Breaking Down TikTok’s Songs Of The Summer: Kendrick Lamar, GloRilla, Tinashe & More

It’s a bittersweet moment approaching the mid-August mark every year. The last few days of summer are those to cherish while the year’s final stretch lies ahead. Still, we have about one-third of 2024 left to produce hit records and albums that could top the year-end list. However, around this time, we start to look back at the records that defined the summer, and TikTok is probably an accurate reflection of the soundtrack to our core memories around this time. 

It’s impossible to acknowledge the imprint that Kendrick Lamar had this year through a week’s worth of activity. From “Euphoria” to “Not Like Us,” he smashed the charts and emerged victorious in his long-standing feud with Drake, and by the time June rolled around, it became clear that the latter was going to be pervasive throughout the months that followed. But beyond Dot’s #1 single, TikTok’s top 10 Songs of the Summer in the U.S. also included several smash hits from hip-hop and R&B vets and newcomers, along with acts like Billie Eilish and Sabrina Carpenter. For the most part, hip-hop reigned supreme on TikTok this summer. Below, we’ll be diving into them.

TikTok has been the launching pad of several careers. Some may have predicted that it might not be sustainable but in the case of Jordan Adetunji, it seems like it’s only the beginning. His hit record began to gain traction on the platform, and eventually, landed a feature from Kehlani herself. “KEHLANI” comes in at #10 on TikTok’s Songs Of The Summer list.

It could’ve been worse for Drake. It could’ve been #1. However, Kendrick Lamar, who one might describe as the antithesis of TikTok fame, found footing on the social media app with his hit song/diabolical diss track aimed at Toronto. Throughout the summer, the song has catapulted to radio and TikTok heights in ways that we’ve never seen before with a diss record. Nonetheless, it had a stronghold among the top 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 over the past few months while the single soundtracked basically every type of TikTok video possible – dance videos, cooking videos, and even political commentary.

GloRilla’s career could basically be on vacation between September – April, and still pop out as the reigning queen of the summer. Landing at #8 is her highly infectious collaboration alongside Megan Thee Stallion, which has transformed into a soundtrack for twerking and hair styling. Though “TGIF” definitely has a higher ranking for our summer 2024 anthems, “Wanna Be” isn’t too far behind.

Lay Bankz has been making some major noise over the past few years but her efforts on TikTok have undoubtedly gained the most amount of attention. Fortunately, that has worked in her favor and landed her a spot on this year’s Songs of The Summer. In March 2024, a dance trend on TikTok, initiated by user @who.is.ga6y and later boosted by @laurieluna13, propelled “Tell Ur Girlfriend” to popularity, resulting in a surge of streams. By the following month, the track had appeared in millions of TikTok videos. Bankz filmed the music video for “Tell Ur Girlfriend,” which landed at #7, in her hometown of Philadelphia, which also sparked a separate TikTok trend focused on her appearance in the video.

Ian has been one of the most divisive figures in hip-hop this year. Still, the controversy that’s followed him has played a significant role in his overall success as becoming a leader of the new generation of hip-hop. With the release of Valedictorian, he finally broke into mainstream consciousness and his hit record, “Magic Johnson” has contributed towards that. The single has made some major waves online, thanks to TikTok, cementing its status as one of the biggest hits of the summer.

Initially released in 2011, this single from Dev Hynes a.k.a Blood Orange has rightfully earned its title as a timeless record. “Champagne Coast” has gained momentum through a variety of trends, such as the one where people ask their younger selves different prompts, like “did we make it?” or “did we strike it rich?” another trend suggests that a person will stay single until they hear “Champagne Coast” when gazing into the eyes of a potential partner. Blood Orange topped the TikTok Billboard 50 chart earlier this summer. 

As far as transcending through the times, Tinashe’s resilience deserves the utmost applaud. However, the release of “Nasty” marked a new era in her career, one where she delivered one of the hardest R&B bangers of the summer that has spawned a ton of dance and trending challenges on TikTok. In April, “Nasty” gained viral fame after the song was placed over a video of UK dancer Nate de Winer biting his nail and rolling his hips to the song. Since then, it’s earned well over 13 million views, inspiring dance routines by Christina Aguilera and Janet Jackson, among others. 

Perhaps, it was inevitable that Richman would face industry plant accusations the moment he had his breakout but let’s be real, “Million Dollar Baby” is an undeniable hit. Along with “Not Like Us,” this song has had a strong grip on radio, social media, and the clubs for the entirety of the summer and will likely continue to dominate in the months to come. That said, it’s no wonder that it was the #1 song on TikTok over the past few months. Tommy Richman defined the summer of 2024.