Some TikTok influencers revealed their biggest secrets, believing the app would be gone forever. Except it’s back, just 14 hours after it was banned.
On January 19, TikTok voluntarily shut down its servers in the United States following a call to ban the platform due to concerns over user privacy and national security. However, just 14 hours, the app returned to American soil. TikTok thanked Donald Trump for granting a 90-day extension for the company to find a non-Chinese-buyer to remain in America. While many believed the app would inevitably return, people thought it would take months (maybe even years!), not a couple of hours.
Influencers definitely thought the same, as a trend emerged where creators would share their biggest content creation secrets before the app went dark. Now that TikTok is back, however, these confessions are biting them in the back.
Influencers on TikTok earn flak after confessing to faking content and more
Right before TikTok was banned, a popular sound featuring Peter Griffin from Family Guy telling his family “But since we’re all gonna die, there’s one more secret I feel I have to share with you. I did not care for The Godfather.” Influencers are taking this sound to reveal their biggest secret, since the app is “gonna die” anyway.
Most confessions were harmless. For example, Charli D’Amelio used the sound to confess that she, too, did not understand the hype around her videos. Peetz Montzingo used the sound to joke that his mom, who is a main staple on his account, is actually not his mom but a hired actress. He has since clarified that the video is a joke.
Others, however, received major backlash for their confession.
Famous mukbanger @babydumplingg made a video where she confessed she doesn’t eat all the food in her videos. This earned massive flak, as a major part of why she got famous is due to how surprising it is she can eat a massive amount of food and still remain slender. Following TikTok’s return and the heat she received from her followers, she released a video claiming it was a joke. However, people are having a hard time believing her.
Lifestyle influencer Lexi Hidalgo also earned the ire of her following after she revealed she doesn’t do the workouts she promotes on her platform. After receiving hate, she deleted the post and clarified that she did do the workouts, just not when she was posting about them.
In retrospect, it might feel like no big deal. But for fans of these creators, they felt lied and cheated. They supported content creators, helped them go viral, and earned them a huge following. In return, content creators received brand deals, PR, and fame. For the content to be faked the entire time, it makes sense why people would feel upset over these confessions.
But these confessions will not be enough to fully ruin their careers. At most, it will be a setback and they will return to their daily posting. Will they be able to get their userbase to trust them again? Only time will tell.
Published: Jan 22, 2025 05:14 am