Three observations:
1. high without gas
Fuel prices are rising. And “Without Gasoline” is trending on TikTok. High-pitched hyper-pop by Domiziana, a 25-year-old Berliner who grew up in Italy. “He doesn’t take E’s / he’s high with no gas / chilling in his car / like in a limousine,” she sings from every fourth video you see on the For You page. Of course, this is not a page in the true sense of the word, but an endless stream of short videos that fills the cell phone screen, which the algorithm plays out to you because it has to assume that they fit exactly on you based on previous short videos that you have watched to the end.
“The algorithm is strong today” is a comment that is read more frequently on TikTok. You are female, over 30, live in a big city and have brown hair, says a TikTok video on your head. And you’re taken aback, but you also know: Of course you’re a collection of hashtags. A coordinate on the not-so-big human matrix. Instagram has changed its user interface and is now full-screen – like TikTok. On the old, sluggish YouTube one learns that “Ohne Benzin” – fact – came out in March, but was much slower back then. The high pitch is missing in the landscape format music video on YouTube. Domiziana is lying on a stationary motorbike.
2. As I get a little older, I realize life is perspective
KanYe West and Kendrick Lamar released videos using the deepfake technique almost simultaneously. West lets his childhood and youth photos rap in the video for “Life Of The Party”. Kendrick Lamar prefaced The Heart Part 5 with a quote of himself aka Oklama – his wiser, more spiritual self: “I am. All of us.” His face then morphs into an animation of OJ Simpson, Will Smith and KanYe again West. Meanwhile, latex masks from an Italian company are going viral on TikTok, which make you wear another person’s face in a deceptively real way. These custom-made products are still very expensive. Young women in particular are still reproducing the face that the Instagram and TikTok filters sell them as a standard of beauty with fillers and neurotoxins. Even offline, they then have full Internet lips. They say: I am. All of us.
3. Only performance can hurt like this
The new season of Stranger Things features Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill (1985). Singer Mia Morgan sees Placebo live, sees them perform their ‘Running Up That Hill’ cover (2003) and is delighted. Says: They’re playing the TikTok song! Paloma Faith also made a comeback on TikTok with “Only Love Can Hurt Like This” (2014). The song is now the soundtrack for the separation of Bibi and Julian. On social media we consume performances that we do not perceive as such, although we know about them theoretically. Bibi and Julian have split up. A couple essential for the YouTube generation. Broadcast Yourself!
@julianca_040 Only love can hurt like this?#for you #bibisbeautypalace #sad #cope cr: @?????? ♬ Original sound – Fanpage?
Bibi and Julian did that. Those who once lived together in a children’s room and played pranks on each other now have two children, several properties and 14 million followers. Their content was sort of a Disney take on life. saturated Laughing. Parents like eternal children. Who smell like muffin shower foam and sell it too. The separation was revealed through photos. Bibi kissed another. They confirmed the split on Instagram. And the internet said no. For weeks, videos and texts were produced that question the separation.
This is a prank. Just a performance! Under the simplest conditions, it was possible to observe how and why conspiracy theories arise: people are so convinced of a fact that they take it for granted: Bibi and Julian live the best life. When something diametrically opposed to that belief occurs – Bibi and Julian have broken up – much is done to support the original belief. An endless stream of videos that only show you what you want to see will help. The algorithm is strong today.
This column first appeared in the Musikexpress issue 08/2022.