OK Boomer, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love TikTok

I joined the much-hyped and sometimes maligned social media platform TikTok in October of 2019 after seeing a video by content creator Parker James. While I had already been aware of the ByteDance-owned app and its lip-sync predecessor Musical.ly, I had resisted downloading the app for a reasonably long time. It didn’t seem worth adding yet another social media platform to my already existing suite of time-suck destinations. But I finally relented after seeing James’ video.

James portrayed a character named “Steven” whose face was exaggerated by video effects (enormous eyes and a huge mouth). His voice sped up to a pitch not too dissimilar to that of seminal YouTuber Lucas Cruikshank’s Fred (Figglehorn) character. Cruikshank has the distinction of being the first YouTube star to pass one million subscribers on the platform way back in 2009. He would go on to star in several Fred movies and even had two TV series on Nickelodeon from 2009 to 2013.

James’ video’s premise is that “Steven” is relaying to camera an experience he had at Urban Outfitters about an interaction with a woman regarding the green sweater he was wearing in “support for the turtles” while shopping for metal straws. It was around this time in 2019 that the 2015 video of that sea turtle with the plastic straw stuck in its nostril had begun making the rounds again. Suffice it to say, the woman didn’t appear to agree with such activism and derisively calls the turtles “turbles,” which irks “Steven,” who promptly corrects her. The video is only 35 seconds long, and while my retelling of the video doesn’t do it justice, trust me, the video is pretty funny.

So I downloaded the app to follow Mr. James’ profile and was pleased to find out that he had millions of followers, was a musician, had merch, and had started something called the Dino Club. While watching more of James’ videos, I learned that the character “Steven” is obsessed with dinosaurs and that anyone can join said club. All you have to do is ask James, who routinely responds to requests for membership in the comments of his videos with affirmations like “You’re in, buddy!” and “Absolutely!” Following James was a very positive first experience on TikTok, to say the least.

I had thrown caution to the wind and ignored the alarmist chatter that if I joined the platform, the Chinese Communist Party would somehow use my data to steal American national security information or, worse, turn me into a pinko tool of the CCP, hell-bent on ruining the beloved U.S.A.; and thus began my foray into TikTok fandom. I began watching the videos that came up on my FYP (For You Page) and Following tabs. As interesting videos popped up, I gave them a like. If I really enjoyed the video, I’d check out the user’s profile and sometimes follow — pretty typical social media behavior. But what seemed to really set TikTok apart from Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the others was my time spent in the app, which is the critical metric for any ad-supported business. The longer a user stays in the app, the more ads they see, and the more revenue TikTok makes. It’s challenging to spend a whole lot of time on the other social sites because their content is relatively finite. You’ve gotta make a real concerted effort to find new things to look at once you’ve finished viewing the status updates, tweets, and photos of people you follow on those sites. But TikTok will just continue serving up yet another video for as long as the user keeps scrolling.

It was pretty easy to get pulled into watching these algorithmically curated videos for very long periods without ever really noticing how much time had gone by. A common theme of some videos on TikTok is around this very concept. Users jokingly lament about the amount of time that they spend on the app. There’s even a profile that will show up on your FYP from time to time that will nicely suggest you stop scrolling and take some time off from the app. It’s a good reminder but is usually ignored.

There are many different TikTok video categories, including lip-sync, dance, comedy, music, educational, political, instructional, reaction, confessional, short-form films, mental health-focused, shopping hauls, sports, fashion, conspiracy, animals/cute pets, and more. The top categories still seem to be lip-sync, dance, comedy, and music.

Before we dig any deeper, if you already know who Charli D’Amelio is, reading the next couple of paragraphs might be a waste of your time. So if you want to skip ahead and read about Comedy and Music TikTok plus some of my favorite artists on the app, go for it. If you don’t know who Miss D’Amelio is, chances are you aren’t on TikTok…yet.

