tiktok
Page: 2
Heidi Montag’s 15-year-old dance-pop album Superficial has generated nearly $150,000 from streaming and digital sales since the MTV reality show star lost her home to the Pacific Palisades wildfire in Los Angeles in early January.
In the days following the destruction of the couple’s home on Jan. 7, Montag’s husband Spencer Pratt took to TikTok, sharing videos of the ashes and their children’s burned toys and asking viewers to stream wife Heidi’s music. Pratt later told Variety in a Jan. 17 article that he made a combined $24,000 from donations on TikTok, but he had no idea if they were making any money from her music.
His plea appears to be paying off. From Jan. 3 to Jan. 23, Montag’s 2010 album Superficial and its individual songs have generated $147,011.61 from streaming, digital album and song sales and publishing revenue, according to Billboard estimates based on data from Luminate.H
Trending on Billboard
This month, Montag made her first appearance on the Billboard Artist 100 chart, which ranks the most popular artists of the week, and Superficial and its songs landed on the Billboard 200, Top Album Sales, Top Dance Albums and Hot Dance/Pop Songs charts for the week of Jan. 25. Her appearance on those charts may translate into additional revenue for her new album Superficial 2, which the artist released last Friday (Jan. 24).
Montag has also benefitted from widespread support. TikTok launched a Heidi hub with a link to create content using a sped-up version of her song “I’ll Do It.” (TikTok says that, as of Jan. 28, there are more than 2.8 million creations using the track — both the original and sped-up remix.) The online marketing hub LinkTree paid for a billboard in Times Square with the message “Stream Superficial by Heidi Montag” and Montag appeared on Good Morning America, according to her TikTok posts.
The ramp-up in revenue has been swift. In the first week of January, Billboard estimates that the album produced $1,762.97. Following Montag and Pratt’s request, the album and songs produced $98,002.57 in the second week of January and $48,009.04 in the third week of January.
Digital album sales have contributed the greatest amount of revenue so far, generating revenues of $82,497.22, based on Billboard estimates.
In the first week 2025, nine digital copies of the album were sold, worth about $50. In the second week of 2025, 11,258 digital copies of the album were sold, worth about $62,930; and in the third week of 2025, 3,484 digital copies of the album were sold, worth about $19,475.
Montag and Pratt did not respond to requests for comment made to their publicists.
Additional reporting by Ed Christman.
The company that owns the copyrights to Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” is suing a Ford dealership near the rapper’s native Detroit for using the iconic track in TikTok videos that warned viewers they “only get one shot” to buy a special edition truck.
In a lawsuit filed on Monday (Jan. 27) in Michigan federal court, Eight Mile Style accuses LaFontaine Ford St. Clair — which owns several dealerships near Eminem’s hometown — of blasting the song in the social media videos even though “at no time” did it get a license to do so.
“This is an action for willful copyright infringement … against LaFontaine for its unauthorized use of the composition in online advertisements for one or more car dealerships in blatant disregard of the exclusive rights vested in Eight Mile,” the company’s attorneys write.
Trending on Billboard
The lawsuit says the videos, which allegedly appeared on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook in September and October, used “Lose Yourself” to boost a special Detroit Lions-themed Ford truck, telling viewers: “With only 800 produced, you only get one shot to own a Special Edition Detroit Lions 2024 PowerBoost Hybrid F-150.”
Social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram provide huge libraries of licensed music for users to easily add to their videos. But there’s a key exception: The songs can’t be used for commercial or promotional videos posted by brands. That kind of content requires a separate “synch” license, just like any conventional advertisement on TV.
That crucial distinction has led to numerous lawsuits in recent years. The restaurant chain Chili’s has been sued twice for using copyrighted songs in social videos, including once by the Beastie Boys over “Sabotage” and again by Universal Music Group for allegedly using more than 60 songs from Ariana Grande, Justin Bieber and many others. The hotel chain Marriott and more than a dozen NBA teams have also recently faced copyright lawsuits over the same thing.
In the current case, Eight Mile Style pointedly noted that it had previously approved car commercials involving “Lose Yourself” — something of a natural fit, given the song’s connections to the Motor City.
