Growing social video sharing app TikTok has launched #myroots, a new in-app and out-of-home (OOH) brand campaign to mark Black History Month.
Appearing across billboards and online, #myroots tells the stories of TikTok Creators and Artists as they celebrate their Afro-Caribbean heritage.
The campaign features several Black Creators and influencers, including singer and songwriter Cat Burns, football freestyler Jeremy Lynch, personality and queer Creator Lily Rose, actor Michael Dapaah and Bedford-based comedian Sherice Banton.
The campaign was created by TikTok’s Creative Lab team in collaboration with Black Employees, Black Creators and Black creative talent, and will run for four weeks in October.
Black talent collaborated on this campaign and creative, with bespoke music for the campaign by Carly & MARL, mural art made by artist Linnet Rubaya, and TopView and social films directed by influential poet and director Caleb Femi.
The #myroots campaign champions the Black community both on and off the platform, aiming to encourage even more Black Creators to share their stories and allow everyone to learn about the individual experiences of those taking part. For the OOH placements, a personal statement is shared by each featured Creator about their heritage and what it means to them.
With TikTok at its core, the campaign will also see a series of in-app activations such as Hashtag Challenges, Branded Effects, TikTok LIVEs and TopView ad takeovers. Social ads will appear on other platforms including Facebook, Instagram and YouTube across the month.
The campaign forms part of TikTok’s wider Black History Month activities, which includes a series of virtual events, TikTok LIVEs, panel discussions and more. The company is also partnering with Black Tech Fest (BTF), a first-of-its-kind digital conference and movement aimed to help Black professionals expand their network and influence.
“It was important for us to mark Black History Month in the UK this year in a way that felt inherently TikTok – by celebrating our Creators and their stories. #myroots will honour the contribution made by the Black community, the joy our Black friends, family and colleagues bring, and look ahead to the future of Black talent on TikTok. This campaign has been developed to shine a light on the different experiences and stories of the Black community, and has been carefully curated to feature the brightest Black talent from across the UK,” said Trevor Johnson, global business marketing director at TikTok.
“At TikTok, we take great pride in the diverse community we hope to nurture on our platform. We know it’s something we constantly need to work on, and we will continue to make sure programmes like this become an everyday part of the TikTok experience for the 100 million people who use our platform across Europe,” Johnson added.
Speaking about being part of the campaign, Creator Lily Rose said: “I felt extremely privileged and honoured to have been chosen to be a part of such a historic campaign. I think it’s positive how TikTok are trying to spread awareness of the Black Lives Matter Movement (BLM) and are proactively encouraging the voices of Black Creators to be heard. It’s great to see a platform with the prominence of TikTok finally giving Black Creators the recognition they deserve and bringing them to the forefront of the app.”