Why Amaya Papaya Has a Positive Impact on Culture

I have always believed that the people who make us feel most of them are those who are quietly (or not so quietly) changing the world. They remind us that influence is not always about perfection or power; sometimes it's about mispronouncing a few words on national television and somehow making millions of people fall in love with humanity all over again.

This is Amaya Espinal, affectionately known to her fans as Amaya Papaya.

If you spent even one night this summer with a glass of wine in one hand and the TV remote clicking on Love Island USA in the other, you already know who she is. The first half of the Internet tuned in to the drama. The second half was left to her.

We didn't want to pick someone who was just dominating the headlines. We needed someone who would make society as a whole feel good again.

You see, Espinal has a magnetic energy that lingers like a perfume. In the series, she turned her admitted speech impediment—and the now-iconic mispronunciations that came with it (“thankful,” “acopalize,” and “who could forget “hyper-bow-lee”)—into a lesson in confidence. When she and Bryan Arenales became the first Latino couple to win the show, she not only made reality TV history, but made it feel like the entire Dominican diaspora was celebrating with her. She even introduced the phrase “sensitive gangster” into our cultural lexicon, a term that, frankly, we could all use more often in our lives right now.

At Popsugar, we've built our entire brand on the belief that wellness is not something to be frivolous, but the secret sauce to living a good life. It's the impulse that drives everything we do, from the stories we tell to the communities we create to the free PS Fit workouts that make us sweat in our living rooms. So when it came time to choose our first Good Person of the Year, we didn't want to choose someone who was simply dominating the headlines. We needed someone who would make society as a whole feel good again.

Espinal did just that, reminding the world every night but Wednesday for six weeks this summer that being real is still the most powerful thing you can be online. This joy, connection and authenticity truly moves a culture for the better. This story is on the cover it's a celebration of her influence and the first of many feel-good moments you can expect from Popsugar. I hope learning more about the man behind the TV personality will make you smile. I hope this gets you thinking about the people who brought light to your year, and maybe even inspires you to change the way you think when you wake up every morning.

In addition, we are starting something like “Amaya week” within the brand. We asked our editorial team to put into practice what we learned from Espinal, including incorporating self-affirmation into our weekly routinediving in her special approach to friendshipand thinking about what its Dominican American office means outside the show.

Here's the good effect of Amaya “Papaya” Espinal. Enjoy.

— Kelsey

PS It's true, Popsugar's Feel Good Person of the Year cover story is just the beginning of our Feel Good franchise, which pays homage to the people, places, products and moments that made pop culture a purpose—and reminds us that feeling good is actually pretty serious business. Watch this space to find out more.