“The composition was licensed and featured in a two-minute Chrysler television commercial that aired during the 2011 Super Bowl,” Eight Mile’s lawyers write. “Chrysler generated millions of dollars of new and used automobile sales across the world from this use of the composition.”
But LaFontaine’s decision to use the song without approval “usurped Plaintiffs’ exclusive rights to determine when and under what terms the composition may be used for commercial endorsements and advertising,” the company’s lawyers write.
Perplexity AI has presented a new proposal to TikTok’s parent company that would allow the U.S. government to own up to 50% of a new entity that merges Perplexity with TikTok’s U.S. business, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The proposal, submitted last week, is a revision of a prior plan the artificial intelligence startup had presented to TikTok’s parent ByteDance on Jan. 18, a day before the law that bans TikTok went into effect.
The first proposal, which ByteDance hasn’t responded to, sought to create a new structure that would merge San Francisco-based Perplexity with TikTok’s U.S. business and include investments from other investors.
Trending on Billboard
The new proposal would allow the U.S. government to own up to half of that new structure once it makes an initial public offering of at least $300 billion, said the person, who was not authorized to speak about the proposal. The person said Perplexity’s proposal was revised based off of feedback from the Trump administration.
If the plan is successful, the shares owned by the government would not have voting power, the person said. The government also would not get a seat on the new company’s board.
ByteDance and TikTok did not immediately responded to a request for comment.
Under the plan, ByteDance would not have to completely cut ties with TikTok, a favorable outcome for its investors. But it would have to allow a “full U.S. board control,” the person said.
Under the proposal, the China-based tech company would contribute TikTok’s U.S. business without the proprietary algorithm that fuels what users see on the app, according to a document seen by the Associated Press. In exchange, ByteDance’s existing investors will get equity in the new structure that emerges.
The proposal seems to mirror a strategy Steven Mnuchin, treasury secretary during Trump’s first term, discussed Sunday on Fox News’ Sunday Morning Futures — that a new investor in TikTok could simply “dilute down” the Chinese ownership and satisfy the law. Mnuchin has previously expressed interest in investing in the company.
“But the technology needs to be disconnected from China,” he added. “It needs to be disconnected from ByteDance. There’s absolutely no way that China would ever let us have something like that in China.”
The Perplexity proposal comes as several investors are expressing interest in TikTok. President Donald Trump said late Saturday that he expects a deal will be made in as soon as 30 days.
On a flight from Las Vegas to Miami on Air Force One, Trump also said he hadn’t discussed a deal with Larry Ellison, CEO of software maker Oracle, despite a report that Oracle, along with outside investors, was considering taking over TikTok’s global operation.
“Numerous people are talking to me. Very substantial people,” Trump said. “We have a lot of interest in it, and the United States will be a big beneficiary. … I’d only do it if the United States benefits.”
Under a bipartisan law passed last year, TikTok was to be banned in the United States by Jan. 19 if it did not cut ties with ByteDance. The Supreme Court upheld the law, but Trump then issued an executive order to halt enforcement of the law for 75 days.
Trump, on Air Force One, noted that Ellison lives “right down the road” from his Mar-a-Lago estate, but added, “I never spoke to Larry about TikTok. I’ve spoken to many people about TikTok and there’s great interest in TikTok.”
TikTok briefly shut down in the U.S. a week ago, but went back online after Trump said he would postpone the ban. Trump had unsuccessfully attempted a U.S. ban of the platform during his first term. But he has since reversed his position and has credited the platform with helping him win more young voters during last year’s presidential election.
TikTok CEO Shou Chew attended Trump’s inauguration Jan. 20, along with some other tech leaders who’ve been forging friendlier ties with the new administration.
Congress voted to ban TikTok in the U.S. out of concern that TikTok’s ownership structure represented a security risk. The Biden administration argued in court for months that it was too much of a risk to allow a Chinese company to control the algorithm that fuels what people see on the app. Officials also raised concerns about user data collected on the platform.
However, to date, the U.S. hasn’t provided public evidence of TikTok handing user data to Chinese authorities or allowing them to tinker with its algorithm.
