JOHANNESBURG – In a move set to supercharge the local music industry, TikTok has officially launched its comprehensive ‘TikTok for Artists’ insights platform in South Africa.
The timing is impeccable, landing amidst a storm of viral Amapiano and house tracks that are dominating the platform, with Ciza’s energetic anthem ‘Isaka (6am)’ leading the charge.
The new platform is designed to give artists, labels, and managers a wealth of transparent, actionable data about their music’s performance, their posts, and their followers. This aims to help them better engage with the TikTok community and “supercharge their careers both on and off the platform.”
How TikTok is reshaping music discovery in SA
Beyond giving artists powerful new tools, the launch also underscores the platform’s growing influence on the South African music scene. The platform is no longer just a space for fun, short-form videos — it has become one of the most important engines for breaking new music.
Over the last three months, the most saved track in the country using the platform’s Add To Music App feature has been ‘Isaka (6am)’ by Ciza, Jazzworx and Thukuthela. The song has soundtracked a staggering 1.2 million video creations in South Africa alone, and more than 2 million globally.
This continues a familiar pattern of South African music finding worldwide audiences through digital platforms — a trend NOWinSA has tracked before, from Jerusalema’s meteoric rise to its status as a global anthem of hope.
‘Isaka (6am)’ is not alone in its success. Other hugely popular tracks driving engagement include ‘Ngishutheni’ by Goon Flavour, Master KG and Eemoh — one of the most-saved tracks locally — which has generated nearly 1 million video creations in South Africa and over 6 million worldwide. Similarly, Mawhoo, GL_Ceejay and Thukuthela’s ‘Bengicela’ (feat. Jazzworx) has inspired over 630,000 local creations.
🎧 Listen to ‘Isaka (6am)’ here | Listen to ‘Bengicela’ here
Speaking on the expansion, Toyin Mustapha, Head of Music Partnerships for the UK, Ireland and SA at TikTok, said: “TikTok has always been a key space for music discovery and promotion across Africa.”
With the launch of this much-needed platform in South Africa, they’re giving artists and their teams access to insights that can help them engage their fans in more meaningful ways and grow their careers globally. “This platform is about putting powerful, transparent data in the hands of creators so they can make smarter decisions and connect with the global TikTok community.”
The newly-launched hub offers daily-updated dashboards with features including:
· Song performance: Number of views, posts, and creator engagements per track.
· Post performance: Detailed metrics on views, likes, comments, and shares.
· Follower insights: A breakdown of audience by gender, age, and language.
· Pre-Release tool: Lets artists create campaigns for upcoming albums so fans can pre-save them directly to Spotify or Apple Music.
For an artist like Ciza (Nkululeko Nciza), currently enjoying the biggest song in South Africa, this data is invaluable. His hit has surpassed four million plays on Spotify and 21.8 million impacts across radio stations — a success story that began on TikTok.
“I’ve just been experimental because I love music so much and I’m just so happy that everyone’s been consistently following my journey and loving every single thing that I’m doing,” Ciza told IOL Entertainment recently. “I feel like African music right now is going to the top.”
Furthermore, the launch solidifies the Chinese tech giant ByteDance’s investment in Africa’s creative community at a crucial time, as the global tech landscape shifts. For artists seeking international reach, the platform’s role is increasingly vital. This strategic move also comes amid mounting pressure over a possible US TikTok ban and its potential impact on both local and global creators — an issue of growing urgency as ByteDance faces a September 17 deadline, under Whitehouse instruction, to sell the app or risk being shut out of the US market.
TikTok for Artists is available now to all artists with a certified artist account.
' soundtracked 1.2M+ videos.){kind=link}