On Sept. 15, senior Kevin Yi found himself crowned as Edina’s 2022 Homecoming Royalty due to his comedic personality and friendliness to others. However, he remains adamant that he’s a normal high school student who’s just a jokester and plays a few sports.

After Yi’s friend withdrew from Homecoming court, he didn’t feel completely prepared to be on Court during its selection process. To accommodate the lost partner, a group formed between Yi, senior Doc Everson-Rose, and recently crowned Homecoming Royalty senior Hannah Owens Pierre, becoming the school’s first trio coronation dance. “Last year, I didn’t even go to Homecoming,” Yi said. “I didn’t even know what it was, so it’s the last place you’d expect me to be.”

Hesitation aside, Yi broke out of his shell and rocked down the aisle in front of the large student body to classics like “Thriller” and “Rasputin.” “I can be a little shy, so dancing in front of 1,000 people was super fun,” he said. After their performance, the supportive cheers were soon replaced with silence as the stands waited for the reveal of the school’s Royalty. To relieve the tension, bubble guns unveiled the first new Royal: Owens Pierre. Then, after an anticipating game of cat-and-mouse to reveal the second Royal, she pulled Yi out of the line.  

“[I’m] pretty sure it was a joke vote, so I was not expecting that at all,” Yi said.

Yi was confused as the crown slipped onto his head because he was not expecting to win. “I think Doc or Joey deserved it a lot more because they’re very outgoing and they’re very friendly with everyone they meet,” he said. “I can be a little quiet at times, so I don’t think I fit Homecoming [Royalty] very well.”

Shortly after the lights turned back on, Yi was crowded with screams of support from his friends, mainly consisting of the Asian American and self-proclaimed “nerd” community in the school.

However, his close companion, senior Bob Zheng, opposes Yi’s sentiment. He believes Yi’s intelligence and humor led hundreds of people to vote for him. “I think he is just as deserving as everyone else on the court, maybe for different reasons than the traditional ones,” Zheng said.

Similarly, senior Saketh Budideti, Yi’s friend for over four years, was glad to see a funny and compassionate close friend make it to the top. “I was advocating for him and supporting him through whatever he needed, so I was just really excited to know that he won and he had the opportunity to be up there,” Budideti said. 

To the future individuals on Court, Yi hopes for them to live in the moment and have fun. “It’ll be over pretty fast. After that, you’re just a normal high schooler again.”