We are investigating all the rap songs that achieved mainstream success on TikTok.
TikTok has expanded significantly since it started out as a replacement for Vine and Musical.ly, now an incredibly popular social media platform for young people. Some see the app as more than a fun diversion or a creative outlet but as a full-time job and an avenue to financial independence. Because of the integral nature of music in the app, the experience and dialogue around music for artists is especially relevant. So far, in just over five years, we've seen rising artists explode into industry stars, and we've seen veterans continue to score huge hits. This is now the norm for anyone who's looking to reach a mainstream audience.
To break down the names and songs of today's rising hip-hop stars, we're looking back on some of the biggest hip-hop names and hits from years past.
YNW Melly and 9lokkNine – “223's”
YNW Melly attends Murda Beatz birthday event, 2019 – Jerritt Clark/Getty ImagesSince “Murder on My Mind” broke in 2018, fans and hip-hop heads have been fascinated with YNW Melly's unique approach to his music and lyricism. Still, those casual music listeners who had been put off by Melly's eccentric behaviour ultimately found their way back to his music by having his tracks featured in TikTok's biggest stars' curated dance videos, and as a result, these tracks quickly went viral on the platform. Among Melly's most successful songs to date is “223's,” which features 9lokkNine, which has rapidly gained popularity on the app. To date, there are over 1.6 million TikTok videos using the 2019 song featuring the dance signature to create original content. While the dance itself is not complex, the song's widespread success is mainly due to its simple nature, consisting of just a few steps and a turn. Also, following TikTok's success, the song climbed to the position of Melly's highest-charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 and peaked at #2.
9lokkNine saw a viral effect to a similar degree from the song, but only Melly's verse was used in the dance. In particular, the number 223 has become very well known due to the impact it had on 9lokkNine's early career, and it is also his most popular song to date.
SoFaygo – “Knock Knock”
SoFaygo performs at Rolling Loud Miami, 2021 – Jason Koerner/Getty Images“Soundcloud up-and-comer” who got his start by releasing music on TikTok is partially to thank for his success in 2020. In the underground Soundcloud wave, he built a reputation for himself early on with the likes of Lil Tecca and SSGKobe. Nevertheless, Tecca's “Knock Knock” became one of the app's favorite sounds in 2020. As a result, over 100,000 TikTok videos were created using the slowed-down and sped-up versions of the song. Sofaygo's most popular song is “Knock Knock” which has 75 million Spotify streams to date. Piggybacking on the success of his first album, the rapper signed a deal with Cactus Jack Records, which is owned by rap star Travis Scott, in February of this year.
https://www.tiktok.com/@danceformetiktok/video/6947223518417276162?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6947223518417276162&refer=embed
Megan Thee Stallion – “Savage”
Megan Thee Stallion attends the Sports Illustrated SI launch, 2021 – Rodrigo Varela/Getty ImagesThee Stallion, a 22-year-old rapper from Colorado, has already made a name for herself in the rap world thanks to popular feminist anthems and boundless charisma. Tens of thousands of dedicated fans have formed an army of staunch fans and devout listeners in the past two years, largely due to incredibly viral TikTok dances and tunes curated to suit a group of highly female-friendly anthems.
Despite the previous activity she had engaged in, the choreography for Megan's “Savage” skyrocketed her to the top of the Billboard charts, and launched her into the rap game. This trend was started when Keara Wilson, a verified user, created her own dance to the song, which was released in March of 2020. That video, which was viewed over 15 million times and enjoyed by 2 million people, created the foundation for an additional 21 million videos to either use the song or to recreate the dance sequence. In the long run, having this TikTok success meant that Beyoncé was asked to be featured on the remix and was subsequently number one on the Billboard Hot 100.
https://www.tiktok.com/@keke.janajah/video/6806410391468526854?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6806410391468526854&refer=embed
Roddy Ricch – “The Box”
Roddy Ricch attends the BET Awards, 2021 – Paras Griffin/Getty ImagesThe Feed Tha Streets mixtape series made Roddy Ricch a prominent figure in the California rap scene and hip-hop circles by 2019. However, however, until a popular TikTok trend had propelled him to the top of the charts, Ricch had not gained household name status. When the odd “ee-er” ad-lib and a catchy hook from the song “The Box” were featured on the December 2019 release of Ricch's debut album, the album earned popularity by increasing interest in TikTok. While the song was extremely popular on the app during the time span of late 2019 to early 2020, it also gave rise to several popular dances and memes. “The Box” stayed atop the Billboard Hot 100 for eleven weeks.
