Research Thesis
TikTok is an emerging social media platform that rap artists are utilizing to promote themselves and their music to fans. This dissertation aims to analyse the varying promotional strategies rap artists in the UK are using in order to form stronger connections with their audience. There are specific recurring attributes these rap artists embed within their content on TikTok in order to build relationships with their audience, as well as specific attributes fans expect to see in order to feel connected to an artist.
This study will be informed through interviews with UK rap artists, producers, and managers to discover what these attributes are and provide us with a practical insight into how rap artists in the UK are using TikTok as a promotional tool. It will also be informed by audience surveys and content analysis.
This research examines the patterns of promotion that are favoured by fans as well as those that are not and the effects of this on the material that UK rap artists upload onto TikTok. We will see how and why these relationships are forming and how TikTok is being used as a medium for that purpose.