The US might ban TikTok. Record labels are cutting ties. What's music's Plan B?
LOS ANGELES — In November 2022, Isimeme Udu uploaded the song that changed her life. The singer, who performs as Hemlocke Springs, was stressing about her medical studies at Dartmouth when she dropped her synth-pop track "Girlfriend" onto TikTok. Its lo-fi élan immediately found an audience.
Within hours, Grimes commented with high praise, and fans clamored for the new "awkward Black girl anthem," as many described it. Millions of plays later, Udu finished her degree and became a touring sensation — she opened for Muna at the Greek Theatre and, this summer, will open Doja Cat's European arena tour.
"When it came to music, I thought it was just unattainable," Udu said. "People talk about getting a foot in the door, but I didn't even know what the door was. Days later, people were stopping me on campus asking 'Are you Hemlocke?' "
Udu is grateful for the opportunity the app offered. "I've been so lucky to meet so many cool people who I never thought would know me," she said. "But that can't be at the expense of doing the thing that made you popular. I had a viral moment, but I had to say, 'Don't lose yourself, because that's only going to be temporary.' "
She was right. TikTok's status as music's hit-making force suddenly looks less certain.
In February, Universal Music Group, the largest record label conglomerate in the world, pulled its catalog from TikTok. Videos using music
