- TikTok is veering toward a US shutdown after the Supreme Court upheld a divest-or-ban law.
- The app is set to leave app stores and may go dark on Sunday if its owner, ByteDance, doesn’t divest.
- TikTok creators and their teams are tired from months of uncertainty, but cautiously hopeful too.
TikTok is in trouble.
The company is set to disappear from US app stores on Sunday due to a divest-or-ban law that requires its owner, ByteDance, to sell the app by January 19 or essentially cease operating in the country. TikTok may stop showing content in the US and “go dark” over the weekend.
For TikTok creators and their teams, ongoing uncertainty around the app’s US future has sparked frustration and fatigue.
“We’ve been dealing with this for months,” said Julian Andrews, founder of talent management firm Talentiish. “I just sort of want the situation to be over so we know how to move on.”
Some in the talent community are cautiously optimistic that a solution will emerge to save TikTok. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to try to rescue the app once in office, though his options could be limited.
“So many of us are still holding out hope that it will work out,” Barbara Jones, CEO of Outshine Talent, said.
Others aren’t holding their breath and are instead focusing on established alternatives, such as Instagram reels and YouTube shorts, as well as challenger apps like Clapper, Flip, and RedNote.
“Many of our clients are making accounts on RedNote and Flip as well as downloading their data from the TikTok app,” Jones said. “They are trying to be as prepared as possible.”
Creators may be hesitant to commit to new platforms, however, when the advertising dollars are much more reliable on major players like Instagram.
Instagram is, for the most part, the platform of choice among those Business Insider spoke to who are pivoting from TikTok.
Fallen Media, which runs TikTok shows like “What’s Poppin? With Davis!” said it will be heavily investing in Instagram reels, for example.
“I have suggested to my clients not to focus on any new platforms and focus on the tried and true,” Andrews at Talentiish said.
In the meantime, there’s still no clear answer as to what happens this weekend.
“The truth is we don’t really know what’s going to happen on Sunday, which I think is the crazy part,” said Fallen Media CEO Sol Betesh.
Creators are exhausted and devastated to say goodbye to TikTok
As news stories around a TikTok ban swing between good news and legal defeats, some creators have sunk into despair. The Supreme Court loss on Friday hit particularly hard for those whose businesses depend on the app.
“The ruling is truly devastating for me as someone who built their platform starting on TikTok,” said Sofia Bella, a TikTok creator with 4.8 million followers. “Losing the majority of my audience is a difficult reality to face, and while I’m doing everything I can to prepare, it’s hard not to feel like I’m starting over.”
Andrews said the job of talent manager has teetered between acting as a therapist and strategist for the creators they manage.
Some creators are actively fighting against a TikTok ban, including Vitus Spehar, who runs the news account @underthedesknews. Spehar has been covering breaking news and political developments around the divestment. They said Americans should call their senators and other representatives to demand action against the law.
Still, other creators who have experienced burnout from TikTok are welcoming a possible shift if the app goes down.
“Generally, the tone from most internet creators I’ve spoken to has been entirely apathetic,” said Tati Bruening, a TikTok creator with 2.4 million followers. “The pacing of content creation for TikTok was a recipe for burnout.”
Building a strategy for doomsday
Even as the creator economy braces for the loss of its favorite corner of the internet, this moment is a lesson for many.
“Stop building brands on social media that other people own,” Jennifer Powell, a talent manager who works with creators like Tezza and Ty French, told BI. “This can and will happen again. Start your website, get newsletters going, blogs, use affiliates, turn it into a brand, and own your own little place on the web.”
A TikTok ban could also be a gold rush for social media startups as they race to fill the void.
“There’s never been a better time to start a creation or curation company,” said Em Herrera, a former investor at Slow Ventures who recently founded a firm called Creator Venture Accelerator.
