The top 5 TikTok trends of the year so far

For TikTok, the first half of 2024 was rocky, to say the least. The social platform kicked off the year with a fierce licensing dispute with Universal Music Group, which led songs from popular artists such as Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish to be removed from TikTok until the two companies reached an agreement in May. And President Joe Biden signed a bill in April that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if its parent company, ByteDance, doesn’t sell the platform to a U.S. company (which ByteDance has so far said it refuses to do). Despite the legal and political turmoil swirling TikTok, the platform has maintained its power as a driving force behind pop culture trends and the rise of new internet stars. Gen Z also remains fiercely loyal to the platform even in the face of calls for its ban, with 57% of 18-to-24-year-olds saying they oppose that bill in a recent Harvard CAPS Harris Poll. And just under two-thirds (64%) of Gen Zers scroll through TikTok on a daily basis, according to an Ad Age-Harris Poll, compared to just 33% of millennials, 24% of Gen Xers and 5% of Baby Boomers who say they use the platform each day. Read: What Gen Z, millennials, Gen X and Boomers really think of TikTok Below are five of the biggest TikTok trends that have emerged on the platform and spilled over into pop culture thus far in 2024. 40 under 40 entries are open The final deadline for nominations is Aug. 2 Enter here 5. “I’m looking for a man in finance” For basically the entire month of May, it felt as if TikTok comedy creator Megan Boni’s catchy song “I’m looking for a man in finance” had become an inescapable fixture of the “For You” page. Some TikTokers used the song as a backing track to their efforts to locate and romantically pursue a man fitting Boni’s description (“a man in finance, trust fund, six-five, blue eyes”); others compared that list of characteristics to those possessed by their existing romantic partners. @girl_on_couch Can someone make this into an actual song plz just for funzies ♬ original sound - Girl On Couch The trend wasn’t confined to TikTok for long. It quickly spread everywhere from nightclub DJ sets to subway platform flash mobs and even to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Boni also brought her earworm to streaming platforms, releasing an official version of the song with production and songwriting duo Billen Ted on May 16. Her TikTok video garnered nearly 20 million views in its first two weeks on the platform—and, as of this writing, it’s now been viewed over 53 million times. Brands such as Duolingo, the NFL, Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants and United Airlines quickly jumped on the trend and included the song (or the various remixes of it that circulated on TikTok) in their searches for a “man in finance” of their own. Others, including Tubi, have since collaborated with Boni on sponsored social posts. @duolingo hot owl summer loading… #finance #songofthesummer ♬ Looking for a man tima remix - Tima Pages 4. “Can you watch my _____ for me?” Technically, this trend has been bouncing around TikTok since 2021, but its popularity has exploded across the platform in the past few months. In its initial form, the trend largely involved TikTok users setting their phones in front of their babies or pets and asking viewers if they could “watch,” or effectively babysit, their toddlers or furry friends while they briefly left the room. @imbluethesiberiann I think i need a new phone case #goldenretriever #goldenretrieverlife #funny #dogsoftiktok #puppy #goldenpuppy ♬ original sound - Imbluethesiberian While babies and (fur babies) still often appear in these videos, the trend in recent months has morphed into a harmless prank played on teens and adults. Thousands of TikTok users have placed their phones in front of their bewildered parents, siblings, romantic partners or bosses and left them to puzzle out what their pranksters meant when they asked an invisible audience to “watch them.” The boss variation on the trend has been especially popular among brands, with Anthropologie, Béis, Call of Duty and beverage startup Waterdrop among those that have leaned into the viral prank. It’s also taken off in the sports world among franchises such as the McLaren Formula 1 team and the NFL’s Los Angeles Chargers. @beis She needs 24/7 supervision @Shay Mitchell ♬ original sound - Beis Travel Ad Age Leading Women Luncheon Join us Aug. 7 in New York as we recognize this year’s honorees Buy your ticket today 3. Fully conscious baby aka the Four Seasons baby On TikTok, it’s often the most unassuming videos (and the people in them) that are transformed into viral sensations seemingly overnight. Boni and her “man in finance” earworm are one example of that phenomenon; more recently, Hailey Welch, better known as the “Hawk Tuah girl,” has found herself in a similar situation. Perhaps the biggest unexpected TikTok star of 2024 thus far, though, has been 1-year-old Kate Wise, who became an internet darling after her aunt, Stefanie