Jamie ‘Canhead’ Keeton, a.k.a the ‘human suction cup’, can stick cans, bottles and other inanimate objects on to his skin. And he does it without using any external adhesives, because his skin’s pores are magically able to “suck up things” and make them stick!

Things have always been sticking to Keeton, but as a kid living in Florida he used to climb pine trees, so everyone thought it was because of the pine sap. He first discovered his sticky ability about 20 years ago, after shaving his head for the first time. “It was a hot day, and I was trying to cool my head down by holding a soda pop to it,” he said. “But then the team hit a home run and I let go of my soda to try and grab the ball, but I missed. Then I was like, ‘Where’s my drink?’”

The can, it turned out, was stuck to the back of his head horizontally, and the drink was pouring out of it. “Everyone was laughing,” he recalled.

Eventually, Keeton learned that he has a mysterious medical condition that makes his skin act like the suction cups on an octopus’ tentacles. Doctors are baffled by the phenomenon and quite frankly have no explanation for it. “I’m not quite sure why his skin is like that, but he is definitely not sick and in fairly good shape,” said Dr. Win Myint, Keeton’s doctor in Oak Lawn, Illinois.

At first Keeton was embarrassed to talk about his strange condition, afraid that people would call him a freak. He’s only person in the US with his condition – two others are in India and another in South America. But as he grew older and realised he could make good money off his talent, he decided to stop caring about other’s opinions.

Over time, he’s discovered that he could stick “just about anything” – right from cellphones to keys – to his head, his hands, his back, and stomach. “I can put a gallon of water on my stomach and back,” he said. His body heat is always higher than normal, making the suction extra stronger. The only materials that won’t stick to his skin are porous ones like cloth.

Keeton is now a celebrity in his own right, earning anywhere between $1,500 and $8,000 a week. “In the last five years, I’ve made it into a business,” he said. “People pay me to wear their products, to advertise their names or businesses on my shirt or cans. I also MC events, concerts, sporting events, parties, anything.” He once had 80,000 pictures taken of him at a NASCAR event, and he recently set the Guinness World Record in Beijing for carrying the most number of cans on his head.

“I blew a lot of minds in China,” he said. “My interpreter was stopped three times by the police, because I was walking around with cans on my head. Also I was in shorts and t-shirt even though it was like nine degrees out.”

Thanks to his fame, Keeton has met lots of celebrities like George Clooney, Adam Sandler, Ellen Degeneres, and Luke Bryant. Everyone wants to take photos with him, especially ones of drinks pouring out of cans on his head and into their mouths. “It’s exciting for me and my friends and family,” he said. “But I try to stay humble. One of my friends said if my head gets too big, he’ll knock me out.”

Photos: Jamie ‘Can Head’ Keeton/Facebook

Sources: ABC News, Elk Valley Times