Troy Boyer’s path to Syracuse University fame began in 2017 with a bag of Jolly Ranchers.  

Boyer, an Uber and Lyft driver, had been offering free candy to riders in his car since he started driving. It started with a mere container of Dum Dums in one seat pocket and Life Savers in another, as well as water bottles and Aspirin.  

But it was the Jolly Ranchers that changed things. One night, Boyer was bringing a student back to South Campus, and he said she flipped out for several minutes, amazed that Boyer had her favorite candy.  

“She was FaceTiming her friends, FaceTiming her mom, and I’m just sitting up front going, ‘This is crazy.’ … All I need to do to make you guys happy is put candy in my car?” he said.  

In the following months, Boyer started adding to his candy offerings. It didn’t take long for students to notice, and soon he garnered the nickname “The Candyman.”  

Boyer said a marketing student suggested adding a Candyman sticker, advice that Boyer was initially hesitant to follow.  

“I can’t drive around a school campus with a car called the Candyman. Are you crazy?” he said. “That’s the first thing I thought. … And he goes, ‘I know. You really shouldn’t do it, but you really should do it. You’ll be lit instantly.”’  

Now, there’s no mistaking Boyer’s Toyota RAV4 when it approaches with its colored lights throughout the interior and a stereo system blaring alternative rock.  

Some of the rules in Boyer’s “Rules of Candymachine” include having fun, requesting songs and eating lots of candy. Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Beyond the colored lights, plastic skeletons of various sizes wearing Orange memorabilia are scattered throughout the vehicle. Shoe bags hang on the backs of the front seats, each pocket filled with a different candy. Rice Krispies Treats burst from the glove compartment. Ring Pops are hidden in the console.  

A small poster lists the “Rules of Candymachine,” among them to have fun, eat lots of candy, request music, not talk smack about SU and, of course, to follow him on social media. 

Boyer said he’s lived in the Syracuse area for 40 years. By day, he works 50-hour weeks as a field technician for the Onondaga County Water Authority. After each workday, Boyer spends two hours getting his car washed and sanitized at Delta Sonic. Then, he restocks his candy. 

At around 8 p.m., donning his trademark fishing hat with an SU logo, Boyer begins his evening.  

He averages 150 rides a week, but Boyer said he’d be more profitable if he didn’t spend $150 a week on candy. Or if the former DJ didn’t put nearly $2,000 into a stereo system upgrade.  

“Financially, what I’m doing is actually a train wreck,” Boyer said. “Half of the money I make I put back into my ride.”  

But money isn’t the motivation for Boyer, who said he started driving because he enjoys meeting people and entertaining. His oldest daughter, Brittany Gillette, whom he nicknamed the “Candy Princess,” said that while her father’s passion for being The Candyman may seem “silly,” he’s just a generous person. 

“I literally think that he would go out there and he would just drive for free, just because it makes everybody happy,” she said. 

When students are in Boyer’s car, he said he is able to have fun and “jam with you guys.” It enables him to forget his worries and focus on driving.  

Boyer’s Uber rating is usually around a 4.99 out of five, he said. At 10,000 rides, Boyer said he can “count my bad rides on one hand.” Emily Steinberger | Design Editor

Boyer’s Uber rating is usually around a 4.99 out of 5, he said. The Candyman’s popularity among students is palpable. At 10,000 rides, Boyer said he can “count my bad rides on one hand.” 

Megan O’Malley Wilson, a television, radio and film senior, said he’s “iconic,” adding that her friends dressed up as him for Halloween. Will Foohey, a sophomore drama major, said his friends viewed The Candyman as a celebrity after they drove with him.  

“It’s like getting in a Cash Cab,” said Isa Borrero, a senior education major. “It’s just a one-of-a-kind, exciting experience, and it just makes everybody’s night better.”  

Boyer said that the gratitude he’s received from a variety of people has kept him going.  As a result, he has no plans of stopping now, adding that the love is stronger than it’s ever been.  

Aside from his student fan base, Boyer has even befriended R.C. Concepcion, an adjunct professor in visual communications in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Concepcion recalled that on a few occasions, Boyer took time out of his day job schedule to drive Concepcion’s daughter’s friend to her Syracuse City Ballet summer camp. 

For Boyer, it doesn’t feel like work, though.  

“I love being part of everybody’s night,” Boyer said. “If I can just take five minutes of your day, and I can just make that five minutes a good moment for you, then I got what I wanted.”  

 

Published on March 11, 2020 at 10:34 pm

Contact Austin: aclamb@syr.edu | @AustinCLamb