fleetwood mac is trending on tiktok, so let’s celebrate that.
Sales of “Dreams” have tripled because of a skateboarding potato warehouse worker. This is TikTok at its best.
At a moment when it appeared imminent that Trump might ban new downloads of TikTok earlier this summer, I downloaded the app for the first time to see what the fuss was all about.
The first few logins were mind-numbing and a reminder that I am breathing down the neck of my mid-30s. But before much longer, as the app’s algorithm got smarter, I was hooked.
The app, putting aside the arguably valid concerns over what the Chinese government might be doing with its user data, reminds me of what Instagram used to be — an escape from the anxiety-ratcheting doom-scrolling that is easy to fall victim to on the politics-dominated platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Here, we see wholesome content dominate and marginalized voices become breakout hits overnight. Yes, there’s a lot of dance challenges, too — i.e. the reason I have Phoebe Bridgers’ “Motion Sickness” stuck in my head — but there’s so much more to it than that.
Case in point: the app’s latest viral sensation, @420doggface208, a.k.a. Nathan Apodaca. As the LA Times reports, the 37-year-old Idaho man works as a potato warehouse worker during the day, but during his time off he is an avid skateboarder. A video he posted to the platform of him skateboarding and downing some cran-raspberry juice straight from the bottle while lip syncing the Fleetwood Mac forever-bop “Dreams” blew up to the point where it’s been viewed 21 million+ times.
Nathan Apodaca’s “Dreams” TikTok video. (Image: KnowYourMeme)
The video has been such a sensation that it’s prompted a surge of copycats — this one is my personal favorite for its relatability — and has more than tripled sales numbers for the 1977 song. Even Mick Fleetwood himself couldn’t deny the vibe-y video’s force: On Sunday, the rock legend joined TikTok himself to share his own take on the video.
There is something so endearing about this particular inter-generational, cross-cultural sensation that just hits different than past viral challenges of a similar nature. It might just be that TikTok as a platform remains, at least in its current form, truer to the original vision of social media as being a force that brings people together rather than divides, a force that remains purely a platform for mostly mindless, harmless entertainment rather than an endless rabbit hole of misinformation. Time will tell if that remains the case — it’s likely that brands, publishers and others with more nefarious intentions just haven’t figured out how to harness the platform yet — but for now, dare I call it a pandemic-era treasure?
While we’re talking about TikTok, I’d be remiss not to mention two more things:
In the midst of the ongoing debacle over President Trump contracting COVID-19 at the super-spreading “Masque of the Red Death” reenactment in the White House’s Rose Garden, Kellyanne Conway’s daughter Claudia Conway announced that her mother also had tested positive for the virus. Hours later, Kellyanne confirmed the news. Claudia has since announced via the platform that she, too, has COVID-19. Of course, the ever-increasing number of cases linked to Amy Coney Barrett’s SCOTUS nomination ceremony is beyond disturbing for many reasons, but it’s truly wild to see the GOP so bent on covering up the extent of its recklessness surrounding this virus that we are seeing more transparency and responsibility from a 16-year-old venting on TikTok.
Speaking of icons of alternative music whose hits are resurfacing thanks to the app, Kate Bush Tok is also a wonderful place to be. The hashtags #KateBush and #KateBushTok are all populated by dozens upon dozens of quality Kate Bush-related content, most of it created by individuals who weren’t even born when Bush’s most famous album, “Hounds of Love,” was first released. I think the kids are all right. This one in particular is phenomenal, and yes, there’s a skateboard involved in this one too.
Tl;dr: On an app that both amplifies universal feelings and celebrates niche-ness, there is a Tok for everyone and everything. (TikTok did not sponsor this message.)
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Watch: I’ve already talked about the iconic Róisín Murphy’s new album, Róisín Machine, here previously, but the album is officially out now and it is so excellent that I felt it warranted a second mention. Here’s Murphy’s live performance of “Murphy’s Law” on The Graham Norton Show:
Also, SNL’s season premiere was mostly a dud, minus this Megan Thee Stallion moment brilliantly calling out Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron and Chloe Fineman’s brilliant impersonations of Drew Barrymore and Reese Witherspoon (both of whom have endorsed her performance). Fineman was a fresh presence in a premiere that felt stale. The show generally feels, as one recent Vox piece put it, “woefully unequipped” for the Trump era. But back to Fineman, if you flip back to the source material after watching it, you honestly wouldn’t be able to tell much of a difference. I’m so excited to see what she does next.
Read: Last week I was honored to pull back the curtain on something I’ve been working on behind the scenes for the past three months. The Batavia Community Diversity Initiative launched on social media with an open letter explaining our mission and some of our initiatives. I’m so proud to be a founding member of BCDI and to be working on our marketing and communications strategy, and feel humbled to have found this group of people that is doing the work to try and make our town a better place for people of all backgrounds to call home. There’s much more to come, but for now, follow us on Instagram and Facebook to hear more.
Listen: Ever since Moses Sumney’s song “Lonely World” was featured on HBO’s Lovecraft Country (which is getting absolutely bonkers in the best way), I haven’t been able to stop listening to it. Sumney is an incredible and prolific singer-songwriter and this song is simply haunting and stunning.