This week we learned that TikTok and Vine Creator Adam Perkins had died at the age of 24. His brother confirmed the news and noted on Instagram that the cause of death will not be disclosed and that “there is a reason.” Meanwhile, many fans who fondly remembered Adam Perkins’ popular “Welcome to Chili’s” video have paid tribute to the young star online and the food chain itself is no exception.
Among a slew of people who commented following Adam Perkins’ passing on Sunday, Chili’s made an official statement paying tribute to the young star, who had helped the restaurant chain to a memorable viral moment. The tribute tweet also incorporated a video Perkins’ twin brother Patrick had made to celebrate the joy his brother had brought to the world.
A slew of other fans also paid tribute to the Vine content creator, noting the collective viral moment in their own posts.
While the "Welcome to Chili's" bit came up most prominently, other commenters paying tribute online also mentioned some of the other memorable social media moments Adam Perkins was known for.
News broke regarding Adam Perkins’ death yesterday after Patrick “Packie” Perkins shared the news on his own social media. In the time since, the young man has written about what it feels like to lose your twin and has also shared a slew of throwback posts in tribute to his brother as well. A recent post reflected more on his late brother, calling him “an absolute genius.”
A genius. An absolute and undeniable genius. He would hate me calling him that, but he can’t stop me now. Adam, if you’re pissed i’m calling you that, tough luck. Try and stop me.
In a comment, Patrick Perkins did note that cause of death would not be officially disclosed, saying only that Adam Perkins had passed away “as peacefully as you can.” Several posts also asked fans to stop pesturing him about what happened, with the Perkins twin noting on Instagram (edited for capitalization):
There is intention in not releasing that information. Please respect this decision.
It had been several years since Adam Perkins had made a major viral impact with his “Welcome to Chili’s” Vine video in 2015. In the time since, the service has shut down and been replaced with the popular platform TikTok, which allows for longer video. Meanwhile, Perkins had graduated from college and had begun his life as an adult. While he still had active social media and a healthy TikTok and Instagram following, a recent post indicated that he had graduated from NYU and was pursuing other things outside of being a viral star. Our thoughts go out to Perkins' family and friends as they deal with their loss.
