Melanie Moreno’s path to “Love Island USA” started, fittingly, with a bikini sale. Her season eight run would go on to include a love triangle, a public fight for her relationship, and ultimately a third-place finish — but it began with an ordinary retail transaction that turned into a casting referral.
Life Before the Villa
Melanie Elisa Moreno is 27 and Dominican-American, raised in Philadelphia before settling in Los Angeles, where she managed a bikini store at the time she joined the show. According to a screenshot that circulated from her Snapchat, she landed her spot in the villa after a customer interaction: Season 7 Islander Iris Kendall reportedly bought a bikini from Melanie and referred her to the show’s casting team.
Retail wasn’t her first venture, though. In an interview with LA Voyage, Melanie said that months after her stepdad’s death, she decided to pursue a longtime goal and launched her own brand, More Sport Studio, built around using fashion to raise awareness for mental health — a cause she’s described as too often dismissed or overlooked. Modeling has also been part of her background; fans dug up earlier photos and videos from her work as a plus-size model, and she’s walked the runway at a PrettyLittleThing event in Miami. She’s also an avid traveler, having visited London, Milan, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro, and she has a sister, Steph Moreno, who along with a cousin publicly pushed back on suggestions that Melanie had ever seemed insecure during her modeling work.
Ahead of entering the villa, Melanie described her dating history in typically retail-flavored terms — comparing her past picks to the “damaged bin” of her store — and said she was ready to find someone for an actual, settled-down relationship rather than another mismatch.
A Rocky Start With Sincere
Melanie entered the villa on Day 1 and was quickly at the center of the season’s early drama, coupling up with fellow original Islander Sincere Rhea. The connection was passionate but far from smooth: when bombshell Sol Dean arrived and Sincere began showing interest in her, Melanie found herself in a love triangle she was very publicly unhappy about. She also explored other options herself over the course of the season, including a connection with Corbin Mims and, later, Casa Amor bombshell Corey.
Through it all, Melanie and Sincere kept circling back to each other. Even after Sincere pursued connections with both Sol and later bombshell Amora during his time in the villa, Melanie ultimately chose to give him one more chance — against her own family’s warnings that he might not be the right fit for her. Their final date, a romantic mix of massages and homemade pizza on the water, became one of the more talked-about moments of the season’s back half.
A Third-Place Finish
Melanie and Sincere’s on-and-off connection carried them all the way to the end of the season. On Day 32, the pair finished in third place — a result that reflected both the strength of the bond they’d rebuilt and the very public turbulence it took to get there.
Life After the Villa
Melanie made her first social media appearance since the finale with a bold transformation: bright pink hair, revealed in a TikTok post that drew enthusiastic reactions from fellow Islanders including Kayda Bosse, Aniya Harvey, and Trinity Tatum. The update gave fans their first real glimpse of her post-villa life, though it stopped short of settling the question most viewers actually wanted answered — where things currently stand with Sincere.
Sincere has since offered a partial answer of his own, saying the two are still “figuring things out” now that they’re back in the real world, away from the pressures of filming. “I just want to prove to her and prove to myself — and prove to everyone honestly — that I am a better person than what was on that screen,” he said, adding that he believes he can change. A fuller update for both of them is expected at the Season 8 reunion.
Quick Facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name | Melanie Elisa Moreno |
| Age | 27 |
| Raised in | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Based in | Los Angeles, California |
| Occupation | Bikini store manager; founder, More Sport Studio |
| Known for | “Love Island USA” Season 8 |
| Entered villa | Day 1 |
| Coupled with | Sincere Rhea |
| Result | 3rd place (Day 32) |
| Family | Sister, Steph Moreno |
FAQ
How did Melanie Moreno get cast on “Love Island USA”? She was reportedly referred to the show by Season 7 Islander Iris Kendall, who bought a bikini from Melanie at the store she managed.
What is More Sport Studio? It’s a fashion brand Melanie founded after her stepdad’s death, aimed at raising awareness around mental health through clothing.
Are Melanie and Sincere still together? As of their first public update after the finale, Sincere said the two were still “figuring things out” outside the villa, with a fuller answer expected at the Season 8 reunion.
Where did Melanie Moreno finish on Season 8? She and Sincere Rhea finished in third place on Day 32.
A Season Built on Second Chances
Melanie Moreno’s run on “Love Island USA” wasn’t a clean love story — it was a season of triangles, wandering eyes, and family warnings she chose to ignore anyway. What ultimately got her to third place wasn’t avoiding the chaos with Sincere, but deciding, more than once, that the relationship was still worth choosing. Whether that choice holds up back in the real world is the one part of her story fans are still waiting on.
