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Why and how is this app so influential in today’s music charts?

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MUSIC - OPINION

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9th April 2020

Text Amelia Growdon

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Ever since its release in 2018, TikTok has won the hearts of over one billion users. A prime example of how influential TikTok is in the music industry today is the rise of Lil Nas X and his song "Old Town Road." The song was released in 2019 and quickly grew popular on the video-sharing app, which then resulted in it becoming viral and spending 17 weeks at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100. In my opinion, this all seems crazy. The first time I heard "Old Town Road" I was in a club, I watched in awe as people started screaming and singing along to it but all I could think was “wow, WTF is going on?”

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I am relatively new to the world of TikTok but I have understandably become obsessed with it. Well, there isn’t much else to do in isolation. The only problem I have is that my Spotify playlist is starting to look like the TikTok top charts which doesn’t do much for my image. While looking at the streaming charts, it is clear to see how much impact it has on the charts. Viral sensations such as Doja Cat and Beabadoobee are sitting comfortably in the Top 20s but where did they even come from? My guess is that their catchy songs and lyrics are gaining the attention of some of the famous TikTok stars who then make up dance challenges encouraging other users to follow the routine.

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Is this the new way to break into the music industry? It seems that way, you’d be pretty stupid not to jump on the bandwagon if you were an aspiring artist. Some of these videos get over 40 million views and the song "Say So" by Doja Cat has been featured in over 19 million videos.

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But why though? Well, around 41% of TikTok’s users are aged between 16 and 24 who are an influential age group. They are also more likely to then stream the songs they’ve heard on the app which in turn will boost the artist's popularity.

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Overall, I think TikTok is the best app since Vine. It has filled a hole in my life that I didn’t even realise was there and opened my eyes to a wonderful yet, sometimes weird array of tunes that are accompanied by a dance routine. And I think we can come to the conclusion that yes, it is extremely influential on the charts in today's music.

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