[Omona Original] Kpop idols on TikTok: an undemocratic awards show

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

BTS won "TikTok artist of the Year" at the MAMA 2021 - deserved or not? Let's go over a few kpop artists' TikTok accounts and see how they're faring. Are they keeping up with the fast-paced TikTok trends, dances and memes or are they unwilling participants on this social media platform?

I crowned Twice as reigning queens of TikTok in this post.

This is a media-heavy post!

Category: ok Boomer
👑Winner👑: BTS

TikTok by @bts_official_bighit

TikTok by @bts_official_bighit

TikTok by @bts_official_bighit

The early days of BTS' TikTok acocunt consisted of the members (mostly Jhope) trying out the app's different filters, but from their Dynamite promotions onwards their videos mostly entail unsuccessful and cringey attempts at creating viral TikTok sounds and TikTok trends/dances. Especially for Butter promotions, their attempts at TikTok trends was incoherent (see above): is the sound supposed to be used to show off one's smoothness (like Butter/Jin), one's meanness (like RM), or one's lack of singing talent (like Suga)?

Category: ok Boomer
😬Honorable mention😬: Winner's Mino

TikTok by @mino_van_song

I only wanted to share this video with you because it's a good representation of his random filter use and it made me laugh when it suddenly appeared on my for you page. Since he apparently just made a comeback, his most recent TikToks are promotional.

Category: Social butterfly
👑Shared Winner👑: Jeon Somi

TikTok by @somi_official_

TikTok by @somi_official_

TikTok by @somi_official_

We love girls supporting girls even if it's for capitalist purposes. Promoting her song XO, Somi met up with Twice, Red Velvet's Seulgi & Wendy, WekiMeki's Doyeon and Yoojung, Chungha and even traveled all the way to Kwangya to dance to her song with Aespa's Giselle.

Category: Social butterfly
👑Shared Winner👑: WekiMeki

TikTok by @wm_official

TikTok by @wm_official

TikTok by @wm_official

The celebrities spotted in WekiMeki's promotion TikToks for Siesta maybe aren't as well known as in Somi's, but I've been weak for manager cameos ever since the SM managers' cover of Dream Girl. Other guest appearances in their videos include Somi, an elderly couple, DIA's Chaeyeon, ex-Gfriend/current Viviz Umji, a cute dog, Pengsoo...

Category: Unexpected Meme Queen
👑Winner👑: Blackpink's Rosé

TikTok by @roses_are_rosie

TikTok by @roses_are_rosie

TikTok by @roses_are_rosie

*note: the last video is a trend where people show how symmetrical their faces are (🙄); but Rosé wrote in the description of this video "why does it look like I have a wig on lol" and that comment just cracks me up.

TikTok by @roses_are_rosie

Perhaps it's because I don't follow Blackpink very closely and their marketed as fashion dolls, but I was pleasantly surprised at Rosé poking so much fun at herself in her TikToks. She also posted cute short vlogs during her promotions for 'On the ground' and a brief WAP dance cover (??). Anyway, Blackpink is back in YG's dungeon and so is Rosé's TikTok account, because she hasn't posted in a while.

Category: Making the best out of backstage boredom
👑Winner👑: BlackSwan's Fatou

TikTok by @b_fatou_s

TikTok by @b_fatou_s

TikTok by @b_fatou_s

o*

What do you do when you're promoting in a nugu group and have to wait around all the time? Fatou makes cute Tiktoks showing off her looks, vlogs her day and dances to her favorite kpop songs.

Category: Carrying their group's TikTok account on their backs
👑Winner👑: Everglow's Onda

TikTok by @everglowofficial

TikTok by @everglowofficial

TikTok by @everglowofficial

A Spanish comment on one of their TikTok says: "Everglow: 'tenemos TikTok' (trans: we have TikTok) - Onda: 'teng' (trans: I* have TikTok)". Onda basically owns this account with her dance covers and should get the majority of the revenue Everglow is making off this account.

Category: Gen-Z TikTok Kings
👑Shared Winner👑: TXT

TikTok by @txt.bighitent

TikTok by @txt.bighitent

TikTok by @txt.bighitent

TXT's TikTok bio says "Doing whatever we want✨" - and they're doing it well! There's something for everyone: some vlogging, some TikTok dances, some thirst traps, some fanservice, some memes & moods. There are some management plant videos promoting their comebacks in between but Huening-Kai's relatable self-critical videos make up for it.

Category: Gen-Z TikTok Kings
👑Shared Winner👑: P1Harmony

TikTok by @p1harmony

TikTok by @p1harmony

TikTok by @p1harmony

The group who gets complimented the most for always being on time with fast-paced TikTok trends is P1Harmony. A selection from their comment sections: "I love idols who understand this app" - "I swear they're always on time purr" - "I love how they're never late to a trend" (a common critique on kpop idols' tiktoks!). There's a little bit less variety in terms of meme-content than TXT, but they make up for it in their latest videos and I can't let my personal preferences influence this very objective list!!! And I have to applaud these guys for obviously being as much on that app as I am, if not more.

