On a household trip this summer season, Kevin Cronin fortunately shared his many gripes in regards to the seashore together with his TikTok followers: the drag of lugging the gear forwards and backwards, these ludicrously brief seashore chairs, that scorching scorching sand. However amid his commentary, doled out together with his typical sarcastic supply, he nonetheless made time for just a little birding, recognizing and naming Sanderlings, Forster’s Terns, and Laughing Gulls. For a lot of of Kevin’s 1.2 million on-line followers, these “hen experiences” have turn out to be as a lot of a draw as his trademark wisecracks and pa jokes.
Kevin is a viral TikTok sensation affectionately referred to as Kickball Dad. He first acquired the nickname when his daughter, Alyssa Cronin, and her brother wanted an alternative to their kickball league in 2022. Kevin was greater than prepared to step up, and Alyssa, recognizing her dad’s playful competitiveness and quick-witted humor as prime TikTok materials, started making movies about Kevin’s kickball antics. These first few movies took off, and shortly Kickball Dad turned a staple on TikTok customers’ feeds, with Alyssa because the social media supervisor and Kevin because the expertise.
@alyssacronin13 Kickball Dad has loads of ideas in regards to the seashore #dad #beach #vacation ♬ original sound – Alyssa & Kickball Dad
Although the account started with clips of Kevin “dominating” (his phrases) in kickball, it has grown to seize the whole lot from joke-filled household journeys to Costco to Kevin’s numerous passions in life—together with birding, which is now a daily a part of their movies as a result of in style demand. Whether or not they’re making a devoted birding video or Kevin is figuring out birds at a Yankees sport, Kevin’s “bird-ar” is all the time on, and his followers adore it.
Whereas Kevin’s web fame is a newer phenomenon, he’s been a “hen man” his complete life, he says. As considered one of six kids rising up in New Jersey, he took it upon himself to maintain the household’s hen feeder and tub stuffed and located pleasure in seeing the completely different species that came over. He did the identical after getting married and shifting into his present residence in western New Jersey together with his spouse, the place they’ve raised 4 children. Kevin says he’s all the time appreciated birds just like the Northern Cardinals and Blue Jays that go to his yard, however he discovered a brand new ardour for avians after a pivotal second in his life.
“The turning level for me going from a birdwatcher to an energetic birder was in 2012 after I watched The Massive 12 months,” he says of the comedy starring Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson, who set out on a mission to see as many species as potential in a single yr. “I watch it yearly on New 12 months’s Eve to get me fired up for the brand new birding yr.”
After that life-changing viewing, Kevin acquired much more into birds. He started setting objectives for seeing a sure quantity on every outing, and in 2013 he challenged himself for the primary time to do his personal large yr. Since then, his ardour for birding has solely grown, spurring him to hunt out new species to test off his life record and even chase uncommon vagrants—like when he drove to Maine in an unsuccessful try to see the Steller’s Sea-Eagle, however did get to tick a “lifer” Pine Grosbeak off of his record.
@alyssacronin13 POV: You’re birding with Kickball Dad (half 2) 🦆 #dadsoftiktok #birds #dad ♬ original sound – Alyssa & Kickball Dad
Alyssa has all the time had a front-row seat to her dad’s enthusiasm for birds, however she began to incorporate extra of his birding moments in movies when she realized how a lot their followers liked this side of Kevin’s persona. Whereas the overlap of dads who’re devoted birders, overly aggressive leisure athletes, and fervent followers of the Miami Dolphins and New Jersey Devils is undoubtedly small, Kickball Dad fills that area of interest with zeal, drawing in all kinds of viewers.
“He’s been instructing individuals about birds towards their will for eternally,” Alyssa says. “We now have birders watching hockey movies, and hockey followers watching birding movies, so we’re form of transcending all of the teams,” Kevin provides.
The Kickball Dad movies commonly get tens of millions of views, together with their standalone birding clips.
Kickball Dad clips commonly get tens of millions of views, together with their standalone birding clips. Alyssa’s video of an early spring 2024 birding journey with Kevin has greater than 36 million views on TikTok, with feedback about his spectacular identification abilities and the way “eBird wants sponsor this man,” in accordance with one fan. In addition they get questions within the feedback about how people can get into birding, to which Alyssa is all the time glad to reply and suggest apps reminiscent of eBird and Merlin, in addition to connecting with their very own native birding neighborhood.
@alyssacronin13 you heard Kickball Dad, begin a life record! 🐦 #dadsoftiktok #birding #birds #birdsoftiktok #nature #birdtok #naturetok #ebird #birdwatching #dad #kickballdad ♬ Dora The Explorer Theme (From “Dora The Explorer”) (Karaoke Version) – Urock Karaoke
“The birding neighborhood is such a cool group of individuals. Everyone seems to be so good and useful, and everybody tries to assist one another,” Kevin says. “It’s so cool to see a uncommon hen, however it’s additionally actually cool to assist another person see it.”
To that finish, Alyssa tries to point out followers the birds Kevin identifies each time she will be able to. Whereas they didn’t count on to turn out to be birding influencers, Kevin’s real pleasure andAlyssa’s social media abilities have made them a well-liked supply for individuals who need to discover the identical pleasure in nature that Kevin does. “It’s virtually like that have of a nature present the place we’re taking you together with us on our birding journey,” Alyssa says. “He makes issues enjoyable and approachable, and that’s all the time our purpose.”
Kevin and Alyssa haven’t any plans to cease making Kickball Dad movies anytime quickly. They love bringing pleasure to social media feeds all over the world, and they’re delighted by how they’ve impressed others to begin birding and even simply respect nature just a little bit extra, Alyssa says. “Having that constructive influence on individuals even in a foolish, lighthearted means with our movies is fairly cool.”
