BITCH OPINIONS

I WAS BUSY THINKIN' BOUT

The various ways TikTok has changed the music industry: for better or for worse.

words by Kyle Henderson & Libby Cultra

PRO: Tell Us You Love TikTok Without Telling Us You Love TikTok

Like it or not, TikTok and social media as a whole have changed the ways in which we consume music, and I think the impact has been far more positive than negative. TikTok specifically gives aspiring artists a platform to showcase their work and find an audience that may not normally hear it, while simultaneously allowing artists to find a community in which they can grow and thrive within.

For Tessa Pulgar, a sophomore in the Bandier Program at Syracuse University and an aspiring artist, TikTok has played a major role in growing her audience. She believes that the app “almost forces you to be more creative,” she said. “It's definitely taught me to be confident in my own work because no matter how good anyone is, everyone's super different. So you just have to focus on what makes you different.”

When she was locked down with the rest of the world last spring, Pulgar used singing and songwriting as a creative outlet and posted her work to TikTok. A few viral videos later, she now has over 54,000 followers and has accumulated over 1.8 million likes.

Outside of an expanded audience, Pulgar has also connected with other creators on the app. The community is her favorite part of the platform. “TikTok’s allowed me to meet people that I wouldn't have otherwise met,” she said. “And those people are pretty inspiring. Just knowing that they see my content pushes me to try harder.”

Plenty of other new artists have seen even more success. Indie pop/rock artist Blu DeTiger started posting on TikTok when the pandemic shut down live concerts, and her songs began gaining traction. She found a hit in her song “Figure It Out”, which became a popular sound on the app and has racked up over 25 million streams on Spotify — mine included.

Eric German, an adjunct professor and practicing entertainment attorney, views TikTok as an empowering tool for aspiring artists to create their own path. “Everything is in the palm of our hands, literally and figuratively,” he said. “When I was in Syracuse, it was more of a gatekeeper mentality where you had to kind of appeal to certain people that were going to choose the people, places and things that we're going to have the opportunity to be heard right. Now, it could come from anywhere.”

“TikTok has made a measurable impact very quickly, particularly with breaking new artists,” said Michelle Santosuosso, a professor in the Bandier program. “Several have already launched off the platform to mainstream success, with 24kGoldn now signed to major label Columbia Records and Fousheé now signed to RCA Records, being two big examples.”

New artists aren’t the only ones benefiting; Songs released years ago are being brought back into the mainstream thanks to fun TikTok challenges and viral videos. Chances are you heard “Dreams'' by Fleetwood Mac in a TikTok recently, which went viral after Nathan Apodaca, known as @420doggface208 on the app, posted a video skateboarding and lip syncing to the song while drinking Ocean Spray. Now, the video has over 80 million views and 12.7 million likes, and plenty have created their own take on the video — Stevie Nicks even joined in on the trend at the peak of its popularity. Other older hits like “Little Dark Age” by MGMT, “Potential Breakup Song” by Aly & AJ, and “Electric Love” by BØRNS have all seen resurgence in popularity thanks to TikTok. According to German, TikTok is a great way for older artists to “freshen up your fan base and kind of introduce yourself to a different audience by appealing sort of to the younger audience.”

Overall, the app is completely changing the music industry and the way we find and share music. It’s

a place where artists old and new can find their viral moment, and there’s a community of creators that’s growing every day. Santosuosso is excited by the possibilities TikTok has to offer, viewing it as “transformational.” “There is a distinct visual language to TikTok,” she said. “A way of storytelling and using music to do so, that is the most exciting thing I've seen since the advent of MTV.”

We’re living in an increasingly digital world, and TikTok is a symptom of that. The app empowers artists to blaze their own trails, and the possibilities to find success are endless. The benefits that TikTok has had on the music industry cannot be ignored — it’s a bonafide game changer.

CON: Where's the Flavor?

Even though “making it” in the music industry is already more of a matter of money and luck than it is talent, TikTok is working as hard as ever to push smaller creators to the side. Record labels are partnering with TikTok and paying influencers to use their songs and promote certain songs and artists.

In today's industry, artists are paid fragments of what they should be. “You have to keep in mind that, unless the artist is fully independent, their record company owns the master recording of their songs, so the label makes most of the money from the usage of that recording,” said Santosuosso.

Instead of naturally going viral, songs are now forced into a format suitable for TikTok — catchy and short — leaving little room for other budding genres. Rapper Supa Dupa Humble was one artist who went viral, yet he was not paid until his song was officially put in the app’s song library due to his lack of partnership with a major label. Take a look at the top 20 songs on Spotify, including hits like Telapatia, MONTERO, and other catchy tracks. These songs are what TikTok “celebrities” will use in their videos to amass views and catch peoples’ attention. So, who really decides what’s popular?

There is no question that TikTok holds power. Charli D'Amelio's 100 million followers on TikTok watch the 16-year-old dance to familiar, debatably overplayed songs in videos that regularly amass over three million likes and even more views. This is precious cargo for corporations who want to spread their brand. Young, impressional viewers will latch on to songs and items that influencers are using, and record labels make the most of this. "Yes, they are paid to promote certain music, absolutely. And yes they are calculating to go viral… It's more about being relevant on that platform because that is where the tastemaker audience is,” Santosuosso said.

Companies with major record label partners, like Songfluencer, seek out influencers and match them with large corporations. In this case, influencers will be paid to promote music merely for the virality of it, and, of course, monetary gains. “Money does not properly trickle down to the creators,” Santosuosso said, meaning the record labels who make deals with TikTok hold all the money and power. For example, “Heather” by Conan Gray was made popular through TikTok trends, eventually reaching pop radio stations.

The Fowlkes Firm, a Black-owned law firm, pushes for creators’ rights in music, as artists usually get extremely small royalties compared to what the label makes. Firms like Fowlkes’ help artists stuck in record deals that aren’t in it for the music. The music industry is worse when it comes to streaming apps. Most have little revenue in the first place, but TikTok is cluttered with unofficial sounds and no overall view counts, meaning the "who actually gets the money" game is chaotic.

Navigating this rocky world of endless views and streams will take conscious steps to root for up-andcoming artists, along with supporting them through merch, reputable streaming sites, and tours. We need to bring recognition to independent creators, along with boosting firms and educational tools that help artists sign fair deals that benefit them long term. It does seem this digital world is here to stay, so it’s necessary to figure out how to make it a healthy environment for everyone involved.