#culture is not some stupid ass tiktok trend

[peachiyyy]

every day i see south asian culture becoming popular amongst non south-asians on tiktok and it actually does irk me. What do you mean you want to participate in our Ayurvedic practices when you’ve made fun of us for it our whole lives? Calling us smelly Indians?.., idc im a hater culture is not a stupid ass tiktok trend

[bilbotargaryen]

“A Ten But...” Tag

Thanks to @gummybugg for the tag! This is my very first ever tag so I hope I didn’t bastardize it too much xD

Had lots of fun with it and hope you’ll have some too!

„He’s a ten-“, Peter jumped onto the couch landing right next to Cat who immediately cuts him off: “Oh no, please don’t.” “Why?” “I don’t want anything to do with this shallow ass tiktok trend”, still, she put the book away she was reading and turned towards him to continue their conversation. “Come on!”, Peter exclaimed, “It’s fun! Not everything needs to be deep!” “Let’s do something else instead”, Cat said more excited, “How about-“ “Pizza is a ten”, Peter waited until she was done rolling her eyes, “You’d agree, right?” “Of course”, Cat was still annoyed but at least she finally joined in. “Okay, great. Pizza is a ten BUT it has pineapple on it!” “Ew”, she made a face. “It’s a ZERO!”, Bucky sat himself right next to Peter. “A -30”, Cat decided shortly after. “I’d say a seven”, Stephen, who before hid his head behind a book sitting in the  armchair next to Cat, lowered it now to participate. “You disgust me”, Cat decided immediately. “Didn’t expect anything else from the guy that eats his pizza like a spiral”, Bucky mumbled while fixating the man of the hour with a piercing look.

“What would you say?”, Cat turned to Peter who until then had followed the exchange closely. “I’d say…a three.” “a THREE?”, Cat was appalled. “And I would have trusted you with my life”, Bucky added in shock more to himself than to anyone else. “Hey”, Peter immediately began to defend himself, “There is much worse food out there!” “We’re talking about pizza!”, Cat argued “You still need to put things into perspective!” “Yes! That pineapple on pizza is a fucking crime!”

“Thor!”, Peter caught the addressee’s attention just in time before he could leave the flat, “Pizza is a ten but it has pineapple on it!” “It would seem that it would no longer be a ten but utmost a disappointment”, Thor’s deep voice and flat answer send Cat into a laughing frenzy and even the others had to chuckle, “Is that it?” “It is. Thanks for your time”, Peter pressed out in amusement. Thor left right away, now also with a smile on his face.

“Okay, let’s ask the others too! It’s been way too funny”, Peter turned to Cat, “Where’s your husband?” “Where’s yours?” “I asked first!” “I asked seco-“, she couldn’t even finish that stupid joke.

Fortunately, the former entered the living room area all by himself mere seconds later. “AH!”, Peter screamed and pointed at him, making him stop in confusion, “Answer me this: Pizza is a ten but it has pineapple on it!”

Loki slowly narrowed his eyes: “That is not a question.” “It’s”, Peter groaned, “You know that game!” “What game?” “You’re playing me! Come on, we all have given a rating so far!” “Fine”, he made a short consideration, “-10”

“HA!”, Cat gave Peter a quick slap on his upper arm in excitement, “A man of culture!” “And I thought you had taste”, Stephen noted. “He has INDEED!”, Cat couldn’t be more proud.

“Have you seen Baldur?”, Peter wanted to know in the meantime. “Fortunately not”, Loki answered and disappeared into the kitchen.

“Any word on Lucifer? Heimdall?”, Peter turned to the others but they started shaking their heads right away. “Shit”, Peter hissed, “Well, then we’ll begin the next meeting with it.”

“Seriously?”, Stephen wasn’t amused. “Yes, it’s an important survey”, Peter insisted.

Stephen went back to his book with a long sigh while Peter finally switched the topic to something more uncontroversial: Ordering proper pizza.

---

I don’t have friends to tag so...feel free whoever reads this to participate! It’s an open tag!

