Tyriq Withers Is Our New Favorite Person & This Epic ‘Bella Noche’ Reference Is Why

Tyriq Withers is our new favorite person, and the feeling is mutual across social media. It’s all thanks to a few minutes on local news, a viral clip that lives rent-free in our heads, and an FAA nationwide ground stop.

The “Him” actor and Daniel Kaluuya got stuck at Eugene Airport in Oregon of all places on Friday, Nov. 13, after the ground stop forced them off their flight to Los Angeles. KVAL News reporter Gold Meadows spotted the pair near security and grabbed them for a live interview.

Within hours, the clip went viral.

For context, the FAA halted departures at every U.S. airport that afternoon after an outage hit air traffic control communications equipment. The stop lasted about four hours, and thousands of flights were delayed or canceled. Online, the memes, headlines and finger-pointing came for the administration and everyone in between.

Tyriq and Daniel chose a lighter route.

“Today we were headed back to Los Angeles, and we got on the plane. We had to deboard, unfortunately,” Tyriq told the station. After thanking God and the FAA, with a nod to the “blue wave” of Democratic midterm wins, dropping gems from the culture.

“I really feel like, you know, it’s really upsetting me and my home girl. Because if you can’t go to the airport, where the hell can you go?”

Daniel played along. “Obviously, it’s an inconvenience, but I feel grateful,” he said. “Think about how many lives I probably saved because of that decision.”

Tyriq Withers’ Gave’ Bella Noche Reference Is Epic

Tyriq was referring to a nostalgic viral clip from more than 10 years ago – and the moment was short of epic, warming millennial hearts everywhere. The 28-year-old is not only fine – with a swagger that makes the girls swoon – but he is so unserious, and we love him for it.

Ten years later, Bella Noche still has our timelines in shambles. Many fans, especially millennials, caught Tyriq’s reference right away and found it hilarious. In 2015, Hazel London and her friend spoke to Baton Rouge station WBRZ after a shooting at Bella Noche, a club on Plank Road. Hazel’s question, “If you can’t go to Bella Noche, where the hell can you go?” became permanent group chat vocabulary. The club even hosted a COVID vaccine event in 2021, with Hazel helping spread the word.

Under KVAL’s video of the interview, fans couldn’t get enough. One fan quoted Tyriq’s “…post blue wave as well,” while another wrote, “This feels like an SNL skit.” When Bustle reposted the clip, one commenter added, “Not Tyriq with the Bella Noche serve why are we so unserious bruhhh.”

Nobody has said why the two were in Eugene. Tyriq has named Daniel as an actor he’d like to work with, and fans of both men are already hoping this detour means something. As one fan asked under KVAL’s video, “Is this how I find out they have a project together??”