Who Is 'Darius' On TikTok? Memes About The Autistic Teenager And His Mom Irisa's Wholesome Account Explained

Darius Leverette is the undisputed king of TikTok depending on who you ask. The Autistic 19-year-old and his mom Irisa are some of the most wholesome creators on the web.

Darius and Irisa have been posting since 2020 and, over the past four years, their TikTok following has ballooned to over 1 million. Darius' "stimming" sounds made him go viral, but the mother and son's sweet antics have kept people along for the ride. Memes and fan edits have become akin to Darius' fandom which has spread its influence across social media.

So, who is Darius on TikTok? Why did he go viral and what's his story? Let's explain.

Who Is Darius On TikTok?

Darius is the 19-year-old son of Irisa Leverette. He was born with Autism and his condition has shaped his family's life. His mom is his constant care provider as he can't do most things on his own. This has led Irisa and her son into the world of influencerdom.

Irisa began documenting her son's life back in April 2020, coinciding with the global pandemic. Her videos didn't go largely viral, however, until 2022.

Viewers became accustomed to Darius' interests and habits. For one, Darius loves music, ranging from EDM to rock-and-roll, and seemingly everything in between. In more recent videos, Darius is often holding a guitar and giving the "rock on" hand sign.

Why Did Darius Go Viral?

Darius' first mega-viral hit was a video of him "stimming" in a closet at the age of 17. Many of Darius' Autistic stims are vocal and, to the average viewer, his vocalizations are quite beautiful and hypnotic.

His "closet stimming" video has racked up more than 28 million views since its July 2022 upload. It's gained memetic usage as well, mostly via the usage of its TikTok sound.

Darius has had plenty of viral moments since then. For instance, his favorite meal of two chickens, two bagels and tater tots has received its own slew of posts. The trio with specific increments is perfect meme fodder because of the oddity of its contents.

You can't explain why Darius is viral, though, without mentioning his mother Irisa. It's evident to viewers that Irisa loves her son. The moments they share that are caught on camera set an example to strive for in any parent-child relationship.

There's been a lot of discourse about the parents of special needs children seemingly exploiting their kids for social media fame. An observer could label the impulse a money grab or, alternatively, think of it as a coping mechanism for the parent. This attests that the parent just wants to be seen and heard because having a mentally disabled child is a full-time job that's often thankless.

While many of these parents have been criticized, Irisa overwhelmingly swerves a negative reaction. This is because, maybe, her videos with Darius seem genuine. Or because she's leaned into his meme fame. She calls him "Darizz" out of her own volition and even reacts to the fan-made rankings of her son's sounds.

What's Darius' TikTok Fandom Like?

Fans of Darius often like to powerscale him against other influencers in which he always comes out on top, like he's the strongest character in fiction. Others like to reenact his vocal stims, sometimes doing them with friends or in class (unfortunately to the annoyance of teachers in some schools).

Overall, Darius' fandom is dedicated to proving that he is the best man there ever was. His kind demeanor and unproblematic aura is proven sigma energy, or at least, this is what the memes purport.

For the full history of Darius, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's entry for even more information.