So who is she? Arguably the biggest TikTok star on the app with more than 118 million followers and a Hulu reality TV show currently in production. D’Amelio also has a fair amount of brand sponsorships (including her own Dunkin Donuts drink, Hollister, Simmons Mattress, and Invisalign). She even authored a book that came out in late 2020. She is a dancer… a 17-year-old dancer, to be precise. She started posting in May 2019 and began to garner a significant following by October of that year. D’Amelio has also used her newfound popularity to support charities and social causes, including UNICEF and BLM. She does some of these initiatives and sponsorships in tandem with her sister, Dixie (who is now a recording artist, because of TikTok). While they both are becoming pretty successful, this type of early success often comes with mass scrutiny. A backlash against the D’Amelio sisters does rear up from time to time. And with the inevitability that their meteoric rise will, at some point, begin to level off a bit, one can only hope they have good people around them to help guide them through the minefield that is sudden fame.

Dance TikTok works like this: A content creator makes a video of a dance that they’ve usually choreographed themselves to a particular song available through the app’s library of sounds. If other users like the dance, often they will film a video of themselves doing the same dance, hopefully giving credit to the original creator by including the originator’s TikTok handle preceded by the letters “dc:” which stands for either “dance creator,” “dance credit,” or “dance challenge” in the video’s description. If the song gets used enough, it will begin to trend, and likewise, if the dance itself becomes popular enough, it, too, will trend. It’s basically that simple. This trending phenomenon has the power to create viral hits. It has done just that for tunes like Megan Thee Stallion’s “Savage,” Kesha’s “Cannibal,” Doja Cat’s “Say So,” (dc:@yodelinghaley — Haley Sharpe), and Boney M.’s 1978 classic “Rasputin.” It’s even become a part of the marketing strategies for the portions of the music industry that appeal to this segment of TikTok’s user base. Doja Cat even featured dance creator Haley Sharpe in the official music video for the song mentioned above once the dance had gone viral.

Now, let’s talk about Comedy TikTok. The app is filled with some very talented people making a name for themselves that may have never jumped into the funny fray without this platform. From actual comedians telling actual jokes to folks pulling pranks, doing impressions, performing short sketches, satire, mini-monologues, AFV-style mishaps, and the like. There really is something for everybody. And if you watch enough of certain types of videos, the algorithm will continue to feed that beast on your FYP. There is a whole lot to explore on Comedy TikTok. And over this past year and a half, with the Covid-19 pandemic effectively shutting down live events and hampering TV/film productions, TikTok has done a great job filling the void and giving funny people a platform to stay both relevant and productive while also keeping its users very entertained.

I personally don’t have as much interest in Dance TikTok as I do for Comedy TikTok or our next category, Music TikTok. But I do like hearing the pop hits associated with the dances just to see what “the kids” are listening to, and I can appreciate the choreography of the dances. But that section of the app is definitely the domain of Gen Z. User base demographics are expanding rapidly as the app becomes more and more popular. And with interlopers like myself coming on board, it is beginning to diminish the popularity of “DanceTok.” However, for now, it’s still a pretty dominant content genre, right behind lip sync.

What’s popular on the app will inevitably evolve and change over time, but one aspect might remain constant: Gen Z is in the driver’s seat, and they know it (at least until Generation Alpha comes online). Sometimes the older generations on the app might need a minor correction, and Gen Z is more than happy to assist. Even younger Millennials on TikTok have had “OK Boomer!” hurled at them for perceived missteps. I’ve totally seen it happen. It’s Gen Z’s world, and we just live in it. And the app works, in significant part because of Gen Z TikTokers. They are the generation that has always owned a smartphone. They seem to have an innate understanding of video editing, cinematography, audio production, marketing, and activism. They’ve had a version of iMovie and GarageBand in their pockets for over a decade and grew up with sites and services like YouTube, Netflix, and Spotify, which have given them access to the most extensive content catalogs ever known. Their practical knowledge is quite impressive, if you think about it. And let’s not forget that TikTokers reportedly helped tank a Trump rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 2020 by registering for tickets en masse. The incident drew the ire of the now-disgraced former president, who signed a series of executive orders (under the guise of national security concerns) in the aftermath in an attempt to ban the app in the U.S. EOs, which the Biden administration recently reversed.

