Gen Z rules TikTok—and they’re reclaiming their space. Coronavirus lockdown triggered a wave of millennials to sign up to the app, but their presence is apparently not very welcome.
Last weekend, self-identified Gen-Zer @mayalepa posted a TikTok saying: “[I’m] tired of boomers bunching Gen Z and millennials together because I personally don’t want to be associated with people who still think that Harry Potter movies are a personality trait.” Which is a fair point, especially considering J.K. Rowling’s recent onslaught of transphobic tweets. But, if you’re someone who has ever identified with a Hogwarts House, ouch.
https://twitter.com/local__celeb/status/1272231868310728706?s=20
Maya’s TikTok went viral, leading to a slew of toe-to-toe comments. “All they do is drink, post cringey 90s kid memes, talk about start-ups and life” wrote one user.
“They be 34 talking about ‘I’m a Hufflepuff’”, wrote another.
I’m literally so glad I’m not a millennial I’d way rather be associated with Tik Tok dances than whatever the hell this is pic.twitter.com/EioYIsrRtd
— abby govindan (@abbygov) June 14, 2020
This paradigm shift has been coming for a while though, so it should come as no surprise. Anyone who has spent time on TikTok can attest to the distinction between Gen Z and millennials. If you haven’t, it can be summed up in a sentence: Gen Z create TikTok dances and trends, Millennials watch YouTube videos to learn them.
Whilst Gen Z has been mostly known for their social responsibility (hi Greta Thunberg), they’ve also been found to be one of the most autonomous generations yet, and this recent demands to be distinguished—albeit informal—is just further proof of that.