Eight-year-old is crowned the winner in 2022 US MULLET Championships

2022-08-22

Crowning glory! Eight-year-old boy from Wisconsin is named the winner of the 2022 US kids’ MULLET championships – beating out 24 other young finalists who proudly flaunted their takes on the 80s hairstyle

Emmitt Bailey, from Menomonie, Wisconsin, earned the title after receiving the most votes – 9,896, to be exact – and took home the cash prize of $2,500
While 688 boys from across America originally entered the competition, only 25 were chosen for the finals; the public was then asked to pick their favorite
People casted their vote for the boy whom they believed rocked the hairdo the best – and it was Emmitt who earned the world’s favor
He told Buzzfeed that it felt ‘awesome and cool’ that ‘so many people’ think he has ‘sweet hair,’ and that it took nearly two years for him to grow his mullet
The competition charges a $10 entry fee, and donates half its earnings to a charity which provides wigs for children suffering from hair loss or diseases
It was created in 2020 by a man named Kevin Begola, who explained, ‘It’s not just a haircut, it’s a lifestyle’

An eight-year-old boy has been crowned the winner of the 2022 US Mullet Championships – which saw 25 boys compete to see who has the best mullet of all time.

Emmitt Bailey, from Menomonie, Wisconsin, earned the title after receiving the most votes – 9,896, to be exact – and took home the cash prize of $2,500.

While 688 boys from across America originally entered the competition in the hopes of being told that they have the best mullet in the country, but only 25 were chosen for the finals.

The public was then asked to pick their favorite, casting their vote for the boy whom they believed rocked the hairdo the best – and it was Emmitt who earned the world’s favor.

‘It’s awesome,’ the eight-year-old, who has a mullet on the bottom part of his hair and a mohawk on the top, said to Buzzfeed of his win. ‘It’s cool that so many people tell you that you got sweet hair.’

An eight-year-old boy has been crowned the winner of the 2022 US Mullet Championships. Emmitt Bailey, from Menomonie, Wisconsin, earned the title after receiving the most votes – 9,896, to be exact – and took home the cash prize of $2,500

‘It’s awesome,’ the eight-year-old, who has a mullet on the bottom part of his hair and a mohawk on the top (which took nearly two years to grow), said to Buzzfeed of his win. ‘It’s cool that so many people tell you that you got sweet hair’

Second place went to Epic Orta (left), from La Joya, Texas, who got 8,404 votes, followed by William Dale Ramsey (right), from Pataskala, Ohio, who got 4,058 votes

Emmitt told the outlet that it took him nearly two years to grow his mullet, which he has nicknamed Mufasa, with his mom, Erin Bailey, adding that she was not a fan of the look at first.

‘He was pretty adamant about wanting the mullet since the beginning,’ she recalled, admitting, ‘I wasn’t on board right away, but it’s just become part of his personality now. He just likes to do his own thing and have his own hair.’

Second place went to Epic Orta, from La Joya, Texas, who got 8,404 votes, followed by William Dale Ramsey, from Pataskala, Ohio, who got 4,058 votes.

The competition first ran in 2020 and has occurred every summer since; it was created by Michigan apparel and footwear store Bridge Street Exchange as a marketing idea.

Owner Kevin Begola first launched the contest in his local town of Fenton, and after its success, he decided to expand it to a national event.

‘You’ll hear a lot of people say, “It’s not just a haircut, it’s a lifestyle,” and I really do think that’s part of it,’ Begola explained to Buzzfeed.

‘Most people with a mullet, obviously they can take the heat if people are kind of giving them crap about it, but I think we’ve kind of turned that corner. I do think the ’90s country vibe is coming back hard right now.’

He added that the competition is all about ‘not taking life so seriously,’ and that it feels important now, ‘especially after everything the last couple years.’

‘I always tell people this was like lightning in a bottle. It really was,’ he added. ‘I think it was a mixture of culture pushback on just everything that’s been down, with COVID and politics and everything. I think this was a good relief for everybody.’

He proudly calls himself ‘the nation’s official mullet-ranking authority’ after establishing ‘a powerful platform within the mullet space.’

There was a $10 entry fee for each competitor, half of which was donated to Maggie’s Wigs 4 Kids – an organization that provides wigs for children who are suffering from hair loss due to cancer, alopecia, or other diseases and disorders.

Earlier this year, the competition teamed up with Major League Eating – who helped develop competitive eating through its Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest – in an attempt to ‘expand’ even further.

‘We are excited to join forces with Major League Eating to expand the USA Mullet Championships to a host of new venues and fans,’ said President Begola in a statement.

‘MLE’s experience building a sponsorship-driven live-event brand will help support the rapid growth of the competitive mullet world.’

‘We are excited to join forces with Major League Eating,’ said President Begola. ‘MLE’s experience building a sponsorship-driven live-event brand will help support the rapid growth of the competitive mullet world’

Major League Eating Chair George Shea added: ‘The mullet is more than a hairstyle – the mullet is a lifestyle’

‘We believe that the USA Mullet Championships is a cultural phenomenon that lies at the core of the American experience and we are excited to help showcase the platform to new fans and sponsors alike,’ he added

The Mullet Championships also includes a competition for teens, adult men, and adult women

The adult competitions are still in the registration period – so those interested can still join. Registration ends on August 31, and voting will begin on September 12

Major League Eating Chair George Shea added: ‘The mullet is more than a hairstyle – the mullet is a lifestyle.

The Mullet Championships also includes a competition for teens, adult men, and adult women. As for the teen division, Cayden Kershaw, from Wausau, Wisconsin, was announced as the winner, with 3,215 votes.

The adult competitions are still in the registration period – so those interested can still join. Registration ends on August 31, and voting will begin on September 12.

The mullet was made popular in the ’80s by stars like Billy Ray Cyrus, David Bowie, Paul McCartney, Patrick Swayze, George Clooney, and John Stamos, but according to the Championships’ website, it’s been around for much longer than that.

‘According to some historians, the mullet has been around since at least Ancient Greece, where the style was as much for function as it was for fashion,’ it explained.

‘According to some historians, the mullet has been around since at least Ancient Greece, where the style was as much for function as it was for fashion,’ it explained

The competition’s website added: ‘The relative ease of maintaining it makes it possible to keep up even without the existence of barbershops and hair salons, and the practicality makes it perhaps one of the oldest haircuts in human history’

It added that in Native American tribes, long hair represented strong cultural identity and ‘values of family and community’

As for where the name came from, it actually originated from the Beastie Boys in 1994, when they released a song called Mullet Head. However, it was soon after that the hairstyle became nearly extinct

But the Mullet Championships pointed out on its website that while the peak of mullets ended in the 1990s, the style ‘never completely faded from relevance’

‘It slipped from the good graces of the masses but became iconic in various subcultures: everyone from country music stars and lesbians, to hockey players and Native Americans,’ it wrote. ‘The mullet has become a staple of the American aesthetic’

‘Cropped hair around the face with longer locks in the back allowed for both visibility and a protective layer of hair for your neck.

‘The relative ease of maintaining it makes it possible to keep up even without the existence of barbershops and hair salons, and the practicality makes it perhaps one of the oldest haircuts in human history.’

It added that in Native American tribes, long hair represented strong cultural identity and ‘values of family and community.’

But the Mullet Championships pointed out on its website that while the peak of mullets ended in the 1990s, the style ‘never completely faded from relevance.’

‘It slipped from the good graces of the masses but became iconic in various subcultures: everyone from country music stars and lesbians, to hockey players and Native Americans,’ it wrote.

‘No matter what you think of it, the mullet has become a staple of the American aesthetic.’

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