The death of the TikTok music industry

What a shifting music industry could look like without its top platform.
Graphic by Finn Grosu / The Concordian

The looming possibility of a TikTok ban in the United States is raising questions about the future of the music industry, which has grown increasingly intertwined with TikTok’s platform. 

The prospective TikTok ban in the United States last weekend raised concerns about the music industry’s reliance on the platform. However, the platform only went dark for a few hours until then-president-elect Donald Trump announced that he would sign an executive order stalling the ban.  

The eventful weekend underlined TikTok’s critical role in, among other things, defining modern music trends.

“A lot of your favorite artists nowadays, if it wasn’t for TikTok, they wouldn’t have blown up,” said Sammy Talukder, a TikTok content creator with 150,000 followers on the platform. “Because their songs went so viral on TikTok, and then onto radio and then onto the charts.” 

The app has served as a launchpad for countless hit tracks in recent years, providing artists with direct access to billions of users. Songs like “Million Dollar Baby” by Tommy Richman have amassed global success, as have singles like “CARNIVAL” by the duo ¥$. 

TikTok’s impact is evident in its ever-growing contribution to the Billboard Hot 100. Music that gains traction on the app constantly climbs and remains on the charts, proving TikTok’s mass influence — so much so that Billboard even introduced its TikTok Billboard Top 50 chart in September 2023, which tracks the most engaged-with songs on the app.

Richman’s “Million Dollar Baby” was the chart’s best-performing song of 2024 and saw equal success on the main charts: it was the eighth-highest-performing song on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2024.

The absence of such an influential platform would create a significant loss in the expansion of both independent artists and labels and the exposure and promotion of their music.

“It’s gonna be a lot harder for them to promote,” mused Guenièvre Sainvil, a third-year sociology major at Concordia. “TikTok has become an easy and accessible platform to get traction and virality. Without the platform, it’s going to be a lot harder, as this system of low effort and high reward may no longer be in place.” 

Music labels and artists may return to more conventional methods or look for new digital alternatives, which could stall the scope of the music scene for the time being as they look for the next best thing. 

“If the TikTok ban for the Americans comes into place, this could significantly impact the music industry. Influences, trends may slow down, resulting with less new music exposure,” said Hadia Oumou, a first-year political science student at Concordia.

The potential TikTok ban could inevitably impact global regions, including Canada, where TikTok has a significant presence and engagement. TikTok Radio on SiriusXM, which plays the platform’s most popular songs, may significantly lose relevance by losing one of its most influential demographics and markets. The ripple effect may cause changes in radio programming and the entire structure of music promotion in North America. 

As the ban remains uncertain, one thing is sure: the end of TikTok in the United States will signal the end of an era for the music industry.

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