You don’t need to be a millennial to be aware of the lip-syncing and probably the most entertaining app — TikTok which not only allows its users to share their creativity and content with their followers, but of late has also become an essential music delivery platform, helping songs reach the millions of users. No wonder labels, Bollywood production houses are all working with TikTok. The platform has also given some unknown artists fame.
What adds essence to the app is the use of music, either as the main element or in the background, because of which many music tracks — new and old, known and not so known, film-based and non-film based, original and indie, and even a few regional ones — are reaching millions of users.
A spokesperson from the app says that the platform has become an exciting vehicle for songs and emerging artists to gain exposure and reach a wide and varied audience. “We are witnessing a time when creators and users across generations are discovering music on the platform. They are uncovering and stumbling upon different genres of music and we are proud to support the artist community, including music labels and artists. It is interesting to see how production houses understand this value proposition of TikTok in the music industry and are optimising the platform to reach out to a large and varied audience,” says the spokesperson.
There have been several streaming and other platforms where artists could release their songs in a bid to become famous, yet TikTok is raising a whole new generation of artists with original sound score. The spokesperson adds that the app has become a powerful tool for the discovery and promotion of breakout music which has led to significant off-platform success for artists.
If a song becomes popular on TikTok, an artist could even have prospects to be signed by a label or lead herself/himself to probability of other collaborations. Popular independent artist Harrdy Sandhu launched the teaser of his new song Dance like Me exclusively on TikTok which secured 72.2k video creations.
Additionally, the platform also provides opportunities for musicians to build a community of followers and showcase their original and creative work to a global audience.
ARTIST-SPEAK
Darshan Raval, the famous singer too is on the app with a massive following of 1.8m. Sure it is the best way to reach the masses in just a few seconds. “There has never been a more exciting time to be in the music industry, and TikTok is the new rhythm for the music industry. The platform is not only enabling new talent but is also empowering artists to easily collaborate and share their work of art with a larger audience. It is heart-warming to see the response from my fans on my music. The extensive music catalogue collection is applause-worthy and I am glad to be associated with a platform that are front runners in the music industry,” Darshan says.
The extremely popular pop singer and song composer Arjun Kanungo says that the app has made it really easy for music artists to directly connect with a wider audience. “It’s truly motivating to see fans groove to your music and what excites me about the platform is its ability to encourage people to be authentic and create content that inspires them. I really enjoy creating music videos on TikTok,” says Arjun. He adds that unlike other social media platforms, the app paints a realistic picture of how one’s content is received by fans, which is a valuable feedback for him.
CONTENT CREATORS
Krishna Singh, a creator who started his music journey on the app, credits the growth in his career to TikTok, besides of course, his band Rawmats. “My mantra has always been to try and think from audiences’ point of view and create content that resonates with them. The app’s music discovery feature has helped my music reach out to millions and gain a lot of appreciation and love from the community,” says Singh.
One of his songs has over 1.6 million videos which was co-created by his followers and many popular TikTokers! “My popularity on TikTok has led to my fans following me on other social media platforms. They encourage me to create more content which is truly humbling,” he says.
Whereas for Varsha Tripathi, the app has simply made it easy for her to share her talent with a more global audience. She believes that through the platform, she has connected with music lovers. “It’s extremely simple to use and gives millions of people from around the world get access to it instantly, something which wasn’t easy to do in the past,” she says.
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