Amherst 6-year-old competing in national Mullet Champ contest

AMHERST — Tucker Jones' mullet started as a terrible at-home haircut from his mother during the pandemic. Following his mother, Tara Jones' botched scissor job and a buzz cut, he decided to grow out his hair like his friend and two of his favorite country singers: HARDY and Billy Ray Cyrus. Two years later, his blond hair is "business in the front, party in the back," and hopefully helping him win this year's kid's Mullet Champ contest. "I saw people doing it last year and I was like I want to do this, it looks fun," Tucker said. Tara Jones added, "It really is like a social media contest — we caught wind of that last year. And it was like 'Well, I'm doing that next year and I want to win." The competition started with more than 1,000 kids from across the county vying for the coveted title. Tucker made it to Round 2 — where only the top 100 vote-getters advanced — and is now working to make it into round three: the top 25. Tara Jones said Tucker is in the middle of the pack, with more than 630 votes as of Thursday evening. Voting ends at 11:59 p.m. Sunday. To make it through Round 1, Tucker solicited votes via reels on Instagram — garnering attention from Pit Viper sunglasses and the Savannah Bananas exhibition baseball team. "He wakes up in the morning, he's like let's film more videos thanking people and asking for more votes," Tara Jones said. He's also taken an old-school approach to soliciting support. On Thursday he visited the Amherst Police Department to hand out his business cards with QR codes leading to voting to the officers. His friends and their families have been voting on every device in their households — from smart TVs to smartphones — once a day, every day, Tara Jones said. "I never imagined being a social media coordinator for his haircut," she said. The next step will be for Tucker to have his own "mullet page" on Instagram — as everything is currently run through Tara's pages. "I keep apologizing like we just have to get through Tucker's hair and we'll go back to nothing," she said with a laugh. "... It is wild how fast it can grow if you put the work in, but it is a full-time job." Keeping Tucker's haircut looking fresh is barber Hector Ayala, of Lorain. Ayala owns Kairos Barbershop on Broadway and sees Tucker every four to six weeks to keep everything in line. The Jones found Ayala through a friend — after Tara's botched at-home cuts. "He's like Tucker's best friend," Tucker's dad, JJ, said. The pair have bonded over their shared love of baseball and football, Tara Jones said. When Tucker isn't rocketing to social media stardom, he can be found on the football or baseball fields or basketball court. For JJ and Tara Jones, it's been cool to see Tucker's local following grow and the support he's gained on community Facebook pages and from local businesses. He's been recognized when the family's been out to dinner, Tara Jones said, a local celebrity before he starts first grade. "We're just so appreciative — Amherst has been great," she said. "Our friends and family share it and they know how much it means to him. They're just along for the ride. We are just kind of at the mercy of a 6-year-old who wants to win a mullet competition." Moving forward, Tucker hopes to make a YouTube channel and continue his budding influencer career. If he wins the cash prize, he plans to save it — after buying himself a new four-wheeler. The Mullet Champ competition is also a fundraiser for Jared Allen's Homes for Wounded Warriors, a national nonprofit that provides veterans with disabilities with handicap-accessible, mortgage-free homes. Donations can be made alongside voting for Tucker, but are not required to cast a ballot. For more information, or to vote for Tucker, visit https://www.mulletchamp.com/kids_and_teens/tara-jones-tucker-jones/ Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.