I turned on the radio the other day and immediately recognized the words to a song I’d heard a hundred times before.
'Cause I'm too messy, and then I'm too f****** clean
You told me, "Get a job", then you ask where the hell I've been
And I'm too perfect till I open my big mouth
I want to be me, is that not allowed?
The song is “Messy” by Lola Young, and I recognized it instantly—not because I found it through Spotify or a friend told me about it but because I have heard it on TikTok countless times. “Messy” has been used in nearly 2 million TikTok videos since it began trending. The song has climbed to No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped charts around the world. It even landed Lola a spot on the Coachella stage this year, where she performed alongside some of the biggest names in the industry.
An Evolution
Not long ago, success in the music industry required a mix of radio play, record label promotion, and word of mouth. Artists relied on tours, press, and traditional marketing to get their music heard. But now, a snippet of a chorus going viral online can be all it takes to launch a track onto the Billboard Hot 100.
Lola’s rise to success isn’t an outlier—she’s part of a larger shift. TikTok has become one of the most powerful forces in the music industry today, shaping which songs become popular and which artists break through. Success has become more attainable than ever before as TikTok disrupts traditional pathways to visibility, redefines creativity, and raises new questions about what it takes to “make it” today.
From Trending Audio to Billboard Top 100
Dozens of songs and artists have soared to the top of the charts—not because of label backing or radio play but because they became part of a TikTok trend. Songs like Benson Boone’s “Beautiful Things” and Gracie Abrams’ “That’s So True” became breakout hits after dominating users’ “For You” page. Even older songs like “Running Up That Hill” by Kate Bush and “Bloody Mary” by Lady Gaga were given new life after trending sounds pushed them back into the mainstream rotation. A few seconds of audio can be all it takes to land a song on the Billboard Hot 100—transforming a piece of music from a viral moment into a radio hit.
The New Path to Stardom
TikTok isn’t just creating hit songs—it’s creating entire careers. Alex Warren is the quintessential example of this. He built a massive following as a content creator before shifting into music, using his existing fanbase to pivot into a full-fledged music career. By the time he released original songs, he already had millions of people paying attention. His song "Ordinary" has topped the Billboard Global 200 chart for the seventh week in a row.
That kind of dominance is the kind of breakthrough most artists only dream of and few ever achieve. Even well-known A-list artists struggle (and sometimes fail) to reach that level of sustained momentum. For someone who started as a content creator, Alex’s ascent in the music industry is nothing short of extraordinary.
The path to becoming a recognizable public figure and then launching a music career is arguably more effective than trying to break through as an unknown musician. It’s a strategy we’ve seen before with names like Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, and Drake, who all got their starts as child actors and then used that visibility to launch music careers.
But the difference now is scale. You no longer need to be a household name or star on a network show. All it takes is a few hundred thousand TikTok followers—and the right strategy—and you can have just as much of a shot as someone backed by a music label or a TV network.
The Hidden Cost of Accessibility
As with any opportunity, challenges also abound. With this new level of access to stardom comes its own kind of pressure. While TikTok has opened doors for countless artists, allowing them to find an audience without a label or a massive budget, it has also created a new set of expectations. More and more, artists feel like they have to double as influencers to stay relevant. A friend of mine with ties to the music scene in Nashville told me that many up-and-coming bands have voiced frustration over this pressure. They didn’t get into music to film content or create viral trends; they just want to play. But now, posting on TikTok is essentially a requirement rather than a voluntary choice.
An Emerging Era for Artists
Like it or not, TikTok is changing the music industry in a big way. It has opened doors that were once tightly shut, giving everyday creators a shot at real visibility.
Whether that’s progress or a problem depends on who you ask. But one thing’s certain: the path to success for music artists is no longer distinctly carved. TikTok has redefined how songs get discovered, how careers are built, and what it means to stay relevant.
The rules have changed, and every artist, whether they like it or not, is a player in a new game.
Your turn: Which songs or artists have you discovered through TikTok? I welcome your thoughts on TikTok’s influence on the music scene!