HipHopWired Featured Video
Source: Kevin Carter / Getty / Donald Trump / TikTok
TikTok’s “savior,” Donald Trump, has given TikTok more time to secure a sale, but it’s still unclear if his actions will delay the platform’s ban in the United States.
On his first unfortunate day back in office, Monday, January 20, Donald Trump put his ugly a** signature to paper, signing an executive order stalling the federal ban on TikTok for 75 days.
According to the New York Times, the executive order instructs the Attorney General, presumably a Trump loyalist, and his former attorney, Pam Bondi, not to enforce the ban, giving his sorry administration “an opportunity to determine the appropriate course forward.”
When signing the executive order, Trump told reporters that if a deal is struck, “the U.S. should be entitled to get half of TikTok.”
According to the New York Times, the executive order could face legal challenges, specifically on his having the power to stop a federal law.
Donald Trump “Gets” TikTok Now
Trump’s executive action comes after TikTok hilariously banned itself early Saturday night, flipping the switch and turning off service in the U.S., and then turning back on Sunday following Trump’s announcement that he planned to sign an EO.
When users launched the app, they were greeted by a notification from TikTok telling them they could use the service stateside once again. They thanked Donald Trump for his help, sparking instant reactions from users who called the whole moment a stunt, likening it to Trump delaying stimulus checks so that he could put his signature on them.
When asked about his change of heart about TikTok, Trump told reporters, “Because I got to use it…TikTok is largely about young kids…if China is gonna get information about young kids, I don’t know.”
Donald Trump is asked about TikTok:
“Every rich person has called me about TikTok.”
Asked why he delayed the ban:
“Because I got to use it…TikTok is largely about young kids…if China is gonna get information about young kids, I dunno.”
Wow…just…wow. pic.twitter.com/M052GgekMO
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) January 21, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
LMAO, WHAT?
We shall see what happens with TikTok because the platform’s future still looks shaky despite its CEO, Shou Zi Chew, kissing the ring right now.
TikTok said Sunday (Jan. 19) it was restoring service to users in the United States just hours after the popular video-sharing platform went dark in response to a federal ban, which President-elect Donald Trump said he would try to pause by executive order on his first day in office.
Trump said he planned to issue the order to give TikTok’s China-based parent company more time to find an approved buyer before the ban takes full effect. He announced the move on his Truth Social account as millions of U.S. TikTok users awoke to discover they could no longer access the TikTok app or platform.
Google and Apple removed the app from their digital stores to comply with the law, which required them to do so if TikTok parent company ByteDance didn’t sell its U.S. operation by Sunday. The law, which passed with wide bipartisan support in April, allows for steep fines.
Trending on Billboard
The company that runs TikTok in the U.S. said in a post on X that Trump’s post had provided “the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans.”
Some users reported soon after TikTok’s statement that the app was working again, and TikTok’s website appeared to be functioning for at least some people. Even as TikTok was flickering back on, it remained unavailable for download in Apple and Google’s app stores. Neither Apple or Google responded to messages seeking comment Sunday.
The law that took effect Sunday required ByteDance to cut ties with the platform’s U.S. operations due to national security concerns posed by the app’s Chinese roots. However, the statute gave the sitting president authority to grant a 90-day extension if a viable sale was underway.
Although investors made a few offers, ByteDance previously said it would not sell. Trump said his order would “extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect” and “confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.”
“Americans deserve to see our exciting Inauguration on Monday, as well as other events and conversations,” Trump wrote.
It was not immediately clear how Trump’s promised action would fare from a legal standpoint since the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld the ban on Friday (Jan. 17) and the statute came into force the day before Trump’s return to the White House.
Some lawmakers who voted for the sale-of-ban law, including some of Trump’s fellow Republicans, remain in favor of it. Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas warned companies Sunday not to provide TikTok with the technical support it needs to function as it did before.
“Any company that hosts, distributes, services, or otherwise facilitates communist-controlled TikTok could face hundreds of billions of dollars of ruinous liability under the law, not just from (the Justice Department), but also under securities law, shareholder lawsuits, and state AGs,” Cotton wrote on X. “Think about it.”
