In his teens and early 20s, Tyler Adolfo showed an ability to communicate effectively. A local newspaper in Massachusetts published a front-page story about his success in a speech contest. He won his college’s talent contest with a rap performance. And in October 2021, he helped craft a campaign on behalf of his fraternity to increase awareness of sexual assault in Greek life, before speaking with a New York Times reporter about the issue.
Over the next six months, Adolfo’s words kept attracting attention — except this time because they were bizarre.
