To continue strengthening our impact on the music industry as our platform matures, we aim to have presence at major cultural moments and music tentpole events to help drive association and own the narrative around music as a cultural export. However, TikTok wanted to take that a step even further. Beyond just association, we aimed to create our own cultural capital and ownable IP that can become synonymous with music.

In keeping with the magic and "surprise and delight" of the TikTok experience, we wanted to host this in an unexpected venue, in an unexpected location, and in a way that only TikTok could do.

To showcase the power of music on TikTok to people who aren't on the platform, we created a brand experience off the platform. The first-ever, in-person live music experience from TikTok.

This wasn't just a regular concert, it raised a new bar for what could be expected from TikTok. We took what's unique to the platform and mixed it with the live concert experience. From uniting artists on stage with artists playing from their bedrooms via live duets, to having phone cameras surrounding the stage for unique angles and interactions with artists, to a LIVE stream that brought in over 30 million people to watch and interact with the event, to food trucks serving recipes that are trending on TikTok. Everything was curated to be a TikTok experience outside of the app.

We announced in October, 2023 that TikTok would be launching In The Mix - our first-ever live global music event - with our headliners Cardi B, Niall Horan, Anitta, and Charlie Puth. We then delivered a sustained and wide-ranging comms campaign over the next two months to maximize coverage globally, in the United States and locally in Arizona, reaffirming TikTok's central role in the global music industry and as the leading platform for music discovery and promotion.

Key moments throughout the campaign include; the launch announcement; highlighting our artists with exclusive interviews, telling inspiring creators and small businesses stories, celebrating our sponsors, and confirming the record breaking LIVE event. The team managed the press tent with journalists on the ground at the event, produced real time coverage updates, while wrangling video and photo opps across the venue, and handled a full slate of artists and creator press interviews.

We collaborated with Emmy-winning director Hamish Hamilton to revolutionize a 360 stage concept tailored for smartphone viewing, creating a unique TikTok experience. Headliners crafted special sets with vertical screen choreography and exclusive TikTok moments, such as Charlie Puth's surprise duet and artist-specific entries embodying themes from Brazilian carnival to a boxing ring walkout. The event, over 6 hours long, seamlessly integrated performances, stunts, and interviews by popular TikTok creators, maintaining audience engagement throughout. Planning spanned 12 months, including venue scouting, talent securing, and a comprehensive promotional campaign, culminating in a significant event in Arizona, attracting thousands. This intricate production process showcased our commitment to innovative, mobile-first entertainment, reflecting the dynamic intersection of technology, music and social media.

• Sold out with over 17,000 in-person attendees

• Most watched LIVE event on TikTok: 33.6 million unique viewers, doubling the previous record

• +700,000 new TikTok app downloads from the show

• Biggest positive press moment for TikTok in 2023: +4,000 press hits, 100% positive/neutral sentiment

• +50 million organic impressions on TikTok's owned social channels

• Headliners saw:

- Average increase of 54.7 million views on TikTok videos

- Average increase of 261,000 followers on TikTok

- Average increase in engagement of 3.3 million (Likes/Shares/Comments)

• Peso Pluma & Anitta's "Bellakeo" led to +1.3 million song creations; charted #54 on Billboard Hot 100

• Cardi B's "Bongos" and new trends for Niall Horan's and Charlie Puth's songs saw increased streams and engagement

• 1,800+ Managed Creators produced 170+ pieces of content, resulting in 25.8 million views