5 new TikTok trends that brands can follow

TikTok’s looming U.S. ban and the company’s ensuing lawsuit against the U.S. government haven’t hindered the seemingly-infinite cycle of TikTok trends, from new meme formats to musical or verbal earworms stuck in the heads of Gen Zers. That’s not surprising, as nearly two-thirds of adult Gen Zers are logging onto TikTok daily, according to a recent Ad Age-Harris Poll. Additionally, three in four of the surveyed Gen Zers believe brands will suffer if TikTok were to disappear—which isn’t too much of a stretch based on how many brands still regularly leverage the latest TikTok trends to stay relevant among Gen Z consumers. Below are five of the latest trends circulating the platform—and brands participating in them. If you missed our most recent round of trends, you can catch up here. ‘Let me say I’m the biggest hater’ The ongoing feud between rappers Kendrick Lamar and Drake has taken social media by storm. On TikTok, hashtags such as #DrakeVsKendrick and #RapBeef have each racked up tens of millions of views in the past week. And though some of the accusations the two rappers are hurling at one another through increasingly brutal diss tracks touch on heavy topics such as domestic abuse and pedophilia, the biggest TikTok trend that’s emerged out of the lengthy rap battle is largely detached from that controversy. The trend revolves around a six-minute diss track Lamar fired off at Drake titled “Euphoria,” in which Lamar raps, “Now, let me say I'm the biggest hater / I hate the way that you walk, the way that you talk / I hate the way that you dress”—among a slew of other insults. TikTok users and creators are leveraging that chunk of the song to describe things that they hate, from men as a collective to the character Ezra Fitz from the TV series “Pretty Little Liars.” For one user’s labrador retriever puppy, meanwhile, that “beef” is with the mailman. A handful of brands have harnessed the trending lines of “Euphoria” for their own TikTok videos, including the Empire State Building, which aimed Lamar’s jabs at other notable skyscrapers, and Scrub Daddy, which lambasted traditional sponges. Duolingo set the song to a physical fight between Duo and another of its mascots. @empirestatebldg You don’t know nothing about that 🎶🎶 #empirestatebuilding #newyork #nyc ♬ euphoria - ziora ‘Your Honor, she won’t stop _____’ This next trend takes us from a rap feud to a courtroom battle. It involves TikTok users editing text and/or images onto an 1860s French painting titled “Le Défenseur (Counsel for the Defense)” to depict a squabble between the two subjects of the painting: a lawyer and a cheeky-looking woman sitting next to him. Users typically add text reading something along the lines of, “Your Honor, she won’t stop _____,” with that action the woman refuses to stop doing ranging from singing a specific song (like Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso”) to saying a particular phrase (such as “SpongeBob SquarePants” quotes). The video—or photo carousel—then switches to show the woman continuing the act she’s being accused of, often with the addition of text, emoji or other edits. Several brands have leaned into the trend, too, with Sol de Janeiro, Aritzia and clothing brand Roller Rabbit depicting the smug woman in the painting surrounded by their respective products she can’t get herself to stop buying. Patrick Ta Beauty showed the woman refusing to stop reciting its makeup artist founder’s viral “creme over powder” blush technique. Pinterest had the woman defend herself against accusations she went to bed too late by saying, she “opened up Pinterest.” @rollerrabbitofficial But this obsession isnt hurting anyone!!! ♬ original sound - Roller Rabbit Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs ‘The parasites in me want the candy’ This trend is less horrifying than the title makes it sound. It originates from an edited clip of a 2023 IGN interview with actress Tiffany Haddish, who tells the interviewer, “I don’t want to eat candy, but the parasites in me want the candy.” Haddish’s voice in the latter half of the sentence is distorted, as if it’s her inner demon (“the parasites”) that’s speaking. Thousands of TikTok users have leveraged Haddish’s out-of-context quote to highlight internal battles between their wants and needs—often ones having to do with brands. One user, for example, described their obsession with Target’s seasonal decorative birds; another used the audio clip to describe her struggle to stop buying new character skins in the game Fortnite. Nearly 65,000 videos using the sound are circulating on TikTok, including ones from the accounts for Care Bears, “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and phone accessory brand Case-Mate. @carebearsofficial In a constant state of napping 🥱 #carebears #bedtimebear #sleepy #bed #nap ♬ But the parasites want the candy - moe.donut ‘Luckily, I have purse’ One iteration of the “Your Honor, she won’t stop” trend features the woman on trial unable to stop repeating the phrase, “Luckily, I have purse”—and she isn’t the only one on TikTok having that problem. The grammatically incorrect phrase stems from a conversation between creators Kelsey Kreppel and Connor Wood on the podcast “Brooke and Connor Make a Podcast,” during which Kreppel accidentally said “Luckily, I have purse” instead of “Luckily, I have a purse.” Her co-host then cut her off to poke fun at her slip of the tongue and list phrases using a similar format: “I have purse, I have shoe, I have hat on head.” TikTok users have since used the trending audio across roughly 40,000 videos, often mouthing along to the audio clip and showing off purses or other accessories (including one who referred to their dachshund wearing a life jacket as their “purse.”) Brands have also used the comedic back-and-forth for TikTok videos. Sanrio (the maker of Hello Kitty and other characters) and Cinnamon Toast Crunch filmed their respective mascots flaunting purses, while Team USA and the PGA Tour tied the trend to their athletes. And supermarket chain Aldi capitalized on the trend to promote its large new tote bags. @teamusa @Kelsey Kreppel & @Connor Wood 🐸 how’d they do?!? @One leg man 🤝 Brooke Raboutou #ezrafrech #brookeraboutou #teamusa #olympics #paralympics #trackandfield #climbing #ihavepurse #parisolympics #parisparalympics ♬ original sound - Brooke & Connor Make a Podcast Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs ‘I’m working late, cuz I’m a singer’ Like “Luckily, I have purse,” TikTok users have also been endlessly repeating the lyrics “I’m working late, cuz I’m a singer” from Sabrina Carpenter’s song “Espresso,” as this TikTok video hilariously demonstrates. While TikTokers are largely mouthing along to the song’s original lyrics in their videos, many are also putting their own twists on the catchy line to describe their reasons for “working late” at their jobs or in other situations. They typically indicate those changes using on-screen text and parentheses, such as “i’m working late cuz I’m a singer (i’m a grad student with a full time job)” or “I’m working late (stayed up until 3 a.m.) cause I’m a singer (I couldn’t put my book down).” Brands that have joined in on the trend include skincare brand Paula’s Choice, mattress brand Casper and beauty membership service Ipsy, which all edited Carpenter’s lyrics to reflect their brands or products. Period care brand August reworked the lyrics too, using emoji to write, “I’m working late (washing blood out of my underwear) cuz I’m a singer! (thought my period was done so I didn’t put another August pad on).” @itsaugustco gonna need an #espresso to smile again☕️🩸 #OnMyPeriod #leak ♬ espresso sabrina - celebs media Sign up for Ad Age newsletters From influencer marketing to agencies, get the latest news and analysis delivered to your inbox Click here

5 new TikTok trends that brands can follow

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