Tinashe's sultry R&B track "Nasty" has been crowned the UK's TikTok Song of the Summer, beating out chart-toppers from Sabrina Carpenter and Billie Eilish. The song, which features the now-iconic lyric "match my freak," soundtracked over 10 million videos on the platform, becoming a viral sensation.
However, despite its dominance on TikTok, "Nasty" only reached number 66 on the UK charts and number 61 in the US. This stands in stark contrast to last year's TikTok summer anthem, "Sprinter" by Dave and Central Cee, which sold 1.2 million copies and held the top spot for 10 weeks.
Tinashe's track initially gained traction in April when a video of British dancer Nate de Winer performing a sensual routine to the song went viral, garnering over 13 million views. De Winer's signature moves were subsequently mimicked by a plethora of celebrities, including Christina Aguilera and Janet Jackson. The song's popularity even extended to royalty, with a video of King Charles revealing his official portrait at Buckingham Palace being spliced with the "Nasty" beat in May.
This unexpected surge in popularity brought Tinashe, whose career had previously been hindered by label issues, back into the spotlight ten years after her debut single. "I was saying this to my mom the other day, 10 years later, who would have thought?" Tinashe told Variety magazine. "I definitely think that everything that Iâve done up to now, all those grinding it out moments where I just had my head down and was just putting out the best music I could and being really consistent and making great visuals and things like that, itâs all led up to this."
Other artists who achieved significant success on TikTok this summer include British singer-songwriter Blood Orange, whose 2011 track "Champagne Coast" experienced an unexpected resurgence, and pop star Sabrina Carpenter, whose breakout hits "Espresso" and "Please Please Please" both made the platform's Top 10.
TikTok's Top 10 Songs of the Summer (UK):
1. Tinashe - Nasty 2. Blood Orange - Champagne Coast 3. Tommy Richman - Million Dollar Baby 4. Leostaytrill & Mr Reload It - Pink Lemonade (Str8 Reload) 5. Sabrina Carpenter - Please Please Please 6. Billie Eilish - Birds Of A Feather 7. Central Cee & Lil Baby - Band4Band 8. Myles Smith - Stargazing 9. Jordan Adetunji - Kehlani 10. Sabrina Carpenter - Espresso
TikTok's Top 10 Songs of the Summer (Global):
1. FloyyMenor and Cris MJ - Gata Only 2. Tinashe - Nasty 3. Tommy Richman - Million Dollar Baby 4. Billie Eilish - Birds Of A Feather 5. Sevdaliza - Alibi 6. Sabrina Carpenter - Please Please Please 7. El Alfa, Nfasis - Este 8. Lay Bankz - Tell Ur Girlfriend 9. Luis R Conriquez, Neton Vega - Si No Quieres No 10. Karol G - Si Antes Te Hubiera Conocido
TikTok's own data highlights a growing disparity between viral success and wider chart performance. "Nasty" has yet to sell the equivalent of 200,000 copies in the UK, the threshold for a silver disc. Three other tracks featured on the UK "songs of the summer" list failed to reach the official Top 40.
This shift reflects TikTok's evolving strategy, moving away from its initial focus on music towards longer-form videos and its burgeoning shopping platform. The platform's dispute with Universal Music Group, which saw millions of songs temporarily removed in January following a disagreement over royalty payments, further dampened TikTok's music dominance.
Although the dispute was resolved in May, the experience instilled a degree of caution in creators who now hesitate to utilize commercial music in their videos.
While TikTok remains a vital tool for artists promoting their work, as evidenced by the successful rollout of Charli XCX's "Brat" album, its role as a music-breaking force appears to be waning. The days of TikTok propelling artists like Lil Nas X, Doja Cat or PinkPantheress to global fame may not be over, but the likelihood has certainly diminished.