[cryde-donovan-vlogs]

// Hey everyone! Added a bunch of headcanons to Clyde’s HC doc. The newly added ones can also be found below the Keep Reading. 

GENERAL

Clyde is so sociable that he ends up talking to strangers on a whim and gets caught up in their stories. His disposition is very inviting and encouraging, willing to give people the space to be as weird or open as they want to be. He has no shame and will inject himself into strangers’ conversations or approach just about anyone.

He maintains an endless curiosity for the world and the cultures around him. The type of guy to go to the movies alone and not feel bad about it.

He’s a hard worker, his video and influencer hustle is strong. He’s always trying something new, watching trends, and pouring a great amount of passion into his work. Because of this, Clyde is often busy and on an adventure of his own.

He’s fine with playing the idiot and letting people think he’s a typical ex-highschool brainless jock when he’s actually got so much more going on under the hood. That isn’t to say he’s smart, he’s just stubborn, genuine, and passionate.

Has a weird and secret obsession with vampires; the stories, the myth, movies about them, etc. Read and watched the Twilight series in secret. TEAM EDWARD!

^ This is purely based on the superhero he made as a kid (Mosquito)… seems pretty sus he made a hero all about sucking blood and regaining health from it.

^ He also did it to try and understand why the ladies were into it and accidentally got swept into the fandom.

He also really really likes dinosaurs.

Blames himself for his mother’s death and has never gotten over it. It’s baggage he’ll likely carry for the rest of his life. He’s afraid of taking on other mother figures for the simple fact he may ‘kill’ them too.

Makes Lemon Bars at least once a year in honor of his mom, typically on her birthday. They’re dished out to friends since it’s upsetting to eat them. It’s a habit he can’t break even if it upsets him.

Kisses the homies goodnight, just makes sure to add “no homo” so it ain’t gay.

YT/TWITCH CHANNEL HC’S

At the beginning of freshman year in college (where his main verse currently is), Clyde’s channel has around 500K subscribers on Youtube & Twitch. He also maintains an active presence on his social media (Twitter, TikTok, etc.)

He got a camera for his birthday in 6th grade and immediately created a YouTube channel. It’s called ‘Cryde Donovan Vlogs’ (a typo) until he later rebrands to ‘Clyde Donovan’.

Starting with vlogs, he eventually branches out to more ambitious videos such as pranks, commentaries, documentaries, gameplay, and live streams. As his channel grows he takes on larger-scale projects and risks such as professionally shot (by him) mini-movies or music videos.

He has a natural eye and gut instinct for filming, photography, lighting, and framing. All of his videos have him behind the camera or heavily directing to maintain his artistic vision.

^ Similarly, while he wasn’t good at school work, he understands the intricacies of the internet. Analytics and how to review / gauge them, when to post and when not to post, what’s trending, etc. 

Always down to collab or showcase people from South Park on his channels. The town’s weirdness and the odd charm of the people who live there are the foundation of his vlogs. His friends and family are heavily featured on his channel unless they request to be left out.

^ There are conspiracy theories out there that SP is just TOO weird to be true and the people featured in his videos are actors.

Roger initially fights his son on making a career out of his channel and even forces him to attend college for business / gen ed. It’s not a lack of faith but more concern that it’s uncertain, taking over the shoe store is more stable. He eventually relents.

Future Clyde becomes a successful online influencer and media creator with his channel and goes on to make a merch line (possibly with the help of Bebe).

FAMILY

Roger

Their relationship is good, though strained and tested time and time again by his son’s stupidity.

He wants his son to take over the Shoe store but Clyde’s aspirations don’t match the sentiment.

He eventually forces his son to go to college for Gen Ed / Business in hopes it would put a stop to Clyde’s talk of making it big online. It doesn’t.

Betsy

Even though she was hard on him, and her final words were chastising herself for not being tougher on him, he loves her and misses her dearly.

Taught Clyde a little of the Dutch language and culture

Sister*

He has a sister, (my HC is that) she’s older than him by a few years.

She takes on the ‘mother figure’ role after Betsy passes away but Clyde rejects it out of fear that he may kill her accidentally too.

