Foreword
Users are starting to become self aware on TikTok this week and it may be just the beginning of much more nuanced trends to come. Whether it’s people grabbing the wrong item, breaking the TikTok fourth wall, or the comeback of transition trends, there is endless content to assess on the platform from every angle. Join us as we explore through the trends and popular culture that surround the app every week, and how you can utilize it to best engage with your audience.
The Trends
#1 Mesh filter
472.3k videos on the sound
Filters continue to dominate as the easiest ways for users to engage with trends on TikTok and it is showing with how frequently they are blowing up. This most recent viral filter allows users to mesh two scenes together with this fragmented transition effect. It’s something you’ll want to check out through the examples below but essentially it allows users to transition from a scene with nothing in it, to a surprise figure or object. Creators are utilizing this to act as if they are grabbing one thing or completing an action but when the beat changes the filter cuts to them grabbing something much more devilish. Whether it goes from turning a water bottle cap to turning a grinder or any other scenario, users are having a ton of fun with this one and we highly encourage you to check out examples for the visual understanding.
Applicability:
Brands will want to use this filter to act as if they are completing daily menial tasks which transitions to a person instead grabbing their product.
#2 Fourth wall break
130.4k videos on the sound
Sometimes even I as a generation Z native struggle to explicate the deep intricacies or rather the dull stupidities of some trends on TikTok. This is one of them. At the start of the video a user is often dancing or doing another simply in place activity. However when the beat drops it cuts to them doing the same thing from a different angle, but the users act as if the fourth wall has been broken between them and creating this TikTok. Effectively they act as if they are sucked into the TikTok and it’s odd when they are investigated from a different angle doing it. I don’t know if TikTok users have been reading too much 1984 but this one is a super odd trend with a ton of underlying nuance that we love to see.
Applicability:
Brands will want to replicate the format but potentially try to emphasize the fourth wall break even further by showing them at work creating TikToks.
#3 Transition
567.6k videos on the sound
Back in the good old days of TikTok when the hype house hadn’t blown up yet and when everybody still questioned why Charli D’amelio of all people was the top creator on the platform, transition trends were the be all end all of what creators utilized. Effectively they give a before and after look at someone, often getting dressed up or made up. This week we’ve seen a reappearance of this once thought to be extinct species and the transition trend is better than ever. In all seriousness this trend is a very simple wipe transition which creators are utilizing to show a strong before and after of themselves and we anticipate many users to hop on for it’s ease.
Applicability:
Brands will simply want to replicate the wipe effect but should get creative with utilizing comedic before and after brand representations.
#4 Levitate (sort of)
170.4k videos on the sound
One might call this a dance trend and another might call it a seizure but regardless, users are having a great time participating in this new wild move. Essentially creators will act as if they are fighting or struggling and one of them will slip to fall on the ground. Then the other party will act as if they are using the force to pull them off the ground and the lower person will thrust upwards with the hand movement. Basically it looks like a clumsy interaction turning into a very well planned save. As with most movement trends there isn’t a ton of rhyme or reason behind this one but users are having a great time with it and it’s blowing up because of it.
Applicability:
Brands will simple want to replicate the move in a brand environment.
#5 30,000?
73.8k videos on the sound
Simple audio trends have been a little bit on the decline in recent weeks with popular filters and sound mashups utilizing a lot of bandwidth but this format is by no means dead. The 30,000 trend is another example of the simple audio trends and in this one users are gawking at the excessive amount of something close to them. The tone comes off as something like “how is it even possible that you did/got 30,000 of X” and users are placing in things like their friend sending 30,000 TikToks while they were in class. The joke is that the amount of X is sarcastically excessive and it’s as simple as that!
Applicability:
Brands will want to highlight the excessive amount of money/likes/followers that they receive from posting dance trends or other content native to TikTok.
#6 It’s not negotiable not even debatable
15.3k videos on the sound
Jack Harlow and Drake have blown up TikTok this week with their collaboration on Jack’s new album. The song is going viral with multiple clips but one small portion that seems to be a strong up and coming trend comes from Drake’s line “I gotta get that [person] back, it’s not negotiable, it’s not even debatable.” Users are applying it to their own life scenarios where someone wrongs them (usually sarcastically) and they need to get that other person back. This is a trend format where users get to apply their lived experiences and with the prevalence and popularity of Jack and Drake, we believe this trend is going to blow up over the next week.
Applicability:
Brands will want to joke about friendly competition with competitors. For example Chick Fil A could joke about Canes releasing their sauce and Chick Fil A, “having to get that [person] back…”
Trends from last week that keep climbing
#1 It’s about d*mn time
104.7k videos on the sound
Lizzo, also referred to as the queen of TikTok, has spoken once again with her new song snippet that has blown up on the platform this week. The short clip originated as a section of her new song which she released early to TikTok, and ever since it hit the platform users quickly developed a dance for it. As with most dance trends there isn’t a ton of rhyme of reason behind it, other than the audio being catchy and fun with easy to learn but cool movements for users to participate with. Check out some examples down below for a better idea of the movements in this one.
Applicability:
Brands will want to simply have brand reps or mascots participate in the dance trend. The wackier the environment they do it in, the better.
#2 Driving filter
165.6k videos on the sound
The prominence of filters on TikTok is no joke and as we’ve been seeing in recent weeks this one has developed it’s way into a viral trend. The filter depicts the user in a car window driving late at night. Users have taken this and aligned it Future and Drake’s new song where Future sings “I’ve been traveling around the world.” Essentially the vibe gives off a late night emotion filled drive, whether devious or sad, and users are aligning their own late night ride experiences with the it. Some videos range from talking about leaving late to meetup with their sneaky link, all the way to trynna to grab McDonalds after a session.
Applicability:
Brands can associate late night cravings for their product to users in the ride.
Brands can also allude to their own menial dilemmas with products or service challenges they face (low scale).
Bonus
On TikTok many creators find success in deep diving into the niche that they are most passionate about. Today we want to highlight the account of Francis Bourgeois who is someone who does this better than anybody. Francis has an immense love for trains and over the past year or so on TikTok he has grown from making videos train spotting in the UK all the way to traveling the world to spot the most special trains that any country may have to offer. What makes his channel so great is that people are engaging with it due to Francis’s passion about trains and not even for the trains. It has more so become about the adventures of Francis rather than how special the trains are. Everybody can get behind Francis as he is someone that unapologetically dives into his craft. Admittedly, he first blew up because his videos were so weird that users found it funny a near adult would be so giddy for trains but this in combination with the wacky GoPro angles made it something they got sucked into. Today Francis is a massively large TikToker and this most recent weekend a very interesting brand decided to harness his fame. If you are unfamiliar the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix took place for the first time this past weekend and many teams have very active TikTok accounts including that of Williams. Williams while they may have not led the pack during the race, definitely took home the win with their TikTok strategy by hosting Francis in their paddock. Driver Alex Albon and Francis swapped helmet for GoPro setup and the whole team engaged with Francis exploring around the car. It was a great collision of worlds and created content that got millions of views across multiple channels.