The viral momentum and chart success of “Body” represents the mainstreaming of UK drill, a genre that’s long been criminalized by British authorities under the auspices that it promotes gang violence.

In an earlier “Body” trend, they also used a devilish cackle after Millions raps “high as a kite, never sober” as a transition point for outfit changes, simulating pulling a lever on a car. Creators lip-synced to ArrDee’s verse and had their followers guess which side of the Atlantic they came from based on their mouth movements. Chalk its zealous reception up to the punchy ad-libs, the cocksure attitude, and, at least to Americans, the sheer British-ness of it all. While the “Body” remix features chart-friendly names like Bugzy Malone, Fivio Foreign, and Darkoo, it’s upstart ArrDee’s contribution that swept through TikTok. The slangy lines are from ArrDee’s verse on the remix to “Body,” a high-flying single by Tion Wayne and Russ Millions that, in May, became the first UK drill song to ever hit No. Dominican dembow was a real force on the app in 2021: El Alfa, the dembow king, scored numerous viral hits, and a clip that rapper Gailen La Moyeta shared of her verse from “ Bobolonga” got almost 11 million views. Tokischa, the Dominican rapper and Paulus Music artist whose dembow collaboration with Rosalía, “ Linda,” took off in Spanish-language TikTok.I’ve enjoyed his 2021 album Boyfriend, which is subtle and mellow, going down like a light glass of wine. Once I figured out that CKay was also on Amaarae’s incredible 2020 album The Angel You Don’t Know, I was sold. The version that exploded on TikTok was a stripped-down remix that helped accelerate its momentum with a (relatively) footwork-heavy dance. CKay, the Nigerian singer-songwriter whose liquid-smooth single “ love nwantiti (ah ah ah)” became the most Shazammed song in the world this year.But I much prefer “ LVCKY,” LVL1’s harder-hitting collaboration with Y2K-loving Spanish hyperpop artist Rakky Ripper, and have also enjoyed surfing through their “ LVL1C0R3” playlist, which features artists like SOPHIE, LSDXOXO, and Danny L Harle. LVL1, a queer rapper from Andalusia, Spain whose house-hop track “ FVN!” (“cat-kitty-cat-cat-kitty-cat-cat!”) became really popular as the backing track to all sorts of cat TikToks.Not all of these international discoveries are winners, but here are my faves: Bella Hadid reposted a video of Nimco Happy on IG.Īlso included in the list of global hits that have populated my feed this fall are a filthy Russian hip-hop track (“ Я буду ебать,” or, loosely, “I Will Fuck”), a Latin swing number (“ Nuestra Canción”), and a Mandopop song from a phone commercial (“ 放个大招给你看”). Drake commented “this song so hard” on a meme page featuring it. About a month ago, a Somali wedding song with a hook that covers “I love you” in four languages-Nimco Happy’s “ Isii Nafta”-made the rounds, years after it was a sensation in East Africa. More and more songs from outside of the West are bubbling up through TikTok and becoming international smashes.

Best tik tok songs