The on-and-off availability of TikTok came after the Supreme Court ruled that the risk to national security posed by TikTok’s ties to China outweighed concerns about limiting speech by the app or its millions of U.S. users.
When TikTok users in the U.S. tried to watch or post videos on the platform as of Saturday night, they saw a pop-up message under the headline, “Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now.”
“A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S.,” the message said. “Unfortunately that means you can’t use TikTok for now.”
The service interruption TikTok instituted hours early caught many users by surprise. Experts had said the law as written did not require TikTok to take down its platform, only for app stores to remove it. Current users had been expected to continue to have access to videos until a lack of updates caused the app to stop working.
“The community on TikTok is like nothing else, so it’s weird to not have that anymore,” content creator Tiffany Watson, 20, said Sunday.
Watson said she had been in denial about the looming shutdown and with the space time on her hands plans to focus on bolstering her presence on Instagram and YouTube.
“There are still people out there who want beauty content,” Watson said.
The company’s app also was removed late Saturday from prominent app stores. Apple told customers with its devices that it also took down other apps developed by ByteDance. They included Lemon8, which some influencers had promoted as a TikTok alternative, the popular video editing app CapCut and photo editor Hypic.
“Apple is obligated to follow the laws in the jurisdictions where it operates,” the company said.
Trump’s plan to spare TikTok on his first day in office reflected the ban’s coincidental timing and the unusual mix of political considerations surrounding a social media platform that first gained popularity with often silly videos featuring dances and music clips.
During his first presidential term, Trump in 2020 issued executive orders banning TikTok and the Chinese messaging app WeChat, moves that courts subsequently blocked. When momentum for a ban emerged in Congress last year, however, he opposed the legislation. Trump has since credited TikTok with helping him win support from young voters in last year’s presidential election.
Despite its own part in getting the nationwide ban enacted, the Biden administration stressed in recent days that it did not intend to implement or enforce the ban before Trump takes office on Monday.
In the nine months since Congress passed the sale-or-ban law, no clear buyers emerged, and ByteDance publicly insisted it would not sell TikTok. But Trump said he hoped his administration could facilitate a deal to “save” the app.
TikTok CEO Shou Chew is expected to attend Trump’s inauguration with a prime seating location.
Chew posted a video late Saturday thanking Trump for his commitment to work with the company to keep the app available in the U.S. and taking a “strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship.”
Trump’s choice for national security adviser, Michael Waltz, told CBS News on Sunday that the president-elect discussed TikTok going dark in the U.S. during a weekend call with Chinese President Xi Jinping “and they agreed to work together on this.”
On Saturday, artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI submitted a proposal to ByteDance to create a new entity that merges Perplexity with TikTok’s U.S. business, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Perplexity is not asking to purchase the ByteDance algorithm that feeds TikTok user’s videos based on their interests and has made the platform such a phenomenon.
Other investors also eyed TikTok. Shark Tank star Kevin O’Leary recently said a consortium of investors that he and billionaire Frank McCourt offered ByteDance $20 billion in cash. Trump’s former treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, also said last year that he was putting together an investor group to buy TikTok.
In Washington, lawmakers and administration officials have long raised concerns about TikTok, warning the algorithm that fuels what users see is vulnerable to manipulation by Chinese authorities. But to date, the U.S. has not publicly provided evidence of TikTok handing user data to Chinese authorities or tinkering with its algorithm to benefit Chinese interests.
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: NurPhoto / Getty / TikTok Ban
Welp, TikTok and its China-based owner ByteDance f***ed around and found out. Late Saturday night, TikTok was officially banned in the U.S., but it’s back up after Donald Trump vowed to save it. Shockingly, the card-collecting video game Marvel Snap and video editing app CapCut are still down for the count.
TikTok went dark last night, causing all the influencers to lose their sh*t and take their grievances to X, Instagram, and wherever else they can hit a publish button.
Last night, TikTok’s 187 million U.S. users were greeted with a message telling them they could no longer use the app and that the company was fortunate that Felon 47, Donald Trump, would work with them to find a solution.
