POPULARITY: How did Tik Tok become the teens go-to social media in such little time?
By Kate Digugliemlo, Staff Writer
According to Business Insider, Tik Tok surpassed Facebook and Instagram as both the world’s most popular and fastest growing app. New York Times reporter, John Herrman, notes that Tik Tok may be attracting users as fast as Snapchat is. Gaining users of 8 to 20 year olds, the app has attracted a variety of people from all age groups. Even though the preferred age is 16 and older, it’s popularity is continuing to grow even opening an opportunity for newfound fame.
Tik Tok is a video making app that started as Musical.ly then transitioned to Tik Tok when the Chinese news firm Bytedance bought and changed the name, adding new effects and gadgets to it. It currently has 500 million users and is still growing. Tik Tok is used to show off many talents including comedy, drawing, and singing. Many artists can gain a large following on Tik Tok, using popular songs and creative ideas. For example, using the song “Old Town Road” is a great illustration of someone gaining fame. The song “Old Town Road” didn’t blow up until after a Tik Tok user, NiceMicheal made a video of a pony riding in the back of his car while the artist, Lil Nas X, was singing “Yeah, I’m gonna take my horse to the old town road, I’m gonna ride ’til I can’t no more, I’m gonna take my horse to the old town road, I’m gonna ride ’til I can’t no more, I got the horses in the back, Horse tack is attached, Hat is matte black.” The video boosted the song’s popularity and the iconic Tik Tok dance made famous by many.
Many people first downloaded Tik Tok as a joke and to “make fun” of it but then grew attached after spending time on it and making videos. People also agree that it is no longer Instagram and Snapchat that teenagers and even some adults are addicted to, it’s now Tik Tok. In fact the website Business of Apps said that Tik Tok is estimated to have 500 million active users in the world, just recently as of 2018. It is extremely popular worldwide and continues to grow everyday. Tik Tok is not only an extremely entertaining app, but also a very successful one. Tik Tok continues to change the view of new social media standards.