League of Legends cosplayer steps into spotlight as K/DA popstar Ahri

Isaac McIntyre

A League of Legends cosplayer has stunned the internet with her perfect KDA popstar Ahri cosplay. The aspiring model’s awesome takes certainly makes us want to watch the Worlds 2019 pre-show just one more time.

League has always boasted relatively popular music, most of which are simply instrumental pieces for champion reveals. The biggest of them all by far, however, has been 2018’s K-pop group K/DA, who officially debuted at Worlds that year.

Riot released “POP/STARS,” K/DA’s first single, and it caught like wildfire. The catchy track was soon charting in countries across the world, and the original music clip on YouTube has hit over 350 million views in just eighteen months.

Riot’s K-pop band K/DA exploded in popularity across the world in late 2018.

The success of the band can partly be attributed to the characters Riot picked to fill out the group’s lineup. Akali, Evelynn, Kai’sa, and of course Ahri make up the band, and it was the last KDA member that Elise Amai decided to cosplay.

League of Legends cosplayer becomes KDA Ahri

K/DA Ahri, voiced by (G)I-dle star Cho Mi-yeon, is the de facto leader of the animated K-pop group. She signs much of the POP/STARS chorus, intertwining English lyrics with a handful of classic Korean verses as well.

Elise Amai captured Ahri’s glow perfectly. Much of the K/DA star’s outfit is pure white, with a line of pink and black trim on the edges of her top. Amai made sure she even added the arm bracelets the Nine-Tailed Fox wears while singing, and her thigh-high boots too, which match the rest of the band’s uniforms.

Animated K/DA popstar Ahri is voiced by (G)I-dle star Miyeon for the smash hit
Animated K/DA popstar Ahri is voiced by (G)I-dle star Miyeon for the smash hit “POP/STARS”.

The standout features, however, are what Amai has done with her makeup. Ahri is a vastayan and that means she has whisker markings on her face. The League cosplayer added those to the side of her bone-white cheeks.

Finally, she added Ahri’s iconic vastayan ears, and a dark K/DA choker to complete the full outfit. Really, the only thing missing is Ahri’s nine glass tails, which — if we’re being honest — might have been a bit big to add to the cosplay!

First-timer pulls off perfect KDA Ahri cosplay

It’s a really stunning cosplay, especially when you add in that it’s Elise’s “first actual cosplay” that she’s done! She told Dexerto she was interested in doing Ahri as a cosplay because she “does a lot of Korean-style makeup” so it was a perfect chance to show that off.

“I love her K-pop style and fox ears!” the League cosplayer added when talking to Dexerto on July 29. “I picked Ahri because I felt like I could do her really well. I have a lot of friends that play League, and I saw her and immediately felt connected!”

Elise Amai brought K/DA Ahri to life with a stunning cosplay of the animated K-pop star.
Elise Amai brought K/DA Ahri to life with a stunning cosplay of the animated K-pop star.

Amai’s Ahri cosplay definitely isn’t going to be the only League of Legends character she’ll become over the next few months either. She’s already got her eyes on Evelynn, as well as the prestige version of Ahri’s K/DA outfit.

One final potential project “for the future” has also caught her eye: Spirit Blossom Ahri. The new skin came out as part of League’s huge Summer event, which is still underway now ⁠— don’t miss out on the skins and rewards!

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About The Author

Isaac was formerly the Australian Managing Editor at Dexerto. Isaac began his writing career as a sports journalist at Fairfax Media, before falling in love with all things esports and gaming. Since then he's covered Oceanic and global League of Legends for Upcomer, Hotspawn, and Snowball Esports.