“Sorry, TikTok isn’t available right now. A law banning TikTok has been enacted in the U.S. Unfortunately, that means you can’t use TikTok for now,” the message begins. “We are fortunate that President Trump has indicated that he will work with us on a solution to reinstate TikTok once he takes office. Please stay tuned!”
TikTok cooked 😂🤣 pic.twitter.com/hzQvE5N6gG
— B E A N Z The Gamer Dad(beanzgotgamez.bsky.social) (@BeanzGotGamez) January 19, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Gen Z’s nightmare scenario of either having to put their phones down or use other social media platforms to share bad takes and do dance videos came to an end on Sunday after President-elect Trump said on his bullsh*t platform, Truth Social, that he will issue an executive order on Monday to save it.
Per MSNBC:
“I’m asking companies not to let TikTok stay dark!” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. “I will issue an executive order on Monday to extend the period of time before the law’s prohibitions take effect, so that we can make a deal to protect our national security. The order will also confirm that there will be no liability for any company that helped keep TikTok from going dark before my order.”
As of this writing, the switch has been flipped back on in the U.S., with the company writing in a post on X, formerly Twitter, “In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170 million Americans and allowing over 7 million small businesses to thrive.”
“It’s a strong stand for the First Amendment and against arbitrary censorship. We will work with President Trump on a long-term solution that keeps TikTok in the United States.”
STATEMENT FROM TIKTOK:
In agreement with our service providers, TikTok is in the process of restoring service. We thank President Trump for providing the necessary clarity and assurance to our service providers that they will face no penalties providing TikTok to over 170…
— TikTok Policy (@TikTokPolicy) January 19, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
The effort to ban TikTok was started by Trump in 2020 pic.twitter.com/7npCMW08qJ
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes) January 17, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
The TikTok Jig Is Loading….
While this may seem like a win for everyone, some see the jig, accurately pointing out that Donald Trump called for TikTok to be banned during the tail end of his disastrous presidency.
Popular political commentator @2RawTooReal pointed out how Trump and the CEO of TikTok, Shou Zi Chew, are in “cahoots” because Chew will be attending Trump’s now indoor inauguration ceremony. He also points out in his video that Trump wrote the EO (executive order) calling for the platform to be banned, but only for President Biden to revoke it when he took office.
2RawTooReal also points out that the law allows the president to grant TikTok a 90-day extension, allowing TikTok to find a buyer or, as he points out, allow Trump to work with the Republican-controlled Senate and House to pass a bill saving the platform, making Trump look like a hero and a champion of entrepreneurs.
He also points out that Chew shared a video of far-right political activist Charlie Kirk on his TikTok page and that the app buried his and other videos of users fact-checking misinformation about Vice President Kamala Harris.
The TikTok CEO and Donald Trump are in cahoots pic.twitter.com/IZT3HJrmni
— 2RawTooReal (@2RawTooReal) January 19, 2025
https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js
Marvel Snap Is Still Down
While TikTok is back up, Marvel Snap is still down. Now, why, you might ask? IGN reports that the game was “developed by Second Dinner and was published by ByteDance-owned publisher Nuverse, which is what led to the ban.”
Well damn.
Second Dinner’s Chief Development Officer and Co-Founder, Ben Brode, revealed on BlueSky that the ban surprised his company.
“Unfortunately, Marvel Snap is temporarily unavailable in U.S. app stores and is unavailable to play in the U.S. This was a surprise to Second Dinner and our publisher Nuverse,” Brode wrote. “We’re actively working on getting the game up as soon as possible and will update you once we have more to share.”
He offered those thirsty to log in and give advice, suggesting they should use a VPN.
“FWIW I am hearing that VPN software will allow you to continue playing Marvel Snap in the meantime, as long as you pretend you’re from Canada or something,” he said.
What a mess.
You can see more reactions to the whole TikTok fiasco in the gallery below.
