Local TikTok stars are now appearing on billboards in Toronto
TikTok has rapidly become the hottest social media platform for viral videos, and has thrusted a number of Canadians into the spotlight as the country's newest, and often youngest, influencers.
Though our existing celebs and even politicians have jumped on the TikTok bandwagon, it is previously unknown residents who have risen to stunning and unexpected popularity, whether it be for their humour, their relatability or the new and interesting things they share with the world.
And now, TikTok's Toronto office is working to promote homegrown content creators more than ever before in the form of a new ad campaign — the first of its kind that the company has launched north of the border.
@bomanizer ur at yonge and dundas omg pic.twitter.com/0GzfVv1xxO
— ally (@sincerelyallyy) November 2, 2020
It Starts on TikTok has so far been showcasing more than 20 users like @NotoriousCree, @CaleonTwins, @Bomanizer and @AsapSCIENCE in the form of digital media promotions, TV commercials and physical billboards in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Vancouver, such as the one seen in the tweet above at Yonge-Dundas Square.
The move hopes to "celebrate diversity, trends, stories, conversations and more that are born and celebrated on TikTok and explode in popularity, delivering cultural and social impact on and off-platform," a representative from the brand told blogTO.
It also hopes to acknowledge the role of Canadian creators within the TikTok sphere by showing off the creativity and specific appeal of local influencers.
For example, James Jones, a.k.a. @NotoriousCree, uses his platform to share Indigenous culture with his nearly two million followers, while Torontonian Boman Martinez-Reid, a.k.a. @Bomanizer, creates hilarious and super-shareable parody videos.
Samantha and Madeleine Caleon, a.k.a. @CaleonTwins, meanwhile, connect to everyday users with relatable personal content and funny clips about what it's like to be twins, resonating with fans.
And the @AsapSCIENCE duo of Mitchell Moffit and Gregory Brown — a couple that met while studying biology at the University of Guelph — turns practical science into intriguing but digestible videos to educate the rest of us laypeople.
Seeing @notoriouscree on a TikTok commercial made me cry real tears. I love seeing Indigenous people on my television screen ♥️
— audri: they/them (@kloqowej) October 30, 2020
For those of us who are still quite unfamiliar with the platform and have held out downloading the app, now may very well be the time to finally get on it and see what all the hype is about.
When you do, you know who to follow.
