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One of the best things about attending a convention can be the fun and unexpected connections you can make with fellow fans, exhibitors, or even guests of the show if you’re lucky enough to meet them — but imagine accidentally ending up hanging out with one of your idols without even realizing it? For one PAX West 2025 attendee, that’s exactly what happened — and it made one fan-favorite actor’s entire weekend.

Asked during the Rewinding Time: A Decade of Life is Strange panel about favorite interactions with fandom, Han Soto — who voice Gabe Chen in 2021’s Life is Strange: True Colors, in addition to appearances in Cobra Kai, Twisted Metal, and this December’s Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 — announced, “I had one yesterday!” before revealing the unlikely and ultimately heartwarming story… which all starts with a 1990s pop classic.

“Yesterday, I bar crawled until 4am, ended up at the karaoke bar,” Soto said with a chuckle, “and this guy, he looked so nervous. He's up there singing Backstreet Boys’ ‘I Want It That Way.’ There was an open microphone, and I said, ‘I’m going to go up and calm his nerves a little bit’ — be Gabe, right? So I went up and I was singing with him, and and after he's like,’ thank you so much for doing that,’ and we hung out a little bit. And he says, ‘Dude, you look like this guy, Han Soto.’”

Soto joked that his response was “Oh, shit, you know me!”

There’s a lesson to be learned in this story for all of us, I think. I’m just not sure if it’s, “Hang out in karaoke bars until 4am during conventions.” (I hope not; I need to sleep.) Perhaps it’s closer to being chill and laid back and not freaking out when you meet your celebrity idols — even if that’s because you don’t actually recognize them at first. Either way, I think we can all agree that we want to hear Han Soto do karaoke now, right…?

PAX West 2025 runs until September 1 at the Seattle Convention Center.

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