@saviragunawan The Box Tutorial! #thebox #fyp #foryou #foru #dance #dancetutorial #dancetuto #fypchallenge #tutorialchallenge #foryour #foryoupage #xzycba #zxycba
Erica Banks – “Buss It”
Erica Banks performs at Hot 107.9 Birthday Bash 25, 2021 – Paras Griffin/Getty Images“Buss It” proved to be successful for Erica Bank as well as getting her a deal with 1501 Certified Entertainment. One of the tunes it produced became one of TikTok's sultriest trends. The song had a massive amount of success in the app during the month of January of 2021, with the song's beat drop being used to show the changes between a glo-down and a glow-up. TikTok has over 5 million videos on the platform, and the song “Fiji Water” has made it to the #1 spot on the Billboard Triller charts. Other than that, Erika Banks signed a recording contract with Warner Records as well.
@nicolescherzinger Never too late #bussitchallenge
Sleepy Hallow – “Deep End Freestyle”
Sleepy Hallow visits Sirius radio station, 2020 – Michael Loccisano/Getty ImagesA gold plaque for his song “Deep End Freestyle,” featuring rapping queen Fousheé, went to New York drill rapper Sleepy Hallow. The song incorporates an eerie vocal sample (the artist at the time was Fousheé), before the instrumental sequence changes to a classic drill. As of the publication of this article, the song has been featured in nearly a million videos on the app, including popular dances, crazy stunts, and, most interestingly, linking Sleepy Hollow's “my body different” line to a line from the video. “Deep End Freestyle” has since been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and has pushed him past the pool of up-and-coming New York drill rappers, while also ensuring his long-term success.
@amirdeleon My job involves a bit of risk. And sometimes a bit more fun :)) #learntok #videography #cars
24kGoldn – “Valentino”
24kGoldn attends the “F9” World Premiere, 2021 Frazer Harrison/Getty ImagesWhile still in college and while still a frat bro, 24kGoldn became obsessed with the “Valentino” song on TikTok in the summer of 2019 and changed his life forever. “Valentino” is the perfect song for the app, as it is instantly catchy and also contains an infectious hook that fans use simply to show edits, while others create dance routines to perform to the song. Often cited as one of the first viral TikTok songs, “Valentino” has been said to have caused 24kGoldn to drop out of college. It's ironic to think that because of the viral success of the song, people consider 24KGoldn to be just a “TikTok rapper.”
@officialhowiemandel This is Golden @24kgoldn #valentino #dance #dancechallenge #howiemandel #fyp
Flo Milli – “Beef FloMix”
Flo Milli celebrates her 21st birthday in Atlanta, 2021 – Prince Williams/Wireimage/Getty ImagesSuper 2021 XXL Freshman Flo Milli gained fame in 2019 and 2020 for her distinctive and funny voice on “Beef FloMix” as well as a collaboration with $NOT called “Mean.” Playboi Carti and Ethereal's “Beef” became Tiktok staples in the spring of 2019, and Flo Milli made his unique style of rap known on the song “Beef FloMix.” Before Megan Thee Stallion, Flo Milli was among TikTok's favourite female rappers.
@famousmariaa
$NOT – “Mean” feat. Flo Milli
$NOT performs at Rolling Loud, 2019 – Scott Dudelson/Getty ImagesFlo Milli's $not song “Mean”, after “Beef FloMix”, set the scene for similar hits like “Buss It. In the same way that “Buss It” got one of the app's sexier sounds of 2020, Flo Milli established herself as a “Mean” by throwing out this memorable line: “I got a small waist, pretty face, and a big bank.” A bunch of users came up with their own dances to Flo Milli's lyrics, showing off their curves.
