It’s one of the most powerful platforms for music discovery in the world – and TikTok for DJs has a huge following. Learn how to harness the power of TikTok to promote your music, performances and personal brand.
Why Should DJs Use TikTok?
If you’ve already grown a following on Instagram, you might be wondering why you need to branch into TikTok for DJs. The answer’s pretty simple: it’s a whole new audience, not a duplicate sample of the followers you already have.
There’s a readymade audience of engaged, music-loving young people who are eager to hear something new. Just search for the hashtag #djs and discover hundreds of millions (soon to be billions) of views on content.
Instagram’s growth is slowing, while TikTok is accelerating – and not because TikTok is a small, flash-in-the-pan fad on the way up.
The app has been downloaded 1.5 billion times and has over 1 billion active users. Of these users, 53% are male and 47% female; a much more even split than Instagram’s 65% female majority.
By far the largest age groups on TikTok are teens and early twenties, who represent 62% of the user base. Compare this with Instagram’s markedly older audience of predominantly 25-34 year olds and up.
TikTok is where the new generation of music-lovers finds their tribe. It’s a brand new, engaged audience for you to cater to – and as a musician, you’ll have plenty to offer the platform.
Promoting Music on TikTok
To release music on TikTok for use in videos, you need a distributor – same as with Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music or any other music streaming platform. There are probably hundreds of distributors by now, but you’ve probably heard of the bigger names: CD Baby, Ditto, LANDR, Reverbnation and AWAL.
That’s just the beginning, though. You can use your own audio in your videos – just remember that you’ve only got 15 seconds to play with. You can become an active member of the scene, by commenting and engaging.
But the biggest impact will come from building your personal brand and audience. And to achieve that growth, you’ll need content.
Do Some Content Research
Find some notable formats – like challenge videos – and the best performers, to get an idea of what works.
Branch out beyond DJ content and look deeper. Do you have any fringe skills, besides music? Could you use these to add the element of surprise to your videos? Is there a challenge, a dance or a signature move you can add to one of your mixes?
Follow the latest trends and hashtags on the platform, using TikTok’s analytics. Contribute to the fastest growers, using relevant hashtags – and use them to inspire your own, new content.
Find Your Voice
We haven’t touched on performance videos yet – so should you do them?
Yes, of course – do performance videos. Lots of them. But remember you’ve only got a maximum of 15 seconds per post. That’s not a long time to grab attention, maintain it and keep it coming back.
You’ve got to be authentic, bold and 100% of yourself.
What’s your unique “thing”? Everyone’s got at least one. Is your music strange, or universal? Do you play any odd instruments or have a different way of doing things to others – like a thematic set of sounds you use? Is your performance a spectacle, or methodical and entrancing?
And what about you?
Are you goofy and weird, or totally deadpan? Obviously funny or super-slick? Calm and cool, or bouncing off the walls with energy?
Whatever your thing is, lean into it. Hard.
It’s what makes you different. Nobody else has this.
Nobody in the world can do what you do the way that you do it. Your brain is wired like no other – embrace it, because there will be people who love you for it.
None of history’s greatest artists did things like the majority of people. They found their own voice. Finding yours is simpler than you’d think – it’s that little spark that made you want to create in the first place. Be honest to it, let it sing for itself with no filter… What’s it saying?
This is what’s going to make you stand out on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter… And on stage. This is who you are, deep down. Once you expose it, you’ll start growing an audience of people who care, and who want more.
Take the leap into TikTok – and show the world what you’ve got.
Urban Rebel PR: Promotion for DJs and Dance Artists
For emerging talent and established names, we create flexible, unique PR strategies that cut through. Contact us and make your mark: call +44 (0) 161 298 6650 or send your message to info@urbanrebelpr.com.
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