Elmo, everyone's favorite red, furry, 3.5-year-old monster, made quite a splash when he visited TODAY with his father, Louie.
"Elmo, you asked everybody how they were doing," said TODAY's Hoda Kotb, "so how about today we turn the tables. How are you doing?"
"Elmo's really, really happy," the muppet responded, "and Elmo's glad that he got to talk to a lot of people and see how they're doing."
The father and son team traveled from Sesame Street to Studio 1A on Feb. 1 to discuss a tweet Elmo posted (with Louie's help, of course!) on X on Monday. It read: “Elmo is just checking in! How is everybody doing?”
People responded quite honestly, with many sharing their existential despair, and Elmo's innocent question opened up a conversation about mental health.
Elmo's post — and his follow-up message the next day — have nearly 300 million views combined, and they elicited responses from Dionne Warwick, T-Pain, Rachel Zegler, Garfield and TODAY’s very own Craig Melvin. Even President Joe Biden weighed in, writing, "Our friend Elmo is right: We have to be there for each other, offer our help to a neighbor in need, and above all else, ask for help when we need it."
"There's a lot of people expressing a lot of feelings out there. It gave me some goosebumps, I'll tell you that," said Elmo's father, Louie.
"Daddy helps Elmo with the X because Elmo can't read or write," explained Elmo.
"I kinda run it for him. He's only 3.5. His fingers don't really know the letters that good yet," said Louie.
"He needs a social media manager," agreed Savannah Guthrie. (Don't worry, Savannah. He's already got a great one!)
"What does Elmo do when Elmo's overwhelmed, and Elmo's dealing with a lot?" asked Craig.
"You know, it's important to remember that we all have a lot of feelings, and that's OK," said Elmo. "It's good to know what feeling you're having, and if you're feeling sad or worried or confused, then you can talk to someone that you love and trust."
Sesame Workshop has a ton of resources on emotional wellbeing available on its website, with videos about how to talk to children about emotions as well as printable coloring pages that help children – or people of ANY age – explore their feelings.
When Hoda asked Elmo which online responses stood out to him, he says he "couldn't believe" that the President took the time to write to him. "And Craig's was really good, too," he added.
Craig said, "I've loved you for a long time, Elmo, so I was just so happy that you decided to take some time out of your day to just check on all of us."
"It's very important to check on your friends and see how they're doing," Elmo said. Whether or not they're doing well, "it's good to talk about it."
Louie is amazed that Elmo received 40,000 responses. "We don't even know how to count that high yet, do we son?" he said.
"That's right. Elmo can count to 11!" Elmo replied proudly.
On a more serious note, Louie said, "Emotional well-being ... that's kind of the key. It's as important as your physical health, so learning what feelings you have inside and how to name 'em and healthy ways to express 'em ... well that's just part of living nowadays. You've got to get it out!"
Hoda mentioned that Elmo's birthday is coming up on Feb. 3. (He's going to turn 3.5, just like he does every year!) When Elmo asked his dad if he can have a party, Louie said, "Are going to invite all 40,000 of those people who responded?"
"Yes, everybody's invited! Come on over!" shouted Elmo.
"We gotta get more paper plates," sighed Louie as he put his head in his hand.
