From Memes to Dreams

It’s been over a decade since a video of a confused 9-year-old boy in line at a Popeyes restaurant became a viral meme across social media. Now, 18-year-old Dieunerst Colin can finally cash in on the recognition after signing a deal with the fast food restaurant to be included on billboards and other advertising.

The video featuring Collin was first posted on the social media platform, Vine, and successfully outlasted the platform with Vine shutting down back in October 2016.

Collin and his family were understandably unhappy with the viral video and images at first, but the video and screenshots from it have catapulted him to success and elevated him as an already talented student athlete.

Prior to 2021 this collaboration wouldn’t have been possible as Collin is a football player at Lake Erie college in Ohio. Thanks to a policy change a few years ago, athletes may now receive compensation in exchange for licensing of their name, image and likeness.

With this, Popeyes and Collin have since signed a business deal and Collin has been printed on billboards with the slogan, “From Memes to Dreams.”

Having seen this meme on nearly every platform since it went viral, it has stood the test of time and kept Popeyes visible in a unique way. The Internet is a powerful thing as we all know and with memes having the ability to drive success, Popeyes is surely not the only brand we will see collaborate with viral stars.

In recent years, we have also seen Ocean Spray work with a TikTok user that went viral for a video drinking their product while skating to Fleetwood Mac’s song, “Dreams.” It was even part of a commercial for the TikTok platform.

Will you be the next to cash in on a viral meme? You never know…