O’Brien, shared a video in mid-May of Kate and her 4-year-old sister Madelyn excitedly shouting “Meee!” when asked, “Who wants to go to the Four Seasons Orlando?” @sobrizzle If the @Four Seasons Hotels ♬ original sound - Stefanie O’Brien Kate’s surprisingly adult-like response to the question (especially her raised pointer finger) captivated TikTok users, who began referring to Kate as “fully conscious baby.” That nickname generated a slew of videos playing up Kate’s supposed sophistication—one video portrayed her as responding to the query with “I would be absolutely exuberated to join the family on a voyage to Four Seasons Orlando.” As of this writing, O’Brien’s video of her nieces has amassed more than 78 million views and over 9 million likes. The Four Seasons quickly reached out to partner with Kate and her family and organized a luxury getaway at its Orlando location over Memorial Day weekend, which O’Brien documented across several TikTok videos. Plus, dozens of other brands, including Tarte Cosmetics and Topgolf, joined in on the trend and the various video formats that spun out of it. 2. “We’re _____, of course we _____” We’re Ad Age, of course we’re going to put this TikTok trend in our top five. This trend, which has had a near-constant presence on TikTok since January, revolves around two people walking alongside each other and taking turns speaking to the camera about various traits or stereotypes associated with different aspects of their identities, from their careers to their Zodiac signs. One TikTok user jokingly leveraged the video format to describe the trend itself, saying, “We’re doing this trend, of course we’re gonna walk over and over again in the same spot in the street.” The trend started to gain momentum in mid-January when Kim Kardashian used the “we’re _____, of course we _____” format in a viral TikTok showing off the lavish office of her shapewear brand Skims. Since then, brands such as PBS Kids and Rare Beauty have also employed the trend to offer consumers a behind-the-scenes glimpse of their office spaces. Many others have instead used the format to describe different aspects of their brands or products, or to shine a spotlight on their employees, from Emirates to Five Guys—and even TikTok itself. And, perhaps because of its simplicity, TikTok users (and brands) regularly continue to use the video format. @rarebeauty …emphasis on the offline printer @Selena Gomez 🖨️ Still not over our office, redesigned in partnership with @thehavenly @Rove Concepts @sherwinwilliams 🫶 #rarebeauty #rarebeautyoffice #selenagomez #officetour #ofcoursetrend ♬ original sound - Rare Beauty 1. TikTok’s “pop girl renaissance” Each year, the internet-wide debate to determine which song will win the coveted title of “song of the summer” gets particularly heated on TikTok. A clear winner has yet to emerge for the summer of 2024—not due to a lack of options, but rather because there were more viable songs for that title than ever before. And that’s largely due to TikTok’s role in fueling the explosive growth of two artists with strong “song of the summer” contenders: Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan. TikTok—or, more specifically, its Gen Z users—has played a major part in the meteoric rises of both Carpenter and Roan this year. Their respective songs “Espresso” and “Good Luck, Babe!” each received massive boosts in popularity after going viral on the platform, and clips of the two rising pop stars performing at music festivals such as Coachella further amplified their rapid ascent to stardom. Across social media, people have referred to the artists’ simultaneous success, along with recent surges in popularity among other pop artists, such as Charli XCX and Tinashe, as a TikTok-driven “pop girl renaissance.” @nicolesbrain We havent had decent pop in over a decade tbh this resurgence is fuel 4 life itself !!!!!! Every1 say thank u chappell roan n sabrina carpenter ♬ GOOD LUCK BABE by CHAPPELL ROAN - Chappell’s Fandom 👑 The hashtags for both Carpenter and Roan have each amassed billions of views in the past four months (3 billion for Carpenter and 2 billion for Roan), and they’ve each had additional songs reach TikTok virality in recent months beyond their competing “songs of the summer.” Roan’s song “Hot to Go!”, for example, spawned a trending dance some have called Gen Z’s version of the iconic “Y.M.C.A.” dance. And Carpenter’s newly-released “Please Please Please” spawned a video transition set to the song’s lyrics. Carpenter’s characteristic glowy makeup look has also captivated beauty influencers on TikTok, many of whom have shared tutorials to help their audiences emulate her look. In other words—if you’re a marketer eager to connect with Gen Z audiences, two of their new pop stars are a great place to start. @capitalofficial That stage is HERS #CapitalSTB #sabrinacarpenter #feather #readyourmind #espresso #pleasepleaseplease ♬ original sound - Capital Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs

The top 5 TikTok trends of the year so far

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