Category: Please remember your TikTok password
👑Winner👑: SF9's Yoo Taeyang (losers: us)

TikTok by @taeyang_0228

TikTok by @taeyang_0228

You can't just open a TikTok account at the beginning of this year with this boomer-video, do your duty as Exo-fan by posting a 'Don't fight the feeling' cover half a year later and then just disappear? Naevis, please play Trauma by SF9.

Sources (all from TikTok): bts_official_bighit 1, 2, 3 | mino_van_song 1| b_fatou_s 1, 2, 3 | TXTofficialbighit 1, 2, 3 | somi_official 1, 2, 3 | wm_official 1, 2, 3 | roses_are_rosie 1, 2, 3, 4 | everglowofficial 1, 2, 3 | P1Harmony 1, 2, 3 | taeyang_0228 1, 2

Hope it works out with the sourcing, mods! Omona, do you think TikTok is a good way for the kpop industry to promote their groups? Who's your fave TikToker amongst this bunch? Or did I miss out on anyone else?

Comments

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

yaaay this got posted! it's a bit stressful for me making these posts (also for the mods i think!) because there's no preview on lj for tiktok videos — i just see a grey box in the post editor.

anyway, i am not sure to what extent tiktok is different from other social media platforms (or if it really is), but what is interesting about the platform is that trends move soooo quickly and many idol tiktok accounts struggle to keep up with them, especially if idols aren't given a bit more free reign by their company to post, like for example txt and p1harmony apparently get. p1harmony has got really good interaction on tiktok even though for a boy group i don't think they're particularly very big i think? but kpop fans still watch their videos because they're on trend, so if you like kpop and keep up with tiktok, you'll most likely see them on your tiktok for you page. most idol accounts, however, seem to be still largely in control by management, which creates videos that might not be very interesting for non-fans of the group or kpop in general — so less chance that the group/artist gains new fans from posting videos on tiktok. making videos with other artists, like somi and weki meki are doing, makes it a liiittle bit more interesting for users to check out groups they're not a fan of
but these are just my two cents as a tiktok user!

[itsme-eloise.livejournal.com]

thank you for this post! it's so thorough and fun.

[kyulkyung.livejournal.com]

i respect the work you put into this, op, but i'm still praying that tiktok is fad and will eventually die like vine did. i hate not being up to date with the latest trends but i just don't get the point of it! i can perceive bad opinions just fine on twitter, why should i download an extra app just to do the same thing but only in video-format? and don't get me started on tiktok trends and dances and whatever, i'm just not entertained by any of it!! like, i watched the somi, wekimeki, rosé, onda and txt ones and still don't get it.

thankfully my faves are boomers just like me and rarely use their account.

[takemydream.livejournal.com]

interesting post! I don't understand tiktok, nor do I have it, so this is informative

I hear that some kpop things go viral on tiktok, but I guess it's random performance clips or audio? and not official accounts' content

[m4r1h1m3.livejournal.com]

I'm addicted to tiktok, but my faves only post boring "___" — challenges of their own song, so I'm gonna check out txt and p1harmony (sp?) on there!!

[ohmylol.livejournal.com]

Key tried to use the SHINee one for bad love but I don't think it gained traction, sadly shawols are old and we don't stream or keep up with that lol, Kai is using it for peaches and I think he is doing a good job, all the videos have over 1M views and a lot of likes, the ones with NCT members have been cute, the one with LSM is funny but I hate that man

Edit: I forgot to say i don't use tiktok and only follow shinee and exo there lol, that app never interested me, I feel too old to use it, i mean i thought twitter was useless but with time I liked it and now it's one if not my most used app but with tiktok i know it won't happen

[cxxl.livejournal.com]

My FYP is Black people only and I already follow Fatou. I am not lying when I say I do not know what be happening in nonBlack spaces. That is not my ministry, and I’m choosing to keep it like that.

One thing I see/hear a lot about is how songs can trend by becoming a sound…k pop has never been one of those trends. As much as many labels (and companies) are trying to trend on tiktok (certain western artists have confirmed that and quite frankly it’s very blatant in K pop). Like yes big singers in the west have become sounds (Megan, Doja, City Girls, Santana and that damn DANCE, SZA. and now somehow Adele). But a lot of sounds have been random as well.

It’s funny because k pop is trying soooo hard with how they adjusted some of the choreography, but like…it never shows up. Maybe the bubble for k pop is big, but it isn’t too exactly reaching beyond. Even in that bubble…who is trending? Like who pulled a Zico and Any song moment? I haven’t felt that. I think the reason why is because every single company saw what happened and jumped on tiktok like a bunch of vultures.

