Top 10 Best Things From TikTok In 2022
Like it or not, TikTok is the moment. From dance trends to trauma dumping, the social media platform either has you in a chokehold or irritates you to no end. I am, for better or worse, in the former category, with a love of mindlessly scrolling through shortform video content of dogs and cats just existing, stay-at-home moms cleaning their houses, retail workers sharing their horror stories, and so much more. It’s a treasure trove and a hellscape, all at the same time. Trends cycle through TikTok at the speed of light and it’s nigh impossible to keep track of what’s in during any given month. Thankfully, I am here to share the ten best things TikTok gave us in 2022, from strange accounts to corn-filled sounds.
Mestre Ensinador
A small flying puppet with a green pointy hat from Brazil has captured the hearts of TikTokers everywhere. Mestre Ensinador, or Master Teacher, is an enigma who flies through the woods and also might steal souls? It’s unclear, there’s no dialogue in his videos, just vibes. He also led to the phrase “me as a baby” that you may see commented everywhere. Why? Because it’s the internet, and someone said it once about one of Mestre’s videos, and for some reason it stuck. Nothing about it makes sense. It’s surreal. That’s why everyone loves it and are even getting tattoos of the little man. One thing is for sure: I’d die for Mestre Ensinador.
Voice Effects
This year, TikTok rolled out a series of voice effects that have the entire app in a chokehold to the point that it’s almost uncool to use your own voice in a video. The favorite is the “Sneaky” voice, a high-pitched squeaky voice that somehow makes any story 50% funnier no matter what. Something about hearing a person tell their deepest darkest secrets with that specific voice effects hits different. And others have gotten even more creative, applying the filter to their partner’s snores or their cat’s meows. A close second is the automated female voice that sounds like an ATM machine come to life.
Wednesday Dance
Tim Burton’s new series Wednesday hit Netflix a few months ago and it quickly skyrocketed on the streamer’s charts. The series sees Wednesday Addams, played by up-and-coming scream queen Jenna Ortega, head to boarding school and solves mysteries with her newly discovered psychic powers. One of the show’s defining moments is a school dance where Wednesday dances to “Goo Goo Muck” by The Cramps in a dance completely choreographed by Ortega herself. Well, TikTok went nuts for it and everyone started recreating it. However, the song of choice became a sped-up version of Lady Gaga’s song “Bloody Mary”. Why that song? Again, this is a case of “it’s just the internet”. There’s no rhyme or reason, but it caught on like wildfire. This trend represent the chaotic beauty of TikTok: a bunch of seemingly disparate parts come together to create a viral trend that shows that goth kids are alive and well.
Backrooms and liminal spaces
On January 7, 2022, YouTuber user Kane Pixels uploaded a video called “The Backrooms”. Based on a CreepyPasta, or online scary story, about the rumored back rooms that exist in the corners of reality, the video utilized our fear of liminal spaces to its fullest potential. The video launched a TikTok trend of users creating their own version of the Backrooms or other liminal spaces that seem to exist out of time and space. They are suspended out of reality, and yet feel familiar. The trend also capitalizes on found footage techniques seen in horror movies like The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield. If you want to go on a brain-melting journey, I recommend falling into this surreal rabbit hole.
“It’s Corn!”
If you somehow avoided hearing the phrase “it’s corn” in 2022, you deserve an award. It all started with a cute little kid just telling the world about his love for corn. He was speaking from the heart, and we love that for him. His sincerity and love of the golden kernels launched a massive wave of obsession, with the video even getting its own series of techno remixes. Users took the sound, specifically when the kids says “I couldn’t imagine a more beautiful thing” and placed it over videos of their favorite things, from pets and partners to squishmallows and fast food.
“A Negroni. Sbagliato. With Prosecco in it.”
Even if you didn’t watch House of the Dragon this year, you probably heard of the infamous interview between stars Olivia Cooke and Emma D’Arcy where D’Arcy explains that their “drink of choice” is a negroni (pause), sbagliato (pause) with prosecco in it, punctuated with Cooke saying “stunning”. The first way of virality came with many of us collectively thristing over D’Arcy. The second way came with users using the sound bite to explain their own favorite things, including dating preferences, why they got divorced, hobbies, and more.
Julia Fox
Look, Julia Fox isn’t new. She stunned viewers in Uncut Gems and has forged a path as a fashion icon with her questionable eyeliner choices. But with TikTok, Fox has skyrocketed into our hearts as a weird but cool mom with bleached eyebrows and a fascinating dating history. She takes to the app in no make-up to give out parenting advice or tell us that she twerked so hard on New Year’s that she popped out a veneer. Perhaps I just have a sick fascination with her, but I know I’m not the only one.
One Thing About Me
TikTok is the place that can make or break the success of a new song. Thankfully for Nicki Minaj, TikTok latched onto her new song “Super Freaky Girl.” But instead of just a dance, users took the instrumental track to tell stories of their trauma on beat. Nothing says healing like making your worst memory into a song for strangers on the internet. I will admit, the format got old after awhile, especially as users decided that following the beat was optional. But if you want to really experience some secondhand trauma, I recommend scrolling through the sound’s page.
AI Anime Character Filter
2022 has been the year of AI art, for better or worse. This inevitably led to AI art filters on TikTok and one in particular still dominates the app: the AI Anime character filter. Once users caught onto the filters love of giving people exaggerated breasts, the games began. Pro tip, you can use your fist in front of your chest to try and get the filter to give you boobs. Users showed off the different variations of characters they could get depending on facial expressions and props, and even used them on their pets. Since the images are randomly generated, it’s hilarious watching people trying to achieve certain results and failing (or succeeding) spectacularly.
Molly Moon
Molly Moon creates some of the creepiest content on the app. She started her Tiktok in September where she plays a creepy character who starts out each video saying “Excuse me, sir?” There’s an off-putting vibe to each video with her eyes wide and cadency stilted; she feels like a being trying to appear human. But, just recently, her content pivoted to similar videos but with Playstation 1-era graphics that are reminiscent of horror games like “Silent Hill.” The videos present “prompts” for taking items or making conversation decisions, but you really don’t have a choice; you’re going to engage with her. They deliver similar vibes to liminal space videos, content that feels unsafe yet familiar. I’m all for leaning into the creepy and uncanny, and Molly Moon achieves that and more.
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