No other vegetable has gotten more fanfare than corn after an adorable 7-year-old boy's unbridled enthusiasm for the “big lump with knobs" made him famous.
Our collective interest in Tariq, aka, "Corn Kid," began when he gave an August 2022 interview to the Instagram series "Recess Therapy," hosted by Julian Shapiro-Barnum, at a food festival.
"For me, I really like corn," Tariq said in the video with more than 2 million likes. "Ever since I was told that corn was real, it tasted good. But when I tried it with butter, everything changed.
"Look at this thing. I can't imagine a more beautiful thing," he added.
To say that the internet embraced Tariq, would be putting it mildly.
The interview inspired a melodic tribute from The Gregory Brothers, whose music video for "It's Corn" has 33 million views on YouTube. Kevin Bacon and Martha Stewart both paid tribute to the song while pianist "Nalu the Piano Man" played an arrangement of "It's Corn," which people have used as a wedding march song.
Tariq landed deals with Chipotle (placing an order for nothing but corn in a TikTok video with more than 60 million views) and Green Giant for a campaign that included a ride on the company float in the Macy’s 2022 Thanksgiving Day Parade. Tariq was also named South Dakota’s “Official Corn-bassador,” visiting the state’s “Corn Palace” and meeting local fans.
Tariq also appeared on TODAY, helping Dylan Dreyer with the weather forecast, and interviewed Savannah Guthrie and Drew Barrymore on "The Drew Barrymore Show."
The little boy has Instagram and TikTok accounts with 37,000 and more than 973,000 followers, respectively.
One year later, Tariq still finds himself signing autographs and taking fan photos.
"I may have taken it a little too far," Tariq, now 8, tells TODAY.com of his original famous interview. "And then all this happened."
Tariq's mother, Jessica (who asked TODAY.com to not publish her family's last name for privacy), remembers the day her son's video went viral, while she was at home with her newborn daughter.
"We’re a very simple and private family and I don’t put my kids on social media so when I saw (Tariq's video) out there for the first time, I was like, 'What the hell is going on?'" says Jessica.
Having a newborn and managing the attention over Tariq was "very overwhelming," she says.
"I had to sit down, breathe deep and take it all in," she recalls. Jessica assumed Tariq would enjoy "15 minutes of fame" before the attention died down. She soon understood that an adjustment was in order for the whole family.
Although Tariq ranks the birth of his baby sister as his "craziest experience," fame is second.
"When a person lays eyes on me, I'm running for the bus!" says Tariq.
Jessica says even when Tariq wears a hoodie and a face mask while traveling to stay under the radar, his voice is an "instant giveaway."
She is cautious when people approach her son.
“If I am there, it’s OK ... I try to gauge (the situation) and have him take a few photos but when I see that Tariq is becoming agitated, I stop it and (we leave),” she says.
In those moments, Tariq feels better with his mom by his side.
"She knows when to stop the pictures," explains Tariq.
His favorite part of "work" is helping people.
Tariq recently volunteered with America’s Grow a Row, an organization that grows and gives away produce to people in need, to harvest (what else?) corn.
And yes, Tariq still loves corn, which Jessica says he eats on a weekly basis, preferably grilled or boiled.
To sign off, Tariq quotes himself from the famous video: "Have a corn-tastic day!"