TikTok: Will a US Ban Destroy the Future of Music Discovery?

The US House bipartisanly approved legislation Wednesday (Mar. 13) that could ban video-sharing platform TikTok in the United States, due to security concerns regarding its Chinese ownership.

If enacted, the bill would stipulate the popular social media app part ways with parent company ByteDance within a several-month timeline, or be banned from US app stores.

It's not clear what the fate of the legislation, which is expected to move to the Senate next, will be. President Joe Biden has stated he is in support of the bill and will sign it if it passes both branches.

TikTok is already currently at a standoff with Universal Music Group over usage of the industry giant's music, with UMG having let its licensing deal with the platform expire last month. UMG cited concerns over appropriate artist compensation, the use of AI, and online saftey as key points for its decsion.

While questions of what is next for the platform -- which is used by 170 million Americans -- are in the minds of all content creators, the impending possibility of a ban weighs particularly hard on music artists and music fans, for which TikTok has become an invaluable tool for music promotion and discovery.

TikTok's Impact on Music Discovery

A ban on TikTok would unquestionably have a disproportionate negative effect on independent and newer artists who do not have major representation of any kind.

A report commisioned by TikTok in Nov. 2023 showed that, according to data accumulated by entertainment research firm Luminate, the platform has an outsized influence on how users find new music and discover new artists to follow. In the US, it cited, TikTok users are nearly twice as likely to discover music on short-form video (SFV) platforms than the average user of SFV or social media platforms, and are significantly more likely to use a paid music streaming service than the average consumer.

Additionally, the report spotlighted off-platform value for musicians, showing that higher percentages of TikTok users globally spend money on concert tickets, artist merchandise, and other music-related purchases.

But that's not the only reason TikTok is invaluable for smaller artists. Success stories from musicians who have built their audience from a viral model are speaking out about the influence the social media brand has had in launching their careers.

'Damage the Music Hard'

This isn't the first news of an impending TikTok ban in the US. Last spring, political discussion began to swirl regarding concerns of whether it posed a national security threat, causing content creators -- and musicians who depend on it for self-promotion -- to worry about its fate.

British rapper Stepz, who was named TikTok's breakout artist in summer of 2022, lamented to the BBC that banning TikTok would "damage the music hard."

Explaining that the platform allowed him to showcase his talent to fans and music scouts alike in a way that he might not have been able to afford or break into otherwise, he noted, "Now kids that actually have talent can show their sound."

He touched on the viral component of TikTok as well, saying that "if [the music] is good, it will go off."

"Imagine posting a video and you get 100,000 views or a million, that gives you opportunity."

While he said he believes that his success "would have happened anyway," he admitted that without TikTok, "I don't think it would have been as fast."

'Just an Amazing Thing for Me'

Meanwhile, Grammy-nominated artist Noah Kahan, who boasts 2.4 million followers on TikTok and largely credits the platform for his viral popularity among his Gen Z fanbase, told NPR last month that working with it has been "just an amazing thing for me."

"I was very hesitant to get on it in the first place," he admitted. "It was weird back then, to be fair. It was like people dancing around and like filters and stuff. But every once in a while I'd see an amazing song."

Kahan explained that he learned the platform's unique signature short-format style, which often relies on repetition of a catchy single musical verse or chorus, was a "cool way to workshop songs."

"I write kind of sporadic little chunks a lot," he noted. I usually write a first verse and chorus, and then I step away for a few months and come back to it. So I had all these verses and choruses, and I put them on TikTok."

Upon seeing a positive fan response to these, Kahan said, "That would help me finish [songs]."

'We're Going to Find a Way'

TikTok has pushed back on Wednesday's House vote, saying in a statement that it hopes the Senate will "consider the facts" and "listen to their constituents." On Feb. 28, in the wake of the UMG licensing lapse, the platform asserted, "We will continue to connect all artists -- including those whose music is not currently available on our platform -- with their fans."

Still, the future of the app's value as a promotional tool for discovering lesser-known musical artists remains up in the air..

While he says he is "incredibly grateful to have spent the time building a fan base," Kahan urged newer musicians to not give up hope of getting their art out to an audience in light of the iimpending issues with TikTok.

"I hope that developing artists know that it's going to be okay and that we're going to find a way for people to find the music and that great music wins, regardless of the platform," he told NPR.

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