If you have spent any time online in the past year then you probably know of the two major factions on TikTok. The first of these factions is the Straight TikTok, and the second is Alt TikTok. TikTok first came to prominence during the lockdown, many people joined the hype and were completely consumed by this entertaining new app. This was when numerous dance challenges began to pop up, making it one of the most addictive apps currently. Tiktok content is not the same all through, however, and the app has a very accurate algorithm that sorts its users based on what they like to view. This great divide has spread all across the internet. What does it all mean?
Straight TikTok was originally coined to refer to the content made by heterosexual users on the app. Its meaning has gone through some changes, and it now refers to the mainstream content creators who were responsible for the app’s initial fame. TikTok’s viral sensation all stemmed from the entertaining dance videos and shirtless test traps that were constantly being posted. Straight Tiktok has no idea that they are being made fun of by their alt counterparts.
Alt Tiktok is short for alternative. It is basically supposed to mean the good side of the app. It is where Gen Z folks come to reside and crack themselves up with their unique humor. It is what we can call the ‘cringe-free’ rendition of the app. Alt Tiktok is basically everything else outside of Straight Tiktok. Many trends that spread to mainstream Tiktok find their origin on alt Tiktok. Alt Tiktok users spend quite a large amount of time making fun of the other side.
Another way of describing Alt Tiktok is Elite Tiktok. They pride themselves by saying that they are the ‘better’ side of things. Many of the videos posted by alt Tiktok members contain the intriguing text ‘You have been chosen’, or something along those lines. Alt Tiktok has the ability to pick your content based on videos you have already watched. It is a very unsettling process of selecting recommendations for your feed. If you want to join Alt Tiktok, then you can begin by exploring the hashtag #alttok or #altiktok. By liking the videos you find interesting, the algorithm will pick up your patterns and you would start to see more videos like that.
