Justin Timberlake reduced 'SelfieKid' to tears with a surprise phone call during his interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
Ryan McKenna went from high school student to worldwide star when he took the opportunity to grab a selfie with Justin as he performed Can't Stop the Feeling as his final song during the Super Bowl Halftime Show, leading to the 13-year-old earning the nickname 'SelfieKid' and going viral on the Internet.
Enjoying the perks of new-found fame, Ryan taped an interview for Ellen's Friday (09Feb18) show earlier this week, and spoke about the moment he got the snap.
"We had no idea that Justin was gonna be there (in our section),” Ryan told host Ellen. "I pushed through. I was elbowing people, but I got there. I was there with him."
As the interview continued, Ellen told Ryan that she had someone on the phone who wanted to say hi, at which point the teen looked astounded as Justin greeted him, and said: "It’s nice to meet you, finally!"
Ellen asked Justin how the moment with Ryan came about during the set, to which the singer explained: "I knew that I wanted to end the performance with Can’t Stop the Feeling just because I know how people respond to that song, and then cut to Ryan..."
When Ellen joked that Ryan will now forever be part of Justin's life and "he'll send you money", the singer laughed before revealing a generous gesture which left the teenager in tears.
"I’ll tell you what I want to do, because it was so unexpected that he came down and, because all of this has happened, I thought to myself, I really want to meet you properly. So I’m going to be coming to TD Garden on tour to play in Boston so I’d like to invite you and your family to come,” Justin said.
As Ellen presented Ryan with four tickets to one of the April shows, he sat open-mouthed as the camera panned to his family in the audience and showed his father also in tears.
Ellen then revealed that the NFL (National Football League) were giving New England Patriots fan Ryan a "VIP experience to a New England patriots home game next season and four tickets to a game and four pre-game field passes".
As Ellen thanked Justin for being on the phone, he bid farewell to a still teary Ryan as he laughed: "I look forward to meeting you and our second selfie together."
