Through TikTok your song can go viral: There are a number of cases where artists and songwriters, who have a rather low number of followers on other social platforms, get a lot of attention on TikTok and therefore perform better and generate reach on other platforms like Spotify as well.
- TikTok Tip: Learning how TikTok music advertising can help you will increase your audience and get people to be hypnotized by your songs.
Our tip: If you’re new to TikTok, take some time to learn about the features, etc. of TikTok. Because: It’s worth it. Tiktok cleverly mixes elements that remind you of Spotify, Snapchat, Vine, and Twitch – and all this in a social media platform. Music is the heart of TikTok. The right song can make a video go viral – or rather: the right song snippet. The 15-second TikTok videos don’t play the entire song – that would be way too long! Since you only have these 15 seconds to present your song in the best possible way, you should give the tiktokers the best part of your song.
- TikTok Tip: How do you find the best part of your song? It’s all about finding the right vivid part of the song. For example, in dance, there are so many drops that you can always find great moments that are perfect for the background music of a video.
Do you know the hit “Old Town Road” by rapper Lil Nas? This number had several successes to its credit. How did he manage that? A month after the song was released, TikToker Nicemichael posted a video: Dressed in western clothes, he spun around to “Old Town Road” for 15 seconds. Apparently, this video to the song was very well received: other TikTokers imitated it and so the rapper Lil Nas got attention… not only on TikTok: More than 500 million streams on Spotify, in 13 countries at the top of the charts, including Germany. Another artist who understood the Meme game: Blanco Brown with “The Git Up”. Again country rap, again illustrative lyrics.
- TikTok Tip: The main thing is that the melodies are contagious and straightforward. A good hook or an inspiring beginning can be more important than the overall quality of the production or perfect mastering.
So, the recipe for success could be: Simple lyrics + repetition as often as possible + bass drop + danceable or epic melody = hit. Something like that works. TikToker also tends to hype hip-hop and pop songs more than any other genre – because that’s the pulse of the time. Examples of the hype are also the rappers Cashmo and Jiggo, who were under contract with igroove.
On the other hand, TikTok is very flexible and fast-moving. That means: other ideas can also work, so there is actually no real recipe for success. What is celebrated, is what is well received by the people. From the two examples above you can see those successful artists, songwriters or producers often mix the boundaries between genres and combine them as they want to.
- Tip: Just let yourself be inspired by your favorite artists. They have already been through the trial and error phase and know what works best with their fanbase. Analyze how similar musicians market and present themselves on TikTok. Of course, you should not copy anyone, just be yourself. Because authenticity always goes down well – especially for an app with the slogan “Real Videos. Real people”.
On TikTok, there is a symbol, which is a spinning record from which musical notes emanate. This represents the song excerpt that the user plays in his TikTok. Click on it to see the name and artist of the song and a feed of other TikToks that also contain this song. For example, “Fake ID” by Riton and Kah-Lo-a particularly popular song on TikTok-has been featured in over 1.4 million videos that are shown on the song’s page. These clips probably do not represent the full range of “Fake ID” TikToks on the platform, but more on this later.
Here is some basic information you need to know if you want to get started on TikTok.
- make your music accessible on Tiktok. This is, of course, the prerequisite for you and TikTokers to be able to play music on Tiktok. If you have already released your music on Spotify or Apple Music, it is usually available on TikTok. Otherwise, you can also make recordings directly in the app, name them and make them available to others.
- use your older music, too. Don’t just think about your newest song, because the best TikTok snippet might be in your older songs. Maybe it’s just waiting to be rediscovered and to boost your music career. This is what happened to Lizzo, for example – one of her older songs shot up her career.
- think about your target group. First of all, most TikTok users are relatively young: between 16 and 24 years old. If you see your target audience in this age group: Perfect! But even if your music is for older fans, you shouldn’t stick your head in the sand: This is no reason to exclude TikTok directly. Just like the older generations have gradually discovered facebook and instagram, it could happen with TikTok. The main thing is to be present on the social media platforms and communicate effectively with your fans. If you join TikTok now, you can still have a chance to shape the use of Tiktok for your target audience.
- have the “big picture” in mind. The hook you choose for TikTok has to inspire people and encourage them to make videos about it. It might not necessarily be the song snippet you like best, but it should have a certain appeal and create an epic moment. Familiar melodies and lyrics – this has worked for a long time, no matter if it’s a radio hit, best playlist performer or just a viral song on TikTok.
- the community is the center of attention. TikTok lives from the commitment of all users. TikTok radiates its own charme, and reality works best, not the raised nose. It’s about inspiration, so that others can continue to spin your ideas.
These five tips should give you a rough overview of TikTok and the importance of music marketing. Sure, we haven’t explained the specific functions to you now – but you can easily do that on your own. This is more about understanding what makes the platform and how its users are. It’s always good if you’re an active artist on TikTok. But pushing your song with videos on your own is certainly time-consuming – a time you can better put into your music!
That’s why you can simply rely on the cooperation with experienced influencers. Either you find them yourself or contact a promotion agency like BEFORE EIGHT.
At BEFORE EIGHT, we promote your songs by providing your music to selected influencers. The TikTok influencers then use the music in their videos and inspire their followers to promote your music and maybe even generate fans for you. Once your songs are discovered by many people thanks to the campaign, they will search for the song, title or lyrics and then get inspired again – that’s the TikTok vibe!
If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact us via the contact form. In the next few blog articles, we will continue to follow the TikTok trend and give you more tips and tricks on how to become successful as musicians, producers and songwriters on and through TikTok – tik tok music promo is the key. Stay tuned!
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