months.  

At first, the app seemed like it was meant for younger audiences to share videos doing silly dances and other challenges with friends, but it soon grew to include older audiences as well. State shutdowns earlier in 2020 caused a lot of young adults to look for ways to keep themselves busy, so many turned to TikTok for entertainment.  

The app experienced a boom in content creators. Videos on TikTok now vary between dance videos, videos of users trying makeup looks, videos highlighting social inequalities and all the above.  

TikTok was a welcome reprieve for a lot of users, but the app soon faced a grim future when the Trump administration threatened to ban the app because of security concerns. Earlier in September, the app was close to being banned completely, but it was bought by Oracle and Walmart to make it safe for usage in the United States. Even though this acquisition made a lot of TikTokers happy, the Trump administration is still trying to get rid of the app, so everything is very much in the air now.  

Members of the Ionian’s e–board discuss what some of their favorite TikTok trends have been over the past few months: 

“I love the shoe transition and the sound ‘in the third grade everyone treated me like a criminal….because I killed somebody’ but they do it with little puppies,” Advertising Manager Ciara Serpa said.  

“I love when TikTokers use the audio ‘I’m not gonna do it … I did it’ and show women and men trying out the hairstyles or new makeovers that they were scared to do,” News Editor Krystal Ortiz said. “Seeing their newfound confidence is such a positive vibe.”  

 “My favorite recent trend is when people dance to songs that were popular in March and share hopeful messages about how nice it’ll be to have a few weeks off to spend with family, make whipped coffee and watch Tiger King,” Managing Editor Margaret Dougherty said. “It’s funny to look back at how much things have changed in less than a year.” 

The future of TikTok is still uncertain with new debates on whether it should be allowed in the U.S. happening every so often. Fans of the app can only wait for updates and hope for the best on what is to come for TikTok.