1. Donald Trump is not slick
2. Hit Charlie Kirk with the mean “this you?”
3. Accurate
4. Symone Sanders & The Weekend crew see the jig
5. Glad y’all are happy
6. This gif is always gold
7. Never forget
8. Please, don’t forget that Republicans don’t want to ban assault weapons
As the impending TikTok ban looms over the social media platform, Kesha is reminding fans of the OG “TiK ToK.” The star took shared a video on Thursday (Jan. 16), soundtracked by her breakthrough hit. “TikTok may be temporary but TiK ToK is forever,” she wrote over the selfie-style clip. The 2009 track gave the […]
HipHopWired Featured Video
CLOSE
Source: SOPA Images / Getty / TikTok
Welp, it’s not looking good for everyone’s favorite social media platform, TikTok. The Supreme Court upheld the law banning the app in the U.S. if its Chinese owner, ByteDance, couldn’t facilitate a sale.
The clock officially ran out after TikTok’s final attempt to continue operating in the United States. The Supreme Court delivered the death blow, upholding a lower court ruling that ByteDance must sell the app by January 19 due to national security concerns.
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” an unsigned opinion from the justices read. “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary. For the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the challenged provisions do not violate petitioners’ First Amendment rights.”
The ban would go into effect under the Protecting Americans from Foreign Controlled Applications Act that President Joe Biden signed.
TikTok’s future in the United States is in dire jeopardy due to no sale on the table that could save it from the ban, forcing social media influencers to find another platform to do their “influencing” to continue making a living.
TikTok’s Fate Is In The Hands of Donald Trump
The outgoing Biden administration is punting on the matter, leaving TikTok’s fate in the hands of the platform’s newest “fan,” President-elect Donald Trump, who said to CNN, “It ultimately goes up to me, so you’re going to see what I’m going to do.”
“Given the sheer fact of timing, the administration recognizes that actions to implement the law simply must fall to the next administration, which takes office on Monday,” the Biden administration said.
“President Biden’s position on TikTok has been clear for months, including since Congress sent a bill in overwhelming, bipartisan fashion to the president’s desk: TikTok should remain available to Americans, but simply under American ownership or other ownership that addresses national security concerns identified by Congress in developing this law,” the statement read by White House Press Secretary Karine Jean Pierre said fresh off the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Trump also confirmed on his sh*tty platform Truth Social that he has spoken with China’s president Xi Jinping, claiming that he brought up TikTok during the conversation, whatever that means.
So What’s Going To Happen With TikTok?
When the ban officially begins, it will be up to the Google and Apple APP stores to enforce it and keep it from being available to users or face potential fines.
According to Deadline, the roughly 187 million Americans currently using the app will still have access to it, but they will not receive routine updates, rendering it a shell.
According to The Information, TikTok is prepared to go dark in the U.S. on Sunday, but the company could also “wait and see” what the Trump administration does.
Who Are The Potential Buyers?
During the previous nightmare that was Donald Trump’s first term, he was in favor of banning or forcing a sale of the app before his flip-flopping on the matter.
Deadline notes that he cannot stop the bipartisan legislation, but he could ask his incoming “Justice Department” not to enforce the ban.
There were rumors that China was considering Elon Musk’s potential purchase of TikTok. What could go wrong with this man owning another social media platform? TikTok has denied those claims.
Even Canadian Trump fan and Shark Tank cast member Kevin O’Leary is part of a formal bid submitted by Frank McCourt-founded Internet advocacy group Project Liberty to potentially buy TikTok without its algorithm to allow the 170 American users to “preserve the platform’s vibrant community, while also giving 170 million American TikTokers the ability to control, protect, and benefit from their data.”
We shall see what happens with the platform, but it looks like it’s a wrap right now.
You can see reactions to the news in the gallery below.
2. What is wrong with y’all ?
3. There might be some truth to this
4. Never forget!
5. Interesting take on the matter
8. Well, you should ask the GOP about most of those matters, TikTok was the only thing Republicans and Democrats agreed on
10. Womp, womp, womp
12. We shall see if his warming up to Donald Trump will help him in the long run
Charlie Puth is saying goodbye to his TikTok followers as a ban of the app looms large in the United States. The hitmaker shared a video of himself playing piano on the platform. After propping up his camera to the side of the keyboard, Puth wordlessly dives into a mellow arrangement of his and Wiz […]
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday (Jan. 17) upheld a federal statute that will effectively ban TikTok from the country over national security concerns, rejecting the company’s arguments that the law violates the First Amendment.
