How Tik Tok has Affected the Music Industry

Remember Vine? The 2013 app consumed hours of my time before falling asleep each night. The comedy and simple videography on that app was incomparable, original, and unique. I discovered my favorite comedian Chris D’elia, and various one-liners connected millenials in a digital way. Vine has since been discontinued, and we mourn the loss everyday. When Tik Tok was released in 2016, people my age made fun of the app for being a Gen Z platform of wannabe dancers and lip-syncers. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t spend hours a week watching Tik Tok videos. I see the same comedy and creativity that I found in Vine. However, as these videos keep me up way too late, I also sift through the same, replicated dancing videos with the same bytes of songs. Anyone that watches Tik Tok in even the smallest capacity is brought back to the app when hearing the popular songs on their Apple Music shuffle.

Tik Tok has surprisingly helped the music industry in many capacities. I mean, even though the dances can be annoying, we’re all talking about it. Even people that make the funny spoofs of the dances are still giving the artists exposure. Many underground, less popular artists will get featured on a random Tik Tok video, the video will get several likes and shares, and suddenly they’re famous overnight. “Supalonely” by Kiwi BENEE was a song I heard on my XM radio (shoutout to Alt Nation) a while back. I thought to myself, “this is a pretty good jam, I’ll throw it in my alt playlist.” Weeks later, the indie/alternative artist is all over Tik Tok. This makes me happy- for once people are enjoying all different kinds of music and helping underground artists show their talents! Some producers even search Tik Tok for potential clients, meaning some songs on the app are so underground they haven’t even been released yet.

Tik Tok also has the ability to remind you of songs you forgot you needed in your life. Miley Cyrus’s “See you Again” was 10-year-old me’s anthem. Someone decided to make a difficult dancing challenge out of the song, and they’re hilarious to watch on Tik Tok. Even professionals struggle with the up and down motion of the dance. Point being, the song brings people together that enjoyed Hannah Montana in her prime and can laugh about a dancing video challenge created 13 years later. Although digital, there’s something unique about seeing others like you making videos on a free app. You feel connected, even though so far apart.

There some amazing dancers on Tik Tok that deserve to be seen and appreciated. Many beats and dancers have me entranced in their videos and impressed with their skill, and those are videos I’ll really stop and watch. However, millions of teens (mostly female) remake the same, stiff dances with the same exact song bytes. “Savage” by Megan the Stallion is well known to anyone that watches Tik Tok. I bet even the mention of the song made you chuckle a bit inside. The same people do the same dances to the same portion of the song. (Side note- I’m still figuring out where the dances originate. Who creates them and decides that it is THE DANCE to a particular song? Comment below if you have any intel). The altered “whoa,” the claps, the many many hip thrusts- it all gets boring after the dance pops up on your feed for the eleventh time.

Interestingly, Drake was so intrigued by the Tik Tok phenom that he created “Toosie Slide” strictly based on the influence of the app. According to Rolling Stone, Drake reached out to the famous dancer Toosie in the creation of the song and the dance, and it was on Tik Tok before he even made it available on any streaming platform. This is brilliant- taking a potential hit to Tik Tok builds the anticipation of it actually being released. Not to mention it just means more people are watching the Tik Toks since they couldn’t listen on Apple Music yet. So what is it about these replicated dances that makes people continue to create them? I think back to music that was popular when I was a teen, or even when my mom was a teen. Shakira’s 2010 hit “Waka Waka” had a dance attached, but we did it once or twice and moved on. Nobody video taped anybody, nobody posted or sent dancing videos anywhere.

I think the ability to reach such a large audience is one part of it. If you’re Addison Rae, you’re making a living off solely making dancing Tik Toks. You’re reaching such a huge fan base and it makes money. I also think it has to do with your appearance. You are in full control of how you look on camera, and teens (mostly girls) strive to be attractive and get attention. Since the videos are so popular, they know they will get shares, likes, and comments if they look decent while they dance. Most importantly, I think it has inspired many people. As strange as it sounds that an app could inspire, I think many people feel confident in their ability to do the dances they see, and they strive to be like their favorite dancers. Those growing up with Michael Jackson’s anti-gravity lean would try so hard to master the move. The ability to replicate famous people provides a sense of accomplishment, and a connectedness with that particular star. Similarly, average Tik Tok’ers try hard to be like the famous Tik Tok’ers, and in turn, they’re sharing great music across the world! Many artists have taken advantage of this current opportunity, and I think unlike Vine, Tik Tok will stick around for a while.

Source: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/songs-are-becoming-hits-on-tiktok-before-theyre-even-released-976819/