Meet Grandma C, Raleigh’s 81-year-old TikTok star who loves a good Dunkin’ drink
Carol Chapman never has to pay for coffee again.
An 81-year-old grandmother of eight in Raleigh, Chapman jolted to social media fame on Jan. 3 when her TikTok review of a specialty Dunkin’ Donuts drink, an iced espresso beverage inspired by pop star Sabrina Carpenter and her smash single “Espresso,” went viral.
Sipping through a straw, Chapman described the drink’s strong flavor notes and creamy oat milk base. Then, seated passenger-side in a car, Chapman acknowledged she didn’t know who Carpenter is. “I will read about her when I go back home,” she tells her audience. “But at least I know now that this drink was named for her. I have no idea why, but we’re going to find out. And I will let you know.”
Compliments and views poured in. The next day, Carpenter herself left a comment, posting “I love you grandma C.” The TikTok has been seen more than a million times and landed Chapman interviews with People and Today.com. Dunkin’ gifted her 1 million loyalty points, which is enough to pay for 2,000 hot or iced coffees.
It’s the type of engagement that content creators a quarter of her age dream of achieving.
“Now I’ve got plenty of followers, more than I ever really wanted,” Chapman said in a phone interview Tuesday. “But it’s been fun. People have gotten in touch with me that I haven’t seen or heard of in years.”
Chapman wasn’t new to TikTok, the popular platform that, in a few days, is in peril of being banned in the United States. She began making videos in 2020, a month after her husband of 56 years, Franklin Chapman, died.
Getting on social media was the idea of her granddaughter, Olivia, who suggested centering her account around taste tests. Chapman became a routine poster, introducing herself in each video as “Grandma C.” Olivia, currently a junior at High Point University, would then watch and offer feedback.
“This is not a typical granddaughter-grandmother relationship,” said Andra Kinlaw, Olivia’s mother. “Like on my daughter’s fall break, they went to New York City together. When my daughter has a day off school, she went up and spent it with my mom. They are thick as thieves.”
Chapman’s reviews often showcase seasonal and limited-edition snacks: Sour Patch Oreos, Coca-Cola Oreos, Sonic’s red velvet shake, Starbucks’ pistachio latte, Hershey’s cotton candy chocolate bar, Dr Pepper cotton candy, Pringles all-dressing chips, and Chick-fil-A’s honey pepper pimento chicken sandwich. Addressing the camera directly, Chapman offers instant reactions in a matter-of-fact tone. Part of the attraction is watching a person of her age give earnest (and generally positive) assessments of such novelty items.
Though her TikTok following was smaller than it is today, Chapman’s previous posts — on food, shopping, and lifestyle updates — routinely drew hundreds of likes and dozens of comments from strangers. It earned her and Olivia money too, through the TikTok Creator Fund.
“I’ve always had all these young people following me,” Chapman said. “It’s just crazy.”
She is bashful that the Dunkin’ video broke into the mainstream because she didn’t know who a celebrity was. Since then, she has learned about Carpenter and her hit songs like “Espresso” and “Please, Please, Please.”
“At least at my age I’m able to go on TikTok,” she said.
Chapman is a former customer service manager at The News & Observer who still works part-time selling clothes at J. Jill, a women’s retail store in Crabtree Valley Mall. She recently made her Instagram public should the U.S. government suspend TikTok over national security concerns (TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance.)
But no matter how those politics play out, Chapman said she’d like to test a few upcoming Valentine’s Day-themed items and then scale back her reviews.
Having 34,000 followers is nice, but there are only a few she most cares to keep.
This Christmas, her children and grandchildren surprised Chapman by wearing matching baseball caps that said “Grandma C fan.” Then two weeks later, grandma became famous.
This story was originally published January 15, 2025 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Meet Grandma C, Raleigh’s 81-year-old TikTok star who loves a good Dunkin’ drink."
