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Does Virality Lead to Positive Life Changes?
“Life Changed by a Single Video!” You may have seen such words and stories in recent years. But, has it really changed the life of the person who got the buzz? Are they happy?
Before you proceed with reading this text, I’d like to clarify who is writing this. Until about six months ago, I worked at Bytedance (the company behind TikTok), and currently, I work as a music writer, editor, and creative director. I interview and engage with a new generation of artists who showcase their talents in ways not seen in the pre-pandemic music industry, such as imase, natori, meiyo, Noa, Mulasaki Ima, and Peroperokyaan Day while create content by myself, including videos on social media platforms. Amidst all this, me and my parter started a Tiktok account on a whim to try posting short videos. Our account went viral from the very first video, and now their total social media followers exceed 500,000.
I was inspired to write this article on this topic after watching the movie ‘Buzzy Noise.’ The film, which opens in theaters on May 3, is directed by Hiroki Kazama, who also directed the dramas “silent” and “Chelimaho,” and is written and directed by Kawamura Yoshiaki, who also wrote the manga ‘Buzzy Noise.’ Takumi Kawanishi (JO1) and Hiyori Sakurada play the lead roles. The content of the film was very realistic, depicting very delicately the anguish and emotional turmoil of artists and creators in an age when social networking services cannot be ignored.
Without giving away spoilers, here’s a summary: Kiyosumi (Takumi Kawanishi), who composes music alone at home, gets unexpectedly filmed by Ushio (Hiyori Sakurada), and when she uploads it on social media, it goes viral. Following this, Kiyosumi proceeds with his activities as an artist. However, triggered by a certain event, he begins to convince himself to live as per the advice of a senior figure in the record company, who suggests that as a person lacking social skills, it’s more suitable for him to write songs for someone else and be appreciated as a songwriter. As the story progresses from there.
