For the last few years, TikTok has had a massive impact on the music industry. With more than a billion active monthly users worldwide, the social media platform has played a central role in the evolution of pop culture, particularly when it comes to music.
Whether it’s short snippets of audio which punctuate a viral trend or a new superstar being discovered in real time, in the era of music streaming, TikTok has a huge influence over almost every aspect of the industry.
A recent report from TikTok and Luminate found that 84% of songs which appeared on the Billboard Global 200 in 2024 went viral on the app before they charted, and that engagement with music on TikTok strongly correlated with streaming volumes elsewhere.
The lightning fast pace at which TikTok operates means that – unlike almost any other platform – the app has the ability to propel rising stars into mainstream popularity, renew interest in older music, and turn previously unknown artists into “the next big thing” on an entirely new scale.
It was because of TikTok that Scottish musician Nathan Evans was discovered after posting videos of himself singing sea shanties. Inverness-born singer-songwriter Katie Gregson-Macleod signed a record deal after her track Complex went viral on the app.
With some of these artists touring Scotland in 2025, here are 16 artists who became popular on TikTok.
13. Central Cee
Currently touring arenas around the UK – including Glasgow’s OVO Hydro – English rapper Central Cee has had a number of tracks go viral on TikTok such as Let Go – which samples Passenger’s track Let Her Go – and Doja, which is best known for its references to Doja Cat and its repeated line “How can I be homophobic? My b**** is gay". | AFP via Getty Images
14. Benson Boone
Behind one of the most popular songs of 2024, Benson Boone began posting videos of himself singing on social media. While he did appear on American Idol in 2021, Boone withdrew from the competition voluntarily to focus on his career outside of the show, steadily building his followers online. Boone is very adept at promoting his music on TikTok with his song Beautiful Things going viral on the platform before the single was eventually released in early 2024, with the star most recently generating buzz for his Coachella performance of Bohemian Rhapsody with Brian May. | AFP via Getty Images
15. Katie Gregson-MacLeod
After posting a demo of her song Complex on TikTok in 2022, Scottish singer-songwriter Katie Gregson-MacLeod gained an audience on the app overnight. With the original clip gaining millions of views, she was quickly signed to Columbia Records and nominated for Best Song Musically and Lyrically at the 2023 Ivor Novello awards as well as being named a breakout act at the Scottish Music Awards. | Getty Images
16. Alex Warren
A social media personality before he was ever a successful musician, Alex Warren first gained fame as a founding member of TikTok collaborative group the Hype House. As well as gaining more than 17 million followers on TikTok, Warren amassed a following of almost 3 million subscribers on YouTube with his prank and vlog style videos, with Netflix even releasing a Hype House reality series in 2022. Warren has been releasing music since 2021, with his most popular songs including Carry You Home and Ordinary, which quickly became viral on TikTok. | Getty Images for The Recording A