This brings us to the significant through-line connecting most of the various categories on the app: Music TikTok. The vast majority of the videos on TikTok have music in them, even if it’s just a music bed/needle drop tune from the millions of licensed songs available to the creators. The catalog almost rivals any of the subscription-based music streaming services out there by including music from the major labels, prominent indie labels/distributors, and even the large DIY- focused distributors like TuneCore, DistroKid, and CD Baby. Established artists and labels have recently begun to start their own user profiles and are creating content to introduce themselves to this growing Gen Z-dominated potential fan base. Labels are also including TikTok in their content strategies for both external marketing and in-app royalty generation. The folks at TikTok/ByteDance seem to have anticipated this growth, as they went on a hiring spree for their music division over the past two years. The company has been able to pull music industry heavy hitters like Ole Obermann (WMG/Sony), Corey Sheridan (SoundCloud/The Orchard), Tracy Gardner (WMG), Erik Giusti (Facebook/Capitol), Isaac Bess (YouTube/IODA), Marisa Jeffries (SoundCloud/Sony), Alix Rosenberg (Ninja Tune/Spotify), and others to join the team. But the establishment music industry’s acceptance and promotion of the platform is just the tip of the iceberg.

The app is teeming with up-and-coming musicians, songwriters, bands, producers, remixers, and mashup artists, each trying to create an audience/following for themselves to varying degrees of success. And it hasn’t taken long for the gatekeepers of the music industry to start to take notice. Take Claire Rosinkranz, for example. The 17-year-old California-based multi-instrumentalist self-released an EP (recorded and produced by her father, Ragnar, in their home studio) back in 2020. It generated a TikTok hit with an incredibly catchy tune called “Backyard Boy.” On the strength of that EP, she signed to Republic Records shortly after. And she’s not the only one. Frances Forever (real name Frances Garrett) went viral with the indie-pop gem, “Space Girl,” leading Mom + Pop Records to sign her. Others who have inked label deals due to TikTok recently include Dixie D’Amelio, Jax, Addison Rae, Nathan Evans, Bella Poarch, LilHuddy, Flo Milli, ElyOtto, ppcocaine, Powfu, Tai Verdes, and Priscilla Block.

But getting signed isn’t the only path to success for artists on the app. There’s a whole heap of folks who are continuing to go the DIY route. London-based singer-songwriter Tom Rosenthal had been releasing his own music since 2010 when his cover of “Home” by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes and several of his original songs started racking up lots of plays by being synced to thousands of videos on the app. It prompted him to start Tinpot Records and sign some of his favorite artists, including some of his fellow TikTokers. His young daughter, Fenn, even wrote and performed a song called “Dinosaurs in Love” in a video. The song has now been turned into a book. Both the song and book are adorable. TikTok has become a great discovery tool, for me and countless other users. There are even accounts whose primary focus is letting their followers know what artists they’ve been listening to lately. TikTok tastemakers giving recommendations, if you will, with no real agenda other than to promote the artists they love.

And in that spirit, here are four artists that I found via TikTok that I think are really worth your time, even if you aren’t on TikTok.