As much as these big entertainment companies invest in marketing and PR, nothing beats a homegrown trend. Right now, at least on my side of tiktok, somehow the movie Dream Girls (2006) is getting new life, specifically It’s All Over song and the Oscar performance from 2007 (Bey vs J Hud). I don’t foresee the songs entering the charts, but it’s absolutely astounding seeing a movie from 2006 get new life with kids (2006 wasn’t far away but it’s far enough that teens were born after it came out). So much so that people started using the music in their everyday life: I’ve seen a couple of recitals and a final project using the music.

K pop desperately wants that. I’m not on K pop tiktok because I love myself, so I don’t know the general trends or if it’s moving and shaking at all like that. I do know that if you try so hard to be something, chances are you are not being it. It is not surprising that certain idols are good at tiktok and others are not.

As for tiktok itself, people always say this and that is the new trend. Right now tiktok has Gen Z in a chokehold, and it is their first social media that really feels specific for them. Like their come up. But like all social media it will simmer, and a new supreme will rise.

Edit: Didn’t Brave Girls get new life in part because of tiktok?

[ohmylol.livejournal.com]

for brave girls it was youtube, someone made a compilation video of them performing for the korean army, put clips of them and how crazy the soldiers got everytime they performed rollin' and it got viral

and i think the only kpop song (it counts as kpop if it's a very generic song in english?) that really got viral because tiktok is money by lisa?? also the timing with squid game was perfect so that gave it a lot of traction

[cxxl.livejournal.com]

That’s unfortunate (both Brave Girls come up being youtube and Money being the trend that sort of makes it).

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

i think momoland's wrap me in plastic was a big tiktok hit as well! but not on my side of tiktok lol! but for the rest, just zico i'd say made it big

[falling-cookie.livejournal.com]

I'm not on tiktok either so take this as a passerby comment, but I think the only song that blew up was Twice - What is Love a few months ago. After the random wedding couple, the views on the MV for a 2+ year old song exploded and it rose in the charts in a lot of places.

But I agree, if it's not organic, kpop won't benefit from tiktok. Every song now has a dance challenge and I think that makes the choreo worst since they're trying to make it trend.

[frequency.livejournal.com]

iirc weeekly's after school kinda "blew up" on tiktok but i'm not 100% sure on that lol

[em-cavey.livejournal.com]

Ooh thank you fo this post, OP
Ngl I love getting a peek into the fun sides of other kpop social media without actually to invest myself in it lol. But I actually feel like the obsession with trying to go viral on tiktok is dragging the quality of kpop down a bit. All the choreography these days is made with ‘challenges’ in mind and it doesn’t even seem like it’s particularly effective in marketing so we're all just losing out

[em-cavey.livejournal.com]

ok I just got around to watching the butter Tiktoks and lord what are they even doing 😂

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

completely agree with both of your comments, i feel like trying to make a kpop song/dance go viral makes it sooo much less fun, especially because most of these companies obviously don't know what they're doing — bts being a prime example!

[yuujinchous.livejournal.com]

thank you for this post op, i don't stan any of these ppl but rose's tiktok's crack me up fsr lmfao

rm is truly one ugly man

anyways, both me and my faves are real tiktok boomers so i don't really know what to think of tiktok and don't engage with it either but good for these newer gen idols!

[babycheeses1.livejournal.com]

As a boomer-in-a-millennial-body living that Tiktok-less life, I can't see any of the Tiktoks 🥲💔.

But I appreciate the post OP! (category OK boomer makes me feel seen and heard 🥲)

I've only ever seen TXT's, BTS', and some of the SM artists' Tiktoks here and there (that sooman man was in them whyyy 😭). I do agree that TXT's were the most fun out of the bunch lol. The biggest disappointment was Key's tbh. He's so media savvy, I thought for sure he'd make some fun ones but they were very amateurish and there was a weird one with a dude who was cleaning — still don't know what that was about lmao.

I do agree with a comment above, I feel like kpop's recent obsession with making a song go viral on Tiktok is pretty much killing killer choreography. The whole viral thing seems like something that happens organically or by luck I think and not something you can force? Case in point the SHINee RDD glitch challenge that came out of nowhere lol (...but what do I know I'm not even on the app haha.)

Also special shout-out to "Naevis, please play Trauma by SF9" LMAO

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

awww nooo! i think this post might work better over desktop and sometimes refreshing/waiting until the page fully loads.

The whole viral thing seems like something that happens organically or by luck I think and not something you can force?
exactly, but kpop labels believe in artificiality so they'll never accept it

[adenar.livejournal.com]

weki meki's siesta promotion really got me lol, they truly got everyone and their mother involved! their manager is adorable. i'm so glad we're past the days of hiring ioi sasaengs

onda truly is everglow's social media queen and fanservice guru

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

ioi sasaeng as a manager???