Flo Milli's work benefited from the spread of these recordings, with their viral nature helping to land deals with RCA Records and Pulse Music Group.
Doja Cat – “Say So”
Doja Cat celebrates releases of “Planet Her,” 2021 – Joe Scarnici/Getty ImagesThis song, “Mooo!” from last year, marked the first time that Doja Cat gained mainstream attention for her music. In contrast, “Say So” from this year marked a milestone moment for the Los Angeles singer and rapper. The track was viral almost instantly on TikTok, and with one signature dance, it received its one signature move. The solo version of the song charted on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 5, and subsequently, a remix featuring Nicki Minaj went on to hit the number one spot. 14 million TikTok videos make “Say So” the most-streamed song written by a female in 2020, and it's used in almost that many new TikTok videos each day.
@hailee_jade03
Saint JHN – “Roses (Imanbek Remix)”
Saint Jhn attends the Roc Nation brunch, 2020 – Kevin Mazur/Getty ImagesSaint JHN's “Roses (Imanbek Remix)” went viral on TikTok in September of 2019. Kanye West, Lil Uzi Vert, DaBaby, and Future were all involved in the remix. The song reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
@daviddobrik Ahhahaha perfect @addisonre
Coi Leray – “No More Parties”
Coi Leray at the BET Hip-Hop Awards, 2021 – Paras Griffin/Getty ImagesRapper Coi Leray scored her first big hit with “No More Parties” She was largely known as the ex-girlfriend of Trippie Redd. Her incredibly catchy flow made the song perfect for TikTok virality and became her first entry into the Billboard Hot 100.
https://www.tiktok.com/@chris_gone_crazy00/video/6931893716089048326?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6931893716089048326&refer=embed
Pooh Shiesty – “Back in Blood” feat. Lil Durk
Pooh Shiesty at Onyx Nightclub in Atlanta, 2021 – Prince Williams/Wireimage/Getty ImagesLil Durk's “Back in Blood” became a hit on TikTok in early 2020. Fans shared videos of themselves lip syncing the line from the song. The TikTok success of the song propelled the song to the top of his Spotify playlist.
https://www.tiktok.com/@lildurk/video/6932652120306994438?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6932652120306994438&refer=embed
Pooh Shiesty & Coi Leray – “Big Purr”
Coi Leray hosts BET Awards After Party in LA, 2021 – Johnny Nunez/Getty Images“Big Purr” debuted at #69 on the Billboard Hot 100. A snippet of the song blew up on TikTok before it was officially released. Coi Leray and Pooh Shiesty exchanged bars on the song, making it popular with couples.
K Camp – “Lottery (Renegade)”
K Camp attends the Billboard Power List Event, 2020 – Joshua Blanchard/Getty ImagesThe first viral TikTok dance came to the tune of “Lottery (Renegade)” by K Camp. The song was released in June 2019 and was quickly picked up by 14-year-old user Jalaiah Harmon, who created the now-notorious dance.
https://www.tiktok.com/@charlidamelio/video/6898036540706950406?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6898036540706950406&refer=embed
Jack Harlow – “What's Poppin'”
Jack Harlow performs at Rolling Loud Miami, 2021 – Rich Fury/Getty ImagesJack Harlow's breakout single “What's Poppin” has become the most-streamed song to date. The TikTok success, along with the Cole Bennett music video, has made it the most-streamed song of all time.
https://www.tiktok.com/@sosatisfying/video/6930753108402359557?referer_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hotnewhiphop.com%2F&referer_video_id=6930753108402359557&refer=embed
BIA – “Whole Lotta Money”
BIA performs at Rolling Loud Miami, 2021 – Jason Koerner/Getty ImagesBIA's “Whole Lotta Money” has been used in over 275,000 TikToks. The TikTok success spurred a Nicki Minaj remix of the song. BIA says she is excited about her new album and plans to release it this fall.
@bia Omw to the bodega y'all need anything? #fyp #foru #foryou #wholelottamoney