In a unanimous ruling, the high court said the law – set to go into effect on Sunday — was fair game because the U.S. government has valid fears about China’s control over TikTok, a popular social media service with 170 million American users that has also become a key cog in the modern music industry.
Attorneys for TikTok’s Chinese-owned parent ByteDance had argued that the law was clearly unconstitutional because it violates the First Amendment’s protections for free speech. But in Friday’s decision, the high court was unswayed.
Trending on Billboard
“There is no doubt that, for more than 170 million Americans, TikTok offers a distinctive and expansive outlet for expression, means of engagement, and source of community,” the justices wrote. “But Congress has determined that divestiture is necessary to address its well-supported national security concerns regarding TikTok’s data collection practices and relationship with a foreign adversary.”
The ruling has major implications for the music industry. TikTok has become a key part of the modern music ecosystem – a core promotional tool for labels and a jumping off point for many new artists, albeit one that has occasionally butted heads with rights owners and can sometimes prove difficult to harness into lasting success.
Friday’s decision will allow the ban to go into effect on Sunday, but it’s unclear exactly what will happen next. President-elect Donald Trump, set to take office on Monday, has vowed to “negotiate a resolution” to save the platform. And even outgoing President Joe Biden, who championed and signed the law, has reportedly signaled openness to prevent TikTok from going dark.
The TikTok law, which requires the app’s Chinese-owned parent ByteDance to either sell the app to a U.S. company or face a total ban on January 19, was approved by wide bipartisan majorities in Congress last year and signed by President Biden in April. Proponents have argued that TikTok presents a national security threat because of its connections to the Chinese government and access to millions of Americans.
TikTok and ByteDance sued in May, calling the law “unprecedented” violation of free speech aimed at “silencing” more than 170 million Americans. But in December, a lower federal appeals court rejected those arguments, ruling the law was aimed at protecting Americans from a “foreign adversary nation.”
Friday’s decision upheld that ruling, repeatedly stressing concerns about the Chinese government’s control over TikTok and the information it could pull from it.
“Petitioners do not dispute that the Government has an important and well-grounded interest in preventing China from collecting the personal data of tens of millions of U. S. TikTok users,” the justices wrote. “Nor could they. The platform collects extensive personal information from and about its users.”
Much of the ruling – a so-called “per curiam” decision that was not signed by any particular justice – was spent deciding on the level of “scrutiny” that such a ban should face under the First Amendment. While TikTok’s attorneys argued it was the kind of egregious intrusion into free speech that merits “strict scrutiny” by judges, the high court instead ruled that the law was the kind of less-problematic restriction that warrants only “intermediate scrutiny.”
Under that looser standard, the justices ruled Friday that the TikTok ban passed constitutional muster — deciding that the law served an “important government interest” and didn’t restrict free speech any more than was necessary to accomplish that goal.
The federal government was clearly justified in preventing a foreign adversary from “collecting vast swaths of sensitive data about the 170 million U. S. persons,” the justices wrote. And they said the TikTok ban was sufficiently limited in addressing that specific goal to avoid violating the First Amendment.
“Rather than ban TikTok outright, the Act imposes a conditional ban,” the justices write. “The prohibitions prevent China from gathering data from U. S. TikTok users unless and until a qualified divestiture severs China’s control.”
The government had also separately argued that the TikTok ban was fair game because of the power China could wield by using TikTok’s algorithm to influence Americans. But the justices effectively sidestepped that argument in their decision, saying it was not necessary to decide the case.
Ahead of Friday’s ruling, the music industry was already preparing for such an outcome. As Billboard‘s Elias Leight writes, record labels have been gearing up for the potential of life without TikTok: “Where is new artist discovery happening in 2025 if this app completely disappears?” The live music business has also been preparing to lose the platform, Billboard’s Dave Brooks writes, since festivals and other promoters have increasingly relied upon TikTok in recent years to reach ticket buyers.
Read the Supreme Court’s full decision here.