A nationwide TikTok ban could be looming as early as this Sunday. What that means for the roughly 170 million users is unclear. But for Milwaukee creators, it could mean the loss of income, community and the ability to spread culture.
In April 2023, Ali Abdi, also known as Ayooli, decided to start his own TikTok. He had been making music and skits on Instagram for a while, but after talking with other Milwaukee rappers, he figured it was time to try the app out.
"We had shot the video for the Smackin Town, and I put it on TikTok just saying welcome to Milwaukee, and then I went to sleep," says Ayooli. "The next day, I think it had like 100k or some sh*t. I was like, damn, just in one night … it was just going up, going up, oh God."
First night online, first viral hit. Since then, more than half a million people have played the video, and thousands more have left likes and comments.
For Ayooli and many other Milwaukee rappers, TikTok has been a godsend. It’s brought attention to a rap scene that hasn't had the same success as other Midwest cities — but not because of a lack of talent.
"Like I was that kid on a school bus with the speaker just playing the music out loud and sh*t, so I used to play plenty Milwaukee music and sh*t," says Ayooli. "But I used to think, like, bro, one day this sh*t gonna take off, like someone gonna hear our sound and our dances and all that sh*t. But I'm just glad to be a part of the, you know what I'm saying, part of this circle."
TikTok has made it easy to share the sounds, dances and culture that many feel have been slept on for decades. Ayooli credits local rapper Certified Trapper for showing him not just how to make music, but how to blow up on the app.
"I remember going to his house the first night, and he was scrolling on TikTok, he was getting like 200K, 200K views each day, and I'm like damn," says Ayooli. "You don't know how he acted, nonchalant."
Asked how much money he’s made over the last year and a half, Ayooli says — with a smile — well over a hundred thousand dollars. He guesses that some of the bigger local rappers and musicians have made much more from TikTok. And it's not just the money, but the exposure.
"I'm signed to Roc Nation right now. You know, and Certified Trapper got signed. He signed to Sony Music. My P got signed, JP got signed. Big Frank got signed," says Ayooli. "So many people got signed just off the TikTok, you know what I'm saying? Like it really, really blessed us, you know what I'm saying."
While Milwaukee has had many viral moments with its music and dances, it’s not all the city is known for on the app.
"So I'm JMatt. I'm a content creator in Milwaukee. Essentially, I’m a local that makes content for other locals, showing them what’s around the city that could be of interest," says JMatt.
Jeffrey Matthias, better known as JMatt, is a lifestyle content creator who gained his following on TikTok by exploring the local culinary scene. JMatt has more than 181,000 followers on the app. But instead of being concerned about a possible TikTok ban, the creator is embracing what is next to come for the platform.
"It's just going to cease to be a thing in the U.S. That's my mindset around it, because I am full time, self-employed, making income partially off of the content creation side of things, but also as a social media coach. And if I were to think anything else, wishful thinking and hopefulness, it's not strategic enough for me, and I'm banking on something that may not go our way, so I'd rather plan for it getting banned and not being an option for a stream of income for me anymore," says JMatt.
But JMatt is concerned about how a TikTok ban would affect Milwaukee restaurants and community organizations.
"It's going to have a sizable impact on small businesses and creators, economy and wallet and bank accounts and that sort of thing," says JMatt. "I don't think you can claim unemployment because TikTok goes away, which is challenging for those that truly are making a living from TikTok."
TikTok has reached all aspects of Milwaukee culture and city life, exposing its residents and those on the outside to new people and information that’s helped creators uplift their own communities.
Sophia, or Sophinlaw, is a law student here in the city, and built her platform to help other law students access resources and tips that are not always readily available.
"It was so invaluable to me as a first-gen law student to have like a resource at my fingertips to connect with other law students who were going through similar things, who were confused by similar things, who felt like the legal field was really gate-kept and no one was talking about the things that we were struggling with or wanting to learn more about," says Sophinlaw.
Sophinlaw says that she’s made connections from all over the world with the same feelings, and the connections she made on the app are stronger than any other platform. When asked about her feelings on the TikTok ban, she says it is frustrating as a legal student to watch.
"I feel like they're priming us to just accept the TikTok ban," says Sophinlaw. "I don't want to really accept it, especially from like, a legal perspective, because I feel like we have a couple of legal ways out of this situation."
Sophinlaw explains that the current possible ban has been the same bill in different stages of the process, but users are just now deeply analyzing its effects.
She expresses that TikTok has put Milwaukee on the map in terms of culture, breaking out of the large shadows often cast by larger Midwest cities. Rapper Ayooli agrees and says just because the app may be going away doesn’t mean the city’s talent will go with it.
"TikTok gave Milwaukee that push that they needed, but I feel like we're here to stay. Like even without TikTok, we're gonna be known, like our voice is gonna be heard and I feel like we got more, more sh*t to bring up," says Ayooli. "Like we got more stuff to show the world, you know, this ain't the end of it. We're influencers."
