What is TikTok and why is it so popular?

It’s almost impossible at this point not to have heard about the popular social media app TikTok. A true sensation, this platform has blown up in a short amount of time, becoming one of the most downloaded apps in the last several years alone. But while you’ve likely heard of it, and maybe even seen a dance or two, do you really understand how it works?

If you don’t have a member of Generation Z to ask (or maybe they’ve already explained and you still don’t get it), read through this gallery to learn all about TikTok and its meteoric rise amongst the younger generation.

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What is TikTok? -

TikTok is a social media platform working with short-form video that allows users to create content and interact with peers.

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Short-form video - This means that users create videos that are generally around 15 seconds long, using music in the background or lip-syncing to previously recorded audio.

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Audio -

TikTok has a wealth of different “sounds” available, which can mean music, clips from TV and film, or even clips recorded by other users.

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The videos are the stars -

TikTok doesn’t value text content as much as other social media outlets do. Your feed is solely made up of videos (with a small description at the bottom), and you can swipe up or down to keep watching.

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Hashtags -

While hashtags are involved in many types of social media, they are key on TikTok. They are what you search when you’re looking for different types of videos, including specific dances, challenges, or even just general topics like makeup or DIY.

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Why is TikTok so attractive to users? -

While TikTok may initially seem like just another video-based social media app, it has several points that help it stand out.

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Algorithm -

TikTok’s algorithm is one of its main draws. While you can like and follow specific people on the app, the advanced algorithm behind your feed will constantly change and evolve based on videos you’ve watched or merely interacted with.

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Individual taste -

Imagine that instead of having to search for people you know and like on social media to get your desired feed, much like you would on Instagram or Facebook, you are automatically given videos tailored to your personal taste. Of course it makes you want to keep swiping.

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User interaction -

Unlike standard social media, TikTok users are encouraged to really interact with other users on the platform. In addition to comments, messages, and audio, TikTok also allows you to do “response videos” or “duets,” where your video appears side-by-side with another existing video.

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It can be impersonal -

With video topics like challenges and dances, your videos become one of many. While whatever you post on your Instagram or Facebook is very personal, you can choose to make mainstream TikTok videos that can disappear into the masses, which is an appealing concept for many young teens.

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The rise of TikTok -

TikTok didn’t just pop up out of thin air. Continue on to figure out where TikTok came from and how it became a global sensation.

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Chinese company -

TikTok is owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, and officially became known under this moniker in 2017.

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Two companies merged -

TikTok came to be through the merging of two Chinese apps: Douyin and Musical.ly.

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Douyin -

A company you may not recognize, Douyin is an app only available in China. It is the original TikTok, and still operates under this name in China today.

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Musical.ly -

Musical.ly began targeting the entertainment industry after failing to gain traction in the education sector. It served as a platform for short lip-sync music videos. After gaining a lot of popularity, especially in the US, it merged to become TikTok in 2018.

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Vine shut down -

Do you remember this other video-sharing app? Vine worked with even shorter looped videos, but its closing in 2016 had a large impact on the popularity of TikTok today. Many of the users moved to Musical.ly in order to continue their posts, and were in turn moved to TikTok after the merger.

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TikTok today -

With a large base of Musical.ly users to start things off and more people downloading the app every day, it’s no wonder the platform boasts 800 million monthly active users.

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Musical impact -

Since TikTok uses music in many of its videos, artists have begun to gain a large amount of popularity through the platform alone. Songs like ‘Savage’ by Megan Thee Stallion and even ‘Old Town Road’ by Lil Nas X owe much of their popularity to viral videos on the app.

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YouTube to TikTok -

While YouTube influencers are very much a thing of the present, TikTok influencers are right there with them. The most-followed account on TikTok has more than 70 million followers.

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Celebrities -

Celebrities have not let this trend go by unnoticed. There are plenty of Hollywood’s elite using the app, whether to promote their art, let people in on their lifestyle, or to make hilarious videos. Even J.Lo uses it!

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Controversy -

The app is not without controversy, however. Many countries around the world are concerned about the app’s storage and handling of user data. India has already banned the app, and Australia and the US are both considering it.

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Controversy -

But that’s not all. Due to its young user base, TikTok had to pay a whopping US$5.7 million after being accused by the Federal Trade Commision of collecting data from users younger than 13 years of age.

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Distancing -

TikTok hired a former Disney executive, Kevin Mayer (pictured), as their global CEO in June 2020, which many assume was an attempt to distance themselves from their parent company and lay some of the doubts about the company’s actions to rest.

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So how popular is TikTok really? -

TikTok clearly has had a cultural impact, but to get a real sense of how massive the app has become, here are some shocking facts on the platform’s impressive rise.

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Global spread -

TikTok is available in 141 countries and sits in the top 25 apps of 136 of them, according to Apptrace.

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No translation needed -

The app is currently available in 39 languages, according to TikTok support, though some claim that the number is higher.

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Downloads - The app has been downloaded more than two billion times, after receiving a large boost in downloads during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Teens -

With half of TikTok’s audience being under 34, and 40% of that being between the ages of 16 and 24, TikTok clearly appeals to younger users. Some 49% of teens in the US stated that they have used the app.

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Durability -

With TikTok being the new big thing among young social media users, only time will tell if it will continue to grow, or if it’s set to flame out.