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With so much sadness and tragedy in the media, what better time to turn to comfort food? And, the only thing better than comfort food is Southern comfort food! Legendary diva Patti LaBelle is a national treasure for her vocal ability, but she is also known for her culinary skills. Last week LaBelle released her signature sweet potato pie at Walmart stores across the country and the Internet went crazy. YouTube comedian James Wright uploaded a YouTube video eating one of “Patti’s pies” and exclaimed the pie made him turn into Patti LaBelle. Wright’s video chronicled him tasting his first bite, and savoring the taste before bursting into several of LaBelle’s memorable hits, such as ‘If Only You Knew’, ‘On My Own’ and ‘You are My Friend.’ Even better, Wright was on-key every note. Wright’s humor resonated with viewers so much that his first video received over six million views. He added a second video that shows Wright exclaiming he had no idea he’d eaten the entire pie and of course singing in a pseudo-LaBelle voice that the pie was now, ‘Over the Rainbow’. The second video went viral as well and within 48 hours James Wright was an internet sensation.
What happened next was sure to tickle LaBelle’s funny bone as the videos went viral, the pies began flying off the shelves. Walmart’s across the country reported customers buying anywhere from five up to thirty pies at a time. Its been reported that Walmart broke records selling over 2 million Patti LaBellle sweet potato pies! Before the end of the weekend Patti LaBelle had placed a call to Wright to thank him, and Patti LaBelle’s sweet potato pies are Thanksgiving 2016 biggest success story. Wright said he was crying like a baby when he received the call from Ms. Patti LaBelle. “She kept thanking me, she kept thanking me, and she just kept telling me how much she loved me and she just kept telling me to be me. She was like ‘Boy, you can sang!’” Wright shared with his local news station.
During a weekend when African Americans were encouraged to support Black businesses, Patti LaBelle’s viral success is a story that feels good. What a great unexpected marketing phenomenon for LaBelle as she received what equals millions of dollars in advertisements for free. I would be remiss not to point out that LaBelle was a great fit for such a viral blip because although she has achieved iconic success, she is a likable celebrity that most fans adore. There are no Patti LaBelle scandals popping up on the Internet and she isn’t out badmouthing exes or speaking negatively about old record labels. We love Patti because she puts on a great show and goes out of her way to make her fans feel appreciated. I can say after meeting her on several occasions, she comes across genuine and quite hilarious (like the Grandmother we all wish we had.)
Outside of the fact that it couldn’t have happened to a more deserving celebrity, this story was very much needed at a time when the news is filled with stories of violence and tragedy. For this small bit of soul food and humor we all owe James Wright and Patti LaBelle a huge “Thank you!” We are also hoping Patti LaBelle will debut a peach cobbler before Christmas.