Likes to sing and is pretty damn good at it!

* Based on a deleted scene from the Reverse Cowgirl episode and other context clues in the show

FRIENDS

Craig (@watchingredracereveryday)

Has gone over to Craig’s house so often since childhood he basically lets himself in now.

The two have a similar relationship dynamic to Kyle and Stan, just with less drama.

Sporadically kicks in Craig’s door and pulls Craig along to do stupid shit with him, usually ending up in the two having some kind of wacky adventure.

Token

The friend that Clyde confides in the most, especially with in struggling with his closeted Bi thoughts.

Out of his friend group, Token is the one that Clyde hangs out with the most since Craig is dating Tweek and he doesn’t want to intrude.

Tweek (@tweek-bros-coffee)

The friend that Tweek goes to when he’s been up for days and can’t sleep. Clydes excited energy and busy-bee schedule usually wears him down so he can sleep

Usually drags Tweek into random and sudden misadventures.

Jimmy

Jimmy gets featured on Clyde’s channel the most out of his friend group since he’s funny, witty, and the two have a good banter and dialogue.

Tricia (@tricia-fucker)

He sees Tricia as his kick-ass little sister and would do anything for her! Very protective of her and would bend over backwards at her request.

Bebe (@blondebeebitch)

His Queen bestie!! Would do anything for her.

Likes having self-care day or spa nights with her. They get to unwind, maybe drink a little, put on a face mask, and hang out. Sounds like a win to him.

If he needs fashion or general life advice, he typically goes to Bebe. She radiates an energy that gives him comfort in the answers she provides. She also has the Tarot and crystals to back her up.

Pete (@cigarette-tainted-death)

Initially starts out bothering Pete during his graveyard shifts at the station but starts staying longer and longer since he enjoys his company.

Was recently asked to go freighthopping by Pete, for a video, and he agreed. Totes looking forward to it, Brete. (Bro+Pete)

Ike (@sir-canuck)

Sees himself in Ike since the little guy wants to go into streaming and video games too! He’s willing to take him under his wing and offer any guidance he can.

The jocks that have since graduated, like Stan and Clyde, have unofficially adopted Ike as their little jock brother.

[aahsoka]

So having been on tiktok for a bit I wanna talk a little about it.

What I like

It’s actually rather entertaining to scroll through up to 30 second videos one after the other. Sometimes the humor falls flat or it’s not your taste, but the algorithim is quite good at recommending the kind of content you will like.

I joined right when there was a big trend going around about sharing your culture, and soon after a Blackout trend where non-Black creators stopped posting for a day & spread/supported videos by Black creators. So I ended up with a fairly diverse fyp or “for you page”. It also quickly gathered that I am bisexual, so I get plenty of lgbt+ content. There’s some art mixed in there, some cosplay, some historical costuming/seamstresses, lots of avatar jokes lately, musical theatre content, fashion, girls in bikinis on rollerskates (in outer space), commentary on political issues, body positivity, all the kinds of stuff I like. To get a feed that caters to your interests you just have to watch & like videos you’re interested in & eventually it gets a feel for what you’ll watch and what you won’t.

Theres a trend where people say which ‘side’ of tiktok they’re on and I get ‘science side of tumblr’ flashbacks but I’ve mostly avoided the “straight” and conservative sides of tiktok. I would be considered a part of “woke”, “alt” (as in alternative) and lgbt+ tiktok (there are separate ones for each letter of the acronym). Possibly also “theatre” and “cosplay” tiktok. These categories are nebulous and you’re usually part of multiple communities; its just as arbitray as ‘science side of tumblr’ was.

The format reminds me of snapchat a little, and I love to talk to myself on video & post dumb thirst traps for my friends (none of which I’m attracted to so idk what my goal is there) and make stupid jokes. So this app is kinda perfect for my attention seeking side & hyperactive tendencies. Its very easy to consume on a short attention span, though not as easy as vine was.

