Thank TikTok for a music revolution

TikTok is fighting off bad press worldwide, only narrowly avoiding a US ban in January. But Ethan Jaiyaseelan, 15, from Chatsworth International School, argues that we must recognise the positive ways in which the app is changing our culture.

Picture this, a young and unknown artist is hoping to get a few views on TikTok, so they upload a 20 second-snippet of their song. The song then quickly goes viral, and suddenly it’s a trend and is becoming the background audio for millions of dancing videos. This musician, in return, becomes a worldwide hit after reaching the top of streaming charts. TikTok has brought about this new reality for many upcoming artists, changing the way we find new music by transforming hidden gems into viral sensations, with catchy dance trends and hashtag challenges. MRC Data, a music analytics firm, indicates that the majority of TikTok users come across new music on the app they haven’t heard elsewhere. 63% of users mention they discover new music on TikTok that they weren’t familiar with before, while another 75% of users have stumbled upon new musicians through the app.¹ As many as 67% of TikTok users are more inclined to search for songs on streaming applications like Spotify or Apple Music after hearing them on the platform.²

TikTok’s algorithmAny set of rules followed by a computer. In the context of social media, “the algorithm” refers to the intelligent AI that learns the interests of the user and presents them with posts that it thinks will interest them. promotes songs based on user interaction, instead of the popularity of the artist to push songs towards the public eye. From a single page, TikTok For You Page presents a selection of content from creators you follow and those you haven’t yet found.³ This makes it simple for songs by up-and-coming musicians to become viral, by accumulating popularity through comments, likes, and shares, resulting in a snowball effect. Without the help of music industries, up-and-coming artists can now become well-known thanks to TikTok’s FYP algorithm. TikTok’s viral music phenomenon often results from trends and hashtag challenges. A song’s success often depends on the amount of people who replicate dances or challenges that TikTok users frequently make. Two significant examples are Tommy Richman’s Million Dollar Baby and the Weeknd’s Blinding Lights, both of which saw an increase in streaming numbers due to it being a well-liked dance challenge.  

Lil Nas X’s Old Town Road is a perfect example of TikTok’s impact on song and artist recognition. After not getting much attention, the song became extremely popular because of TikTok’s “Yeehaw Challenge”. It became the fastest-ever diamond single, won two Grammy Awards, and topped the Billboard chart for a record-breaking 19 weeks.⁴ Similarly, Sarah Cothran’s emotional video edits helped her TikTok cover of Matt Maltese’s song As the World Caves In go viral. Her cover received 310 million Spotify plays, demonstrating TikTok’s ability to reach a worldwide audience and support indie musicians. Have you ever seen a 15-second clip on TikTok, with the caption “save this video for a free ticket to my concert in the future” in bold, with the artist’s original composition as their background audio? This tactic keeps fans interested and helps them spread their music by creating a feeling of exclusivity and connection.

As a frequent user of TikTok myself, I have personally seen how unknown songs have become widely popular on the platform. Just browsing through my FYP, it has led me to find a ton of new songs that I otherwise would not have come across. Less well-known musicians can easily become worldwide sensations thanks to TikTok’s algorithms and trends. TikTok has revolutionised music discovery from an everyday scrolling routine into an effective means of finding new musicians, trends and music.

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Keywords

Algorithm – Any set of rules followed by a computer. In the context of social media, “the algorithm” refers to the intelligent AI that learns the interests of the user and presents them with posts that it thinks will interest them.