LOUISVILLE, Ky. — If you haven't heard of the latest social media app, TikTok, you've probably been living under a rock. The latest craze has taken off, and now has surpassed 2 billion downloads since it launched.
Thanks to coronavirus and quarantine, it has gained even more popularity. Since January, TikTok has been downloaded 315 million times. According to Business Insider, that's the most downloads any app has ever received in a single quarter.
Super stars like Justin Bieber and Lizzo have made their way on, but regular people are becoming TikTok famous -- like the McFarland family.
The family has been making videos on TikTok for more than a year, but saw their popularity jump after their version of The Weeknd's Blinding Lights challenge dance went viral. The video received more than 14 million views.
"Seeing that video after the effort we put into it, it was just the best feeling," said Colin McFarland. "We posted that at about midnight. It had about 500,000 views when we woke up."
The star of the videos is Dan McFarland, aka the dad of the family. Being 59 years old, he's anything but your usual TikTok star.
"If you watch TikTok there's a lot of really good dancers on there," he said. "I thought, man, if I go out there it's going to take a lot for me to look good!"
What's the best way to become a TikTok success? Here are three simple tips from the McFarlands:
- See the trends that are on the app
- Find your niche
- Make it unique and have fun
The McFarlands say they have been making videos ever since they were kids using the family camcorder. Now they have more than 1 million followers on the social media platform.
Here are some of their biggest hits:
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