Being in quarantine, its a way for a lot of people to engage in hobbies that involve community. Cosplay is pretty popular, as its a fun way to show off a costume & dress up & have fun without having to attend a convention. I enjoy the way lip synced audios can be used to emulate the character someone is dressed as; that’s something you couldn’t really do unless you were really good at impressions. Its a nice succinct way to show the process of creating a cosplay as well.

Those who enjoy theatre, but cannot perform in shows at this time, are able to create mini-monologues & sketches as well as sing parts of their favorite songs. Its an avenue through which to perform without putting anyone at risk of the virus. It’s also an easy way to show off your talents without having to go through the audition process & actually get cast in a show as a prominent enough role that someone will notice it.

It’s a convenient format for discourse and educational videos. Nice, short, easily digestible tidbits that stay in your mind. This extremely catchy song, for example: “Black neighborhoods are overpoliced, so of course they have higher rates of crime, and white perpetrators are undercharged, so of course they have lower rates of crime. And all of those stupid stats you keep using are operating off a small sample size. So, shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up”.

As well as other videos where people take the time to explain historical events, satirize racist arguments to demonstrate why they are wrong, talk about prevalent tropes in movies, teach a few signs in ASL, share facts about their culture, etc, etc. I have found there are quite a lot of people there from unique and fairly unknown cultures and backgrounds- and this is a place where they’re able to share their culture & existence with people all over the world. There are a thousand different viewpoints. Their videos are doing far more for diverse representation than any other platform, I’d argue, as everyone is extremely visible on the app. (‘Their’ as in the creators, not the app itself).

I also have enjoyed coming across new artists on the app. It’s really fun to watch the process they go through, as most art videos deal with the whole creation of a piece. It’s inspiring. I have also come across a painter who’s work I’m in love with, and a woman who makes and sells the CUTEST ceramic mugs, and I need to purchase some stuff from them both.

Now onto the bad:

Unfortunately, the app doesn’t have much in the way of a filtering or warning system. I talked about that tiktok of the kids coming across human remains? That was just on people’s fyp. Just popped up. No warning. No reason for it to still be up. Traumatizing.

You can click on a video and say ‘not interested’ (I do this to literally every video I get where some girl is thirsting after kylo ren 🤮..... like I want the star wars videos just not THOSE videos). However, it doesn’t seem to know exactly why you weren’t interested, because I still get those videos from time to time. There’s no content filter where I can blacklist the kylo ren or any other hashtag.

There’s some very shitty content. There are racist conservatives. Misogynistic teen white boys. Really weird thirst traps. Videos where people lip sync to something with a straight face and tag it with #acting. Harmful body image trends. I thankfully stay very clear of this, but this kind of content makes me worry for the minors on the app. The one’s who don’t have enough of a concept of self yet to realize they don’t need to be able to do the newest pointless beauty trend to be beautiful, to realize it’s ok for them to be gay, to realize how predatory some adults can be, etc etc.

It is extremely easy to come across minors on the app who don’t look like teens. One time I went to a girl’s page and it said she was FIFTEEN. I’m usually good at guessing ages but something about this app messes that up. I wish there was a way to separate people under 18 and adults. Where I don’t have minor’s thirst traps popping up on my fyp. Where pedophiles don’t get a chance to curate that fyp intentionally. If anyone reading this has kids, I highly recommend they make their tiktok private or only viewable to friends.

Just like any site, there are plenty of bigots. Lots of racist comments. Plenty of transphobia. Any hatred you’ve seen elsewhere, of course it exists on tiktok. I have actually zero clue if you can report people & if it works. Most people seem to send a video commentary to their haters or duet a video of a racist pointing out their racism. I’ve heard of creators blocking people, however. I remember a tiktok of a Black woman who’s video somehow went fairly viral in Poland and now she gets a lot of racist comments from this large group of random racisf Polish followers she has and its extremely time consuming to block them all, as there’s no mass block feature.

The rumors about what works with the algorithm and doesn’t abound. I’ve heard well lit videos get more views. Many people suspect they have been shadowbanned for speaking out about current events. TikTok will remove the audio from videos sometimes if they deem it controversial enough. Most of us know they were criticized recently for intentionally keeping Black creator’s videos from being seen (a catalyst for the Blackout, actually). Or you may also recall when it was criticized for widely removing lgbt+ content. Those creators are fighting to be seen the same amount as straight cis white creators are allowed to be seen with no effort.

