It was the aura really. AI is flirty and confident, someone who is admired by ppl because he's got stage presence and a great fashion sense. As a student, he's not really anyone of note. He's wearing a wig and part of his face is covered as well, he slouches, and he's not a stand out student for his fashion (his solo piece was also a simple dress, not punk/his signature style), and he's seemingly a newbie at fashion. So when he finally walked up on stage, he showed his expertise as a model (which is why MC could pick him out from a crowd the night before).
this explanation makes more sense in the manga it kind of seems like it was the walk but now i see where ai is coming from, i might’ve been fooled this way too now i think about it lmfao
so the whole time the reason he didn’t recognize sooner was bc of the walk…? what ??????