[adenar.livejournal.com]

yeah, it was all the way back when they debuted - some fans recognised one of weki meki's managers as a sasaeng who'd stalked doyeon back when she was in ioi. i believe she does not work for fantagio anymore lol

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

y i k e s how did they not know??

[falling-cookie.livejournal.com]

It's interesting how hard these kpop companies are trying to make trends when so many groups set the trend before without trying. I'm talking about Wonder Girls Tell Me days, Gangnam Style dance days, even Twice with TT that had everyone and their mom doing the moves. I think the most recent popular dance was Next Level with the hand movement but they didn't get SOTY at MAMA even with being on the charts for so long - though that may be a flawed metric.

I do hate the need to chase trends even though they change way too much to make it worth it. I don't have tiktok and never will since I'm accepting my Boomer status early. The kids can have it. If it makes it to twitter or IG, then maybe I'll find out.

[frequency.livejournal.com]

i honestly don't get tiktok trends. maybe i'm just getting too damn old now lmao

[kyungwons.livejournal.com]

great post op!

most of these are unfamiliar to me cause the only kpop tiktoks i see are usually fan created content and never from the actual idols themselves. even when my faves post i usually dont bother watching cause like everyone else has said theyre mostly just short dance challenge things and not actually that fun lol

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

to be honest, i don't follow any idols on tiktok either because like you said, they're too boring!! the things i do for an omona original!

i actually don't follow anyone on tiktok i think or if i do, i never visit my subscription page. i just let my fyp do the work

[kyungwons.livejournal.com]

i dont even have tiktok lol i just see ones that are crossposted to twt or yt but even when my faves post their tiktoks to twt i cannot be bothered to click on them

i do think some dance challenges are cute, like weme with the managers in this post or when my faves get together to do one but mostly theyre a snooze 😴 but i appreciate your dedication to omona journalism! lol

[myungung.livejournal.com]

I pretty much dislike tik tok and how it has shaped how we watch videos, so I’m hoping the trend truly dies out soon.

But great post OP, must not have been easy compiling. Special shoutout to Twice for doing whatever they want and not really being on trend though

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

i can imagine! it really shortens your attention span. or do you dislike it for a different reason?

Special shoutout to Twice for doing whatever they want and not really being on trend though

yesss! i realized i have a double standard because when twice are just playing around on tiktok i think it's fun and cute but when others do it i think it's cringe 💁‍♀️💁‍♀️💁‍♀️

[myungung.livejournal.com]

I dislike the company behind it and their lack of safeguards for the children and youths, especially when their content is catered to youths. while short form videos have always been there, tiktok format is so dominant now (a la listicles and trends). I preferred when my entertainment was random and organic instead of everybody jumping on the bandwagon

[bauci.livejournal.com]

I love how tiktok algorithm works, you find your little bubble really fast (gay and mentally unstable for me, with some book recs and fashion content thrown in) and it's a great way to kill time.
I follow only Stray kids accounts due to that EPIC Felix dance that should have won best tiktok and that I've watched like 50 times...

Great post OP, I'm going to go through it when I get home from work.

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

the algorithm is so scarily accurate sometimes...

oooh i don't know this video? could you share? i've never seen skz on my fyp!

[bauci.livejournal.com]

It has 76 MILLION views 👀

https://vm.tiktok.com/ZM8vty7Mt/

[babycheeses1.livejournal.com]

I love this one lol! And I genuinely know nothing about stray kids. The first time I saw it I was like, "Who's this Legolas dude shaking his butt??" I also loved all the edits it spawned 😂.

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

lmao i love it!! this legolas cutie! definitely contender for best tiktok, huuuuge oversight by me!

[996677.livejournal.com]

i'm late but i just wanted to say thanks op for a very interesting post!

oblig i'm old, tiktok sucks, bring back vine

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

never too late bb! thank you!

[shukriyya.livejournal.com]

Tardy to the party, but this was a lot of fun, ty OP! 😊

[broadcities.livejournal.com]

thank you!!

[reader17.livejournal.com]

I'm even later then everyone else :) Thanks for the post I would of never of seen these tictok because I am way to old to try and learn it. I see my niece taking really strange videos and ask her what she is doing and she says posting it on tictok. I should probably get it to see my nieces stuff but I am way to old to want to learn something new. (Unless I really need to)

I have twitter (don't really use it that much, have instagram never posted but look at the pretty pictures and only follow like 26 people), use weverse but I get too behind so I have back slacking on that, and facebook I only the pictures and say happy birthday and even that is probably once or twice a week) To busy trying to catch up on Livejournal LOL!