The effects some trends could have on teen girls. So many of them are already so uncomfortable in their own skin simply because of societal standards, but the absolutely meaningless challenges people come up with on tiktok make it so much worse. One trend was based around whether your finger touched your lips when you put it in your nose. Or if you could get your clasped hands around the back of your legs and over your butt (if they get passed, you have a flat ass, if they get stuck, its big). These completely arbitrary signifiers of the things you need to have in order to be pretty, are far more ridiculous that anything I have seen yet in my life. I worry about little girls taking these ideas to heart. There is a very kind body positive community on the app & I hope more people can find that.

There’s also that thing where they steal your data. Like most apps. But apparently they got a lot more invasive than usual, so I would look into it before making an account; if you want to do that.

I think the apps users can be great & its a pretty intuitive set up. It certainly deserves its popularity solely as a creative form of social media. That being said, its owners are so so insidious & do the worst things. Just like all other social media, its controlled by the worst kind of people. Who can never figure out how to effectively get rid of nazis or keep kids safe from adult content.

These are my less serious gripes with the app:

1) Lip syncing

When people lip sync and don’t do any kind of skit, joke, etc, just look as if they’re saying what someone else said; I hate that. I have to go back and find the original tiktok so I can like it instead. You literally did nothing interesting by ripping off someones audio and moving your lips along to it. So many people on this app are creative and so many others lack any semblance of creativity.

Also people are too easily impressed by lip syncing to kinda-fast songs. I lip synced to like....10 seconds of the devil went down to georgia and two people praised my lip syncing abilities. Like, I can also sing and talk fast, out loud, isn’t that more impressive? more skillful? The fiddle playing in that song is impressive, not the fact I can lip sync ‘the devil went down to georgia, he was lookin for a soul to steal, he was in a bind, cause he was way behind.’ Have you ever seen someone play Johnny’s fiddle solo????? It’s insane!!!

Rather than see someone lip sync to the verse in Stressed Out 2x faster than normal (which is, extremely simple and the song was overplayed and ingrained into our collective consciousness) and go WOW what about someone.....doing the verse out loud. You can litterally just mouth random words and look like you’re saying the right ones. It’s driving me crazy lmao. I’m set to become a God of tiktok because I have a repertoire of fast songs and rap verses memorized. It’s not even an uncommon skill to speak or sing quickly, people literally make rap music for a living! Listen to it maybe.

2) “Acting”

I am begging you to stop making me sit through those horrible POVs. I cannot take another girl not quite fake crying towards the camera as she lip syncs the words from a song that apply to the random situation she decided she was in. I cannot take another boy who thinks its sexy to stare into a camera and smirk in every single situation he creates.

Back to lip syncing, making facial expressions along to words isn’t really acting. Try saying the words out loud perhaps? The inflection you use with your lines is a pretty big part of acting. Like you can lip sync all you want, just stop tagging it with #acting.

3) Comedic timing, or lack thereof

You don’t need the entire intro to sit there looking at the camera waiting until the first line starts and you can lip sync to the part that’s the joke. You could cut off at least 15 seconds. Brevity is the soul of wit.

When your joke involves both reading text on screen and listening to the song for the punchline, if it isn’t done prefectly, its so difficult to follow. I can’t read a paragraph in 5 seconds. Paraphrase.

4) self deprecating artist audio

the audio thats like ‘this wont get views’ ‘I suck’ ‘you probably won’t see this anyway’ LOVE YOURSELF

It sucks when people dont enagage with your art but it sucks worse when your value in yourself and you art is based solely on receiving that validation. Please find a healthy medium.

Also you’re asking for pity, and you don’t want that. You want people who genuinely love your art for what it is.

5) editing videos is really hard how do you make such cool & smooth transitions????

please help me I don’t understand

Finally

here’s my account if you’re interested