3.30.2022

TikTok Treats, Week of March 28th

An Old Country Song Bridges Generation Gaps, Pharrell Makes Dreams Come True, Coi & Nicki Take Over, and Chief Keef Assists With Emphatic Denials

The News:

Each week, the TikTok Treats newsletter gives a snapshot of the state of music on TikTok, touching on trending hits, emerging artists, superstar moves, ascendant memes, and much more. This week brought trends from new and old hits, hot new rap songs and great old country tunes, and a lesson from a Canadian rocker on how to play a beautiful song. Take a look below to see what made TikTok tick this week:

The TikTok community is in a wholesome, reflective mood this week, sparked by the legendary Pharrell Williams’ lighthearted track “Just A Cloud Away.” Originally appearing on the 2013 Despicable Me soundtrack, the song is trending behind a then vs. now trend on the platform, in which creators ruminate on how their lives were years ago compared to how they are now. Creators are taking to the sound to reflect on how they thought they would have a significant other by now, their long-lasting friendship with their besties, and the evolution of the most heartwarming baby brother-sister duos. Pharrell even joined in on the fun with a video on his own account, adding to the 941.9K+ creations by jumping into his scenic pool and reflecting on how he wished he was in a pool as a baby.
A golden-voiced singer who had the potential to become the biggest country star in the world before he tragically passed away in 1989, Keith Whitley’s music effortlessly evokes a fond nostalgia for bygone times. In recent weeks, the TikTok community re-discovered Whitley’s 1985 song “Miami, My Amy,” a ballad about long distance love, and creators have been channeling the song’s wistful vibe in a trend that pays tribute to the kindness and good humor of elderly strangers. The song has over 39k video creations to date, including some that comment on Cracker Barrel wise cracks, sardonic reactions to ripped jeans, helpful veterans in fishing shops, and other situations that subtly comment on intergenerational interaction. Though the song was not one of Whitley’s biggest hits–the artist had 5 #1 Country hits in his too-brief career, and this song was not one of them–the newfound TikTok popularity of “Miami, My Amy” pushed the song past the 10 million stream mark on Spotify, where it is currently more popular than his bigger hits, and into the Top 20 of Spotify’s U.S. Viral 50 chart.
“Envolver,” by Brazilian artist Anitta, has exploded on TikTok in the past month. Now at +1.3M creates and +1.5B video views on the associated hashtag, the track started to trend after a video of Anitta performing the song went viral on TikTok (87.5 million views). Fans, impressed by Anitta’s dance moves in the video, took to TikTok to post videos of them attempting their own versions. All of this traction led to it being among the top 10 trending songs on TikTok in the US for 3 weeks in a row, peaking at #4. Anitta herself leaned into the trend posting tutorials and also ranking how well other people did her move. All of this culminated in the song reaching #1 on the Spotify Global Charts last week, making Anitta both the first Brazilian artist and first solo Latin female artist to hold this position.
Coi Leray and Nicki Minaj are among the TikTok community’s favorites, previously trending with songs such as Coi’s “TWINNEM” (3.7M+ creations) and Nicki’s “Do We Have A Problem?” (319.1K+ creations). Joining forces for their new single, “Blick Blick!” (17.2K+ creations), both rappers have creators in the mood for stunning beauty and hair transformations, as well as recreating Nicki’s look from the official video. Additionally, creators show off their best moves and encourage other users to recreate in their routines – such as this one, this one, and this one. Both Coi and Nicki have interacted with the sound on their own TikTok pages, promoting “Blick Blick!” to their millions of followers. The song’s TikTok success helped “Blick Blick” score a #37 debut on the Billboard Hot 100.
An ornate and emotional indie rock ballad from 2010, “Je te laisserai des mots” by Montreal’s Patrick Watso n has been a go-to song for TikTok creators looking to inject poignancy into their videos. The song’s heart-wrenching interplay of piano and violin is an ideal soundtrack for long-lost puppy reunions, helpful bits of mental health advice, and late night games of badminton (some ironic versions have also gained traction, including this video of a Great White Shark “trying to save divers from a cage”). Over 210k video creations later, Patrick Watson himself joined TikTok this week, introducing himself as the man behind the viral sound and sharing a short piano + string quartet performance of the song. Most recently, Patrick shared a three-part tutorial, not only teaching the world how to play the song’s gorgeous piano line, but also offering piano-playing tips that apply to pianists of all skill levels.
TikTok creators can create a trend out of even the smallest lyrical turn of phrase–and if that short phrase resonates with the community, it can lead to the song’s rise on the platform. Chicago rap hero Chief Keef’s recent track “Yes Sir” (132.3K+ creations) has been making waves on the platform due to the catchy way in which he raps the lyrics opposite of the track’s title: “No, sir.” Creators are comically taking to the sound to say “No, sir” to all the things and people in their lives that they’re refusing or declining. It’s the perfect sound for those who won’t let being moms stop them from having a hot girl summer, who never accept invitations to hang out, and who have become one with their braces and don’t want to get them removed.
Following the recent successes of artists such as Em Beihold, GAYLE, and Rachel Chinouriri, TikTok continues to prove that the platform is a great place for artists to preview unreleased music. Joining the list is singer Dylan Conrique, who went viral for previewing “Birthday Cake” (112K+ creations to date since its official release), a song dedicated to her best friend whose mother passed away. The piano ballad evokes the emotions of creators as they document their bedtime routines with their babies, capture intimate moments with their ill family members, and share their thoughts about their deceased loved ones. Dylan Conrique has also promoted the song to her 2.8M followers on TikTok, encouraging users to share their own lyrics with her open verse challenge.

Check TikTok’s newsroom for more noteworthy stories: newsroom.tiktok.com

For more info, please contact:
Michelle McDevitt, Kerry Harrison, Destiny Riley, T’Keyah Hayes, Audible Treats
Leah Linder, TikTok

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TikTok has global offices including Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Mumbai, Singapore, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo.

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TikTok’s Newsroom: https://newsroom.tiktok.com/en-us

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Pharrell, Coi & Nicki, and 80s Country Lead the Way on TikTok

3.30.2022

TikTok Treats, Week of March 28th

An Old Country Song Bridges Generation Gaps, Pharrell Makes Dreams Come True, Coi & Nicki Take Over, and Chief Keef Assists With Emphatic Denials

The News:

The Background:

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