TikTok's 2022 breakout artist Stepz says comedy key to going viral

Stepz has ruled TikTok's weekly charts with his hit Cramp Dat

TikTok has revealed its breakout artist of the summer - an 18-year-old rapper who says comedy was key to his success.

How do you create a viral song on TikTok? Well, the person to ask would be 18-year-old rapper Stepz.

The Londoner created one of the sounds of the summer with his second single Cramp Dat, which samples Soulja Boy's 2007 hit Crank That.

TikTok says the track dominated their weekly hot tracks chart, taking the number one spot for seven weeks.

And like most things on the platform, it's inspired thousands of people to take on a dance challenge - inspired by the song's lyric "I got a cramp".

"I can't lie, Cramp Dat was just to get some more exposure out there," Stepz tells Radio 1 Newsbeat.

"Cramp Dat is not even my favourite song out of my own. It was more a thing where I know that people will want to dance."

Stepz's music might be racking up thousands of listens, but his relatable TikToks - think point of view videos and short comedy sketches - have also earned him more than two million followers on the app.

Stepz says he addresses his feelings in his music

'Comedy was to get music out there'

"I would use my comedy to promote my music as well. So most people think that I was a comedian before music, but the comedy was literally just to get my music more out there," he says.

And Stepz is glad he's also famous for his jokes.

"A lot of rappers in the UK are just talking about how many guys they've done this and that to, but I don't have to put an image on myself as if I'm someone that I'm not, because I do comedy," he adds.

"And people know that this is who I am. I can really just make music and talk about how I feel."

He maintains that some negative stereotypes still surround rap.

"People think that all people in the UK talk about is stabbing this and stabbing that," he says.

But people forget that rap is a talent. You don't have to be a bad youth to be able to rap."

TikTok said Sunroof - Nicky Youre's collaboration with Dazy - was its top UK track this summer

Can you make a hit for TikTok?

TikTok is influencing what we listen to more and more - but not everyone is a fan.

Former Radio 1 Chart Show host Scott Mills recently told fellow DJ Greg James on his Unpopular Opinion slot that artists are making music with TikTok in mind.

"I feel this started around the time of the pandemic and the main culprit was Death Bed (Coffee for Your Head)," Scott said.

"Then Jason Derulo got in on the act with that awful song Savage Love, and since then there's been hundreds.

"No disrespect to the artists but they're making them for TikTok."

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• TikTok reveals most popular UK songs of 2021

• Madison Beer on the downsides of social media fame

But according to a TikTok music boss, creating a hit just for the platform is notoriously difficult and people wouldn't succeed if they did that.

"I think if anyone is trying to write a song to be successful on TikTok today will probably fail because you can't make it happen," David Mogendorff, Head of UK Artist Partnerships, tells Newsbeat.

"You can't create that moment from nothing.

"It has to be genuine artistry, genuine music and a genuine connection with the audience."

The company also announced that Sunroof by Nicky Youre & Dazy was its top UK track this summer.

And TikTok says Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill - which felt inescapable after it was used on the latest Stranger Things soundtrack - was also massive on the app, featuring in millions of videos.

George Ezra also made his debut in TikTok's summer charts, thanks to videos of him performing Green Green Grass at Glastonbury.

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