It's been around since early May at least. They were running a big ad campaign, plus sale on them in late July - early August 2/$6, which might have gotten people interested. I had a couple last week (30 - 40 minute wait), it's actually really good for a fast food chicken sandwich. Pretty spicy for the mass market, on a bed of pickles, and an odd sauce. The cut of chicken was about a 1/2 a breaded chicken breast in size.
I never would've considered it without the hype.
Yeah, I'd say the racial mix in the Popeye's I've been to in the Northeast were 50-60% Black, 30-40% Spanish, 10-20% White in make up. I've only seen a handful of Asians over the years.
I know a lot of Blacks that like Chick-fil-A, but it's considered a mild chicken. White people soul food.