Rosie McClelland, 19, has opened up about where she stands with cousin Sophia Grace Brownlee as both former child stars build adult lives beyond their shared Ellen DeGeneres Show fame.
The singer, who turns 20 next week, addressed their bond during an appearance on The Kyle and Jackie O Show on KIISFM, making clear that distance has not become division.
“Me and Sophia, we’re cousins, and Sophia’s gone her own way and I’ve gone my own way,” Rosie shared. “We still see each other. We haven’t fallen out.”
She added that their family ties keep them in regular contact despite diverging paths: “We’re like best friends, I see her all the time because she is my cousin. I see her on special occasions like birthdays.”
Those paths have indeed split sharply. Sophia Grace, 23, has become a mother of two with a third child due next month, while Rosie has pursued music, releasing the single “Eyes Wide Shut” this past July. The cousins were eight and five respectively when a homemade video of them performing Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass” in pink fairy tutus went viral in 2011, catching Ellen DeGeneres’s attention and launching their decade-long run as recurring guests.
The “Super Bass” clip remains the most-viewed video on The Ellen DeGeneres Show’s YouTube channel, having accumulated more than 152 million views. That breakthrough led to red carpet interviews, toy store segments, and eventually their own 2014 movie, “Sophia Grace and Rosie’s Royal Adventure.”
Sophia Grace welcomed her first son, River, in February 2023, followed by daughter Athena Rose in December 2024. She spoke about early motherhood on the Private Story podcast back in February, pushing back against assumptions about her age.
“I don’t regret doing anything because I’m happy with where I am now,” she explained.
“It’s obviously young to have kids, but I don’t really think there’s a right age to have kids. As long as you’re ready and you’re mature enough, that’s all that matters.”
The cousins made their final joint appearance on DeGeneres’s show during its concluding 2022 season, returning to reflect on celebrity encounters from their childhood in the spotlight. Rosie singled out one memory involving Justin Bieber during that last visit.
“My favorite memory is with Justin Bieber,” she said on the program. “When he kissed me on the cheek at the Kids’ Choice Awards. Obviously at that time I was like, ‘Ew a boy, he’s kissing me on the cheek’. And now I’m like, ‘Oh my god, I’d let Justin Bieber kiss me on the cheek again’.”
That childhood included run-ins with major stars including Drake, Nicki Minaj, and Bieber, forged through their status as precocious regulars on one of daytime television’s biggest platforms.