I was really holding out on downloading this app for a few different reasons. When TikTok first made its debut, it seemed to be overloaded with preteens who were posting lip-syncing and dancing videos. Apart from these annoying videos, there were ones of mediocre humor. Also, it seemed like this app was essentially a mashup of Vine and Musical.ly. As someone who was a part of the original Vine craze, I was skeptical of TikTok living up the OG app. I even teased my friends who had it downloaded on their phone; I especially teased those who made TikToks. I told myself I would never be caught with it on my phone unless I “did it for the memes” aka unless it was done ironically.
So this weekend, my boyfriend mentioned his friend made TikToks and he opened the app― which I was shocked to see he had. After showing me a few videos his friend made, we somehow managed scrolling through the videos on his “For You” page for over an hour. That same night, I downloaded the app onto my phone (which he strongly discouraged I might add) and I now understand why everyone says it is dangerous. I went on it to watch a few videos before bed the other night and spent over an hour on it. Here I was trying to go to bed early and be a functioning human the next day and TikTok ruined me. The only reason I stopped was that I scrolled upon one of those videos where they literally tell you to stop scrolling and eat some food and sleep. The first time I saw this style of video I chuckled, however, that night in particular, I appreciated it. It’s kind of sad how easily I can become engulfed in these TikToks, especially because of how harsh of a skeptic I was in the beginning.
If you have the app, then maybe you understand. If you do not have the app, then perhaps don’t download it. I could do with it in all honesty. I don’t find myself on the app frequently, however, when I do, I end up on it for quite some time. Another reason I suggest not downloading the app if you haven’t already is because Instagram and Snapchat have been re-posting the funniest and cutest ones so you can see the TikTok’s most worth watching on those apps instead. Trust me on this one, remain a skeptic for your own good.