It’s been a big month or so for corn on the cob. An adorable corn-loving kiddo has captured the attention of the internet, as has his clear snack of choice.
If you’ve spotted something related to the corn mania, here’s some background on where it stems from. The “Corn Kid” meme involves a kid named Tariq, whose enthusiastic, short and sweet interview about corn (and pretty much nothing else) is worth seeing if you haven’t already.
Why is everyone talking (and singing) about corn?
Corn-related content first caught my attention in late August, when I scrolled through my TikTok “For You page” and noticed several videos using the same soundtrack — a catchy song posted by TikTok account @schmoyoho.
I don’t know how I’m supposed to fall asleep with the corn song playing in my head all night.
— Elizabeth Gillies (@LizGillies) September 1, 2022
The song draws from an interview on Recess Therapy — a web series that poses questions to kids. In that interview, which debuted earlier in August, host Julian Shapiro-Barnum holds a microphone close to a youngster named Tariq, who speaks ever so passionately about corn.
“I can’t imagine a more beautiful thing,” Tariq says.
Tariq is missing a tooth and wearing a shirt decorated with drawings of double-decker buses. He’s gripping a half-eaten corn on the cob, and takes a bite or two out of it during the interview.
Shapiro-Barnum asks him to describe corn. “A big lump with knobs,” he says. Tariq offers that corn should cost $1, and wishes viewers a “corntastic” day.
As of this writing, the song version by @schmoyoho has more than 8 million likes. In videos using the tune — of which there are more than 400,000 — people rank the lyrics, jam out and show off Corn Kid tribute art. Even actor and musician Kevin Bacon got in on the trend, posting an acoustic version of the Corn Kid song that’s quite a good listen.
The Corn Kid is on Cameo, where you can request a video for $220. He’s been in a Chipotle advertisement. He is sometimes referred to as the CEO of corn.
@thechalkingdad I mean, look at this thing! 🌽 #cornsong#cornkid#corn#chalkart#chalk @Recess Therapy ♬ It’s Corn – Tariq & The Gregory Brothers & Recess Therapy
Who is the Corn Kid?
Though Tariq has talked endlessly about corn, we don’t know much about the kid behind the meme. According to The Atlantic, he hasn’t been doing television appearances or interviews.
When he’s not dropping quote-worthy bits about corn, he likes to play games like tag and hide-and-seek.
“I play a variety of games,” Tariq says on Recess Therapy, “never lava monster.”
How can I watch the original Corn Kid interview?
If you’ve heard the corn song and you want to watch Tariq’s interview from early August, it’s on Recess Therapy’s YouTube channel.
A follow-up post provides even more Tariq content.
Corn is, once again, on the menu.
@mitchdorling All hail the corn kid #cheers#tok#fyp#foryou#yes#corn#itscorn#lookatthisthing#lumpofnobs#ithasthejuice#whatelse#supportsmall♬ It’s Corn – Tariq & The Gregory Brothers & Recess Therapy
@ally_yost CORN 🌽 #corn#fyp♬ It’s Corn – Tariq & The Gregory Brothers & Recess Therapy