Austin Archer (@yourpal_austin)— This guy is one of those multiple threat TikTokers. He’s an actor, comedian, director, writer, podcaster, and yes, a very talented songwriter and musician. His TikTok videos run the gamut of funny sketches, social/political commentary, and (since the pandemic) dark or hilarious synth-pop music videos. And a lot of those synth-pop tunes are bonafide TikTok hits. Songs like “Turtleneck and Blazer,” “You’re Not Getting Bullied,” “Specificity With Your Language,” and “Delete Your Account” are all available on his Bandcamp page as part of his Now That’s What I Call a Bunch of Austin Archer’s TikTok Songs Compiled Into an Album Vol.1 compilation. But the comp is just his most recent output; Archer has been putting out singles and albums since 2011. Those records are more in the folk/folk-rock/alt/indie genre classification, and there are some pretty great tunes on ’em. RIYL: Fleet Foxes, Dr. Dog, Blitzen Trapper, My Morning Jacket, and Fruit Bats. Spotify Apple

Isabel Pless (@everythinghurtsman)— This Vermont native is one of the best singer-songwriters I’ve heard in a long time. She joined TikTok in September 2020 and has been posting clips of songs ever since. She seems to specialize in artfully crafted poetic songs about heartache, personal growth, and the pitfalls of the human condition, all delivered with a voice supremely adept at beautiful harmonies. In March of 2021, Pless released an EP entitled Too Big for the Playground, Too Small for the Big Leagues that she wrote, arranged, and recorded by herself in her childhood bedroom since she had to attend her junior year at Wellesley College remotely because of the pandemic. While she is just getting started in her career, if the snippets of the songs available on her TikTok profile are any indication, it means she’s got a treasure trove of fantastic unreleased songs. RIYL: Joni Mitchell, Elliott Smith, Phoebe Bridgers, Iron & Wine, Lucy Dacus, First Aid Kit, boygenius, and Bon Iver. Spotify Apple

Petey (@peteyusa)— I’ll be honest, I don’t know much about Petey. I don’t know his last name. I don’t know if he goes by Petey, Pete, or Peter. I don’t know where he’s originally from (he does currently live in Los Angeles). I don’t know how long he’s been playing music. But I do know that ever since I first came across his TikTok videos in early 2020, I quickly became a fan (I even own a Petey t-shirt). But it took me a little while to figure out that he also played music. See, Petey doesn’t post many music-related videos on his profile. I originally knew him as this incredibly funny guy who posted sketches that usually featured Petey playing all the roles/characters himself. Even though there isn’t much biographical information available on him, Petey’s songs are relatively revealing and uniquely original. Lyrically, he tends to lean into his heartfelt personal experiences and desires that he then wraps up, musically, into a post-modern pop pastiche. He’s as comfortable strumming an acoustic guitar as he is singing over programmed beats and synth melodies. He’s released three EPs and a couple of singles on Terrible Records (the label co-owned by Grizzly Bear bassist Chris Taylor). And he has his first full-length album, Lean Into Life, slated for release in September 2021. RIYL: Beck, The Beta Band, Modest Mouse, Grandaddy, Badly Drawn Boy, and Band of Horses. Spotify Apple

Rainbow Frog Biscuits (@rainbowfrogbiscuits)— That’s the name singer-songwriter Amber Louise, who hails from Leicestershire, England, goes by both on social media and as an artist. She joined TikTok in 2019 and initially posted videos showcasing her visual art, including drawings, paintings, embroidery, and elaborate face painting. But in late 2020, she began to post lip sync videos of songs that she had written and recorded herself. The first one was about cleaning up her desk area. It was catchy, it was funny, it was relatable, and it went viral. She has continued writing and recording songs about a whole host of subjects such as things in her room, her unicorn-colored hair, cashews, her dog, her cat, and many more. Her main musical accompaniment is her ukulele, and she’s an expert at layering backing vocals. She’s a master of sharp wordplay and hummable melodies. While she still only has one single (the honest and endearing “Attention”) released commercially, this will probably change soon because she recently signed to Tom Rosenthal’s Tinpot Records. RIYL: Dodie, Kate Bush, Orla Gartland, The Divine Comedy, Addison Grace, and Kings of Convenience. Spotify Apple

So… if you haven’t joined TikTok yet, did any of this convince you? If the answer is still no, whatever, that’s cool. But if the answer is yes, let me be the first to say, good for you! And if you want more suggestions on who to follow, feel free to take a look at my follow list. My TikTok handle is @imackin. ;)