Through TikTok’s rise and the now-looming threat of its being banned — many states have some kind of ban on the app already — the social platform has undeniably made people laugh and, inadvertently, ushered in a new generation of comics. Providing short-form video content where the talent is at the steering wheel, they are free to post as much as they want (within the app’s guidelines), and their reach is subject only to the ever-present yet still unknown algorithm. For some TikTok stars, the app has allowed them to chase their artistic dreams. For others, it has helped them unlock a dormant skill and uncover a new path into the industry.
DeMarcus Shawn (@artbydemarcusshawn) started making TikTok videos after he left his job at Starbucks. As his TikToks gained traction amid the pandemic, his search for a new job ended and TikTok became his career, he tells PvNew over coffee in Chicago after kindly greeting a fan who recognized him. Being a public figure is still a weird feeling he admits, having now amassed a following of over six million on the platform.
While Shawn’s sketches showcase relatable moments in front of the camera, he sees himself working and writing behind the scenes in film, TV and music videos (and also returning to his old passion of photography) in the future: “I want to do a style of writing that is easily connectable to all people of different walks of life, where it still ties into my TikTok comedy. In a way where anybody of any race, ethnic background, race, religion, social views or political views, are able to just come together and watch one video,” Shawn tells PvNew.
Shawn’s ultimate goal is to help both of his parents retire — and bringing them to the Oscars would be nice too, he says. For now, he’s enjoying his newfound reality of making millions of people laugh and being a recognizable figure (and even grabbing the attention of celebrities such as SZA and Steve Lacy). Through his success on the app, he maintains the remarkably humble wisdom that while TikTok has become his “audition platform,” he says, “I am not owed any views.”
Perhaps no one better embodies the app’s ability to quickly catapult someone into stardom than Jake Shane (@octopusslover8). He started an Instagram page of octopus food reviews (@passthatpuss) and later began creating content on TikTok. In March, he jumped from 60,000 followers to a million in one week. Often taking follower suggestions from the comment section, he’s known for skits such as “Diet Coke finding out Coke Zero exists” in addition to dances, odes to Taylor Swift, PSAs, food reviews and life updates.
Graduating from USC in 2022 with a degree in public relations, Shane wasn’t sure if he’d get the opportunity to chase his childhood dream of making people laugh. “I thought I missed my chance for a very long time. I remember I did the school play in sixth grade. I did ‘Thoroughly Modern Millie,’” he says. “I remember feeling like, ‘This is what I want to do.’ I want to be memorizing a script and I want to make people laugh. And I want to be on a stage — whether that stage be virtual, a film set or actual Broadway stage. And I just was too insecure in myself to pursue it.”
Despite the stress of millions of eyes watching him now, Shane says he’s grateful for the “second chance” in chasing that dream through TikTok.
TikTok also presents creators with the chance to be authentic about both their highs and the things they struggle with. Shane opted to share his journey with anxiety and OCD on the app and found it created a closer relationship with his following: “As much as I can do with the platform that I’ve been given to help people understand or help people feel normal or less alone, I will,” Shane says. “I’m anxious too, we’re in this together. A lot of people are anxious. A lot of people just don’t talk about it. But I’m gonna talk about it.”
Rahul Rai (@therealrahulrai) was acting long before TikTok. Rai, who had once contemplated a dental career, ended up with a degree in economics from Pace University but instead pursued acting. He started creating content and dancing on the app in 2019, and when the pandemic shut the world down, TikTok essentially became his full-time job.
“Social media and TikTok and Instagram and all these skits that I do, they provide an outlet for a tremendous amount of energy that I have and a tremendous amount of creativity. It allows me to build my own audience, which then gives me some level of leverage,” Rai tells PvNew.
By creating a portfolio on the app while building a community, he has forged a unique path into the entertainment industry, where he has landed gigs on “Barry” and “The Upshaws.”
“Distribution is a really hard thing to get. If you were to produce or write and direct your own short film or film, up until that point, it’s really hard. But then all that hard work can’t be shared if you can’t find distribution — you can’t have people see it,” Rai says. “So the thing about social media is it gives free distribution, basically to the world, at zero costs… And you have basically creative control. Of course, you have to follow certain guidelines. But as long as you’re within that, you can do virtually whatever you want.”
Whereas Rai ditched his dentistry ambitions, Chrissy Allen (@csapunch) had a career as a dentist (and mother) long before TikTok. Inspired by creators such as Stephen “tWitch” Boss and finding comfort in learning TikTok dances amid the unknowns of the pandemic, a random dance video she made with her family went viral in April 2020. After growing popular on the app — and finding a particular niche in 1990s R&B appreciation — Allen switched to part-time dentistry work to “ride the wave” of her social media popularity (she’s also interested in dipping her toes into voiceover, she says).
“People are going to have cavities forever, so I can always go back to dentistry,” Allen notes. “I’m able to work from home doing [social media]. I can film whenever I want, and that has allowed me to spend more time with my kids, which was always my dream.”
With a more millennial peg to her content, Allen has also found community through the app: “I love that TikTok has given a way for millennials to come together and share our childhood experiences and share our love for the nostalgia of those times,” Allen says. “I totally thought every aspect of my life was unique, like no one else was playing with this toy or listening to this music. And then all of a sudden, you start making these TikTok videos, and you realize the whole country was listening to this album, and we were playing with this. We all have the same childhood memories, which is crazy.”
As for what’s next, Allen shares the same sentiment as many creatives navigating TikTok fame.
“I’m really open to wherever this journey takes me.”
These interviews were conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike began.
