Viral TikTok songs are changing the music industry

If you're watching this video, the chances are you probably know this song

Connie Francis' Pretty Little Baby is more than 60 years old, and though it was never even released as a single

the 1962 song became a global sensation in 2025, coming in at number 5 on TikTok's Global Songs of the Summer list

Other catalog tracks have re-emerged lately, becoming trending hits decades after their release

But it's not just music from the archives. New and emerging artists now have a new way to reach global audiences and become stars overnight

All of this because someone heard their song and got a TikTok video idea

But is TikTok changing the way we listen to music? And more importantly, does it now have influence on how music is made

At its peak, Pretty Little Baby averaged more than 600,000 daily videos on TikTok

including posts from Kim Kardashian and Northwest, Kylie Jenner, Brooke Monk, Jared Jermaine and many many more popular creators

In the US, the song hit number one on both TikTok's viral 50 and top 50 charts

and has generated over 120 million Spotify streams Because of its previous obscurity Pretty Little Baby is an extreme example But similar phenomena have happened for many so catalog songs

Rock That Body by Black Eyed Peas, Let Down by Radiohead, or Breaking Dishes by Rihanna

are all climbing the charts decades after their initial release. A lot of younger users on our platform, this is the first time they're discovering these songs

But of course, we have many, many users who are very familiar with these artists and very familiar with these songs

And an artist like Blood Orange and more recently an artist like Pierce the Veil with So Far So Fake

These are artists who just have off the back of these huge trends and virality

I believe Pierce the Veil got the highest entry in the Billboard Hot 100. The rediscovery of catalog songs is not exactly new, nor is it a TikTok trademark

When I was 14, I discovered nearly every new to me song through Grey's Anatomy

It's how I first heard Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol and Portion for Foxes by Riley Kylie

and how Teagan and Sarah broke through with Where Does the Good Go? Imagine that same influence but with the instant feedback and reach of TikTok where TV, culture

comedy and everyday life are soundtracked in real time When Super Heaven Youngest Daughter a shoegaze song that like Pretty Little Baby was never released as a single went viral two years ago this band had stopped touring in 2016

Played about a show a year, but the renewed attention to the 2013 track from JAR

sparked new momentum. On February 18, 2025, Superheaven announced a 16-stop North American tour

their first in nearly a decade. So if catalog artists are finding renewed life

Emerging artists are using TikTok to build their careers from scratch. And that includes cultivating a TikTok fan base before even releasing music

According to the Luminate and TikTok Music Impact Report from February 2025

84% of songs that entered the Billboard Global 200 in 2024 went viral on TikTok first

While catalog success often depends on luck, a sync that hit a show, for instance

newer artists can engineer their growth. And though this has allowed emerging artists without a label to have their music heard, those who already have labels can find TikTok content creation as one of their contractual obligations

So musicians like Florence Welsh and FKA Twigs have been protesting their label insurance that these artists should create content for social media to promote their music In our conversation Clive Rosario said the dual rise of both old artists and new artists helps democratize music

And that very well might be true. The charts are significantly more diverse by both artists' ethnicity and age today than they were in 2003, well before TikTok existed

But algorithmic listening has drawbacks, right? Like, filter bubbles can narrow musical taste and homogenize culture

and some argue can weaken the strength of our connection with music altogether

And catering to TikTok audiences means that artists are incentivized to tailor their music to the platform's algorithm

creating catchy music that retains users' attention and can be easily danced to or lip-synced

And who wants to make music for the algorithm? Sure, once TikTok users find a song, they keep listening to it outside of the video-first platform

so whether discovery happens on TikTok, Spotify or Apple Music it's still driven by algorithms

and that reliance on technology is here to stay. So what do you think

Is TikTok good news for artists or bad news for music or is it both

Let us know in the comments and follow Mashable for more digests of digital culture