form of flattery," can sometimes be taken just a little bit too far.