At 71 years of age, R&B super diva Patti LaBelle has experienced just about everything fame and good fortune could bore. But nothing could’ve prepared the ‘Lady Marmalade’ crooner for the avalanche of adulation she would receive from her latest endeavor; a line of boxed sweet potato pies exclusively sold at Wal-Mart stores since September.
Thanks to a viral video, which surfaced on Facebook on November 12 — where a bedazzled baseball hat clad James Wright Chanel simulated transforming into LaBelle and started belting out some of her signature songs in between bites of the pie– a national frenzy has ensued.
Two days later, legitimate news outlets were reporting that the pies were sold out.
Humorous memes, GIFs and similar “Patti Pie” testimonies flooded social media timelines throughout the weekend for the hard-to-obtain sweet treats.
The fervor grew to be so intense; the ‘New Attitude’ singer took a break from rehearsals for her European tour dates to personally reach out to Wright Chanel, who has made numerous gut-busting viral videos over the past few years.
“I was in London and [my son] Zuri [Edwards] played it for me and I said, this has to be a trick right?” LaBelle told NBCBLK today. “Of course I was shocked.”
Source: Patti LaBelle’s Sweet Potato Pie Pandemonium – NBC News