Spears and Asghari first met while filming the music video for her 2016 song "Slumber Party." In the video, Asghari plays the singer's love interest and, throughout the video, the two pursue each other until Spears teases him with sensual, intimate moves on a dining room table. Prior to "Slumber Party," Asghari appeared in Fifth Harmony's "Work From Home" music video as a construction worker.
The model reflected on working with Spears for the first time in a 2018 interview with Men's Health, saying, "I was excited that I get to meet one of the biggest artists of all time… I had butterflies,s."
Asghari revealed he attempted to shake off his butterflies and break the ice with Spears by joking with her, but it didn't land as well as he'd hoped. "She said, 'Hi, I'm Britney,' and I said, 'I'm sorry. What's your name again?'" he said. "I tried to be funny. I don't think anybody got it."
While the joke didn't land, it clearly still made an impression. Asghari and Spears exchanged phone numbers that same day and ended up going on a date shortly after.