Tik Tok enjoys great popularity, especially among young people. But the platform also holds enormous potential for music creators. In the meantime, Tik Tok has become a tried-and-tested marketing tool and sometimes even helps people to make a decisive career leap.
It sounds like a picture book story. Virtually overnight, Tik Toker Nathan Evans has achieved worldwide fame. Thanks to the video platform Tik Tok, the British singer has experienced a fairytale upswing: from letter carrier to internationally celebrated musician. But how did he manage it?
From mailman to successful musician
Until recently, 27-year-old Nathan Evans worked as a mailman. In his free time, he repeatedly posted his own cover songs on Tik Tok. With success: Shortly before Christmas 2020, he uploaded his own version of the New Zealand sea shanty “Wellerman”.
Within a very short time, his song snippets have achieved millions of views. Some prominent musicians have also recorded the piece, which is said to have been written between 1860 and 1870, on their own. Queen guitarist Brian May is one of them.
Tik Toker Nathan Evans has since had a recording contract and relied on his own manager. On Spotify, Evans has generated over 70 million streams with three different versions of the sea shanty.
Tik Tok in marketing: Turbo for musicians
As a social medium, Tik Tok plays a key role in music marketing. Songs that go viral on Tik Tok arouse the interest of the music industry and are often successful on other platforms as well.
There are now several examples of this.
Both U.S. actress Olivia Rodrigo, with her ballad “Drivers License,” and rapper Lil Nas X, with his song “Old Town Road,” were successful on Tik Tok and in the charts.
With an age range of 16 to 24, Tik Tok’s main user group is also an interesting target group for the music industry.
Record companies and stars cooperate with Tik Tok
For many record companies and music creators, Tik Tok represents an important marketing tool, especially in times of pandemic. Recently, Warner, Universal and Sony signed licensing agreements with Tik Tok in order to receive appropriate remuneration for the music tracks used there.
But Tik Tok doesn’t just hold an opportunity for newcomers. Already well-known and established songs can also benefit. For example, the cult hit “Rasputin” by Boney M. has experienced a real boom thanks to the video platform.
Around four million users have already added the song to their clips. This, in turn, has also had a noticeable effect on the figures on popular streaming portals.
