UK and Ireland’s First TikTok Awards Celebrate Diverse Content Creators

The inaugural TikTok awards for the UK and Ireland recognized various content creators, such as an individual known for producing satisfying pool cleaning videos, a travel pair seeking a 99p Mr Whippy ice cream, and a woman specializing in homemade pickles. The awards ceremony, held on Tuesday evening, saw 72 nominated content creators gather. These creators collectively boast over 101 million followers and were celebrated across 12 distinct categories, including fashion, travel, food, and education. The event, which took place in west London, presented characteristics typical of an awards show for individuals deeply immersed in online culture. It featured numerous photo opportunities, an abundance of ring lights, and instances of creators checking their follower counts during the proceedings. Award recipients shared with the BBC their journeys to prominence on the video platform and offered perspectives on whether brief social media videos contribute to “brain rot”—defined as the alleged decline in mental state resulting from excessive consumption of low-quality or undemanding online content. Maddi Neye-Swift, upon receiving her award for food creator of the year, informed the BBC, “My life changed just from pickling a cucumber.” She elaborated, “I was unemployed and I started a series of things I cook while I’m unemployed and this random video of me pickling a cucumber just took off.” She added, “Overnight it got 10 million views, it was crazy.” When asked about the worst food crime, the food content creator responded, “Nutella and cheese is pretty gross.” Maddi also mentioned that she “was always nervous about posting videos” of herself, indicating that despite the apparent confidence of many creators, numerous others experience similar apprehensions. Katie Kennedy, known as thehistorygossip on TikTok, revealed that initially, when she began uploading videos, she “blocked my friends, family and everyone I knew because I was so embarrassed.” Currently, she expresses greater pride in her efforts to educate the public about history, describing her work as “rewarding.” Miles Laflin, recognized as The Pool Guy, was also an award recipient, earning the title of high-quality content creator of the year. Laflin, aged 34, commands a TikTok following of 15 million, who observe him clearing swimming pools of grime and debris before using a jet washer to restore their pristine condition. The question of what constitutes the high quality of these videos arises. Despite their satisfying nature, some might ponder if they contribute to “brain rot,” a term recently designated as Oxford University’s word of the year. Miles stated his belief that his content does not induce “brain rot” because “people learn something from it.” He further explained, “I actually have people messaging me saying they learn so much from it, but even people who don’t have a pool just love seeing how satisfying it is for something to be cleaned.” He concluded by saying, “I’ve just got to thank the people with sloshy pools.” Ayame, a nominee for creator of the year whose videos sometimes feature her reacting to objects being crushed, informed the BBC that “brain rot” “is a compliment, not an insult.” She elaborated, “I love brain rot culture, I love connecting with people,” adding, “If I’m a brain rot girly then let’s rot together.” The creator of the year award was presented to 22-year-old Kyra-Mae Turner, whose lifestyle content primarily consists of holiday and “get ready with me” videos. Upon accepting her award, she conveyed to the BBC, “I hope people take something positive from my content, because that’s why I do it.” She also remarked, “It’s amazing when people tell me how I’ve helped them feel more confident in solo travelling or in their body.” Additionally, she noted that producing social media content is more time-consuming than it appears, stating, “It really can take ages.” Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, recipients of the travel creator of the year award, echoed Kyra-Mae’s sentiment, stating, “It’s so easy to underestimate how hard it is to make content because it’s our job to make it look seamless, but there’s a lot of planning that goes into it.” Uche Natori, who secured the fashion and beauty creator of the year award, further commented, “I don’t understand why people roll their eyes at people being celebrated for being good at their job and doing something that’s actually very hard.” She concluded, “There’s a lot of work and dedication that goes into it that people don’t see.” However, the recognition extended beyond categories like makeup, travel, and fashion, with some honorees leveraging their platforms for inspiration and education. Iain Ward, a 31-year-old diagnosed with terminal brain cancer last year, received an award for voice for change. He has utilized his TikTok platform to fundraise for charity through challenges, including running seven marathons in seven days. In the winners’ room, he remarked, “I think what I do is cool because it’s unique.” He continued, “I did think my content would take off actually because it has meaning and really it’s the story of a hero.” Manny Wallace, recognized for his at-home chemistry experiments, was awarded education creator of the year. He expressed that being perceived as a role model was “really great.” He stated, “My teacher inspired me and that’s what I hope to give back,” and mentioned that his preferred video involved him having “melted a knife into something else to spread love.” The ceremony’s attendees were not exclusively young individuals; married couple Teresa and Michael, both aged 80, were also among the nominees. When questioned about her experience on the red carpet, Teresa Barnett commented, “I don’t understand any of it.” She added, “We’re just normal people and now we get recognised in the supermarket.” The couple’s nomination stemmed from their appearances in their son James’ TikTok series, makemeaoffer. James, expressing similar bewilderment, described how he began spontaneously recording moments with his parents for TikTok, observing a swift increase in viewership for each video. He remarked, “It has just resonated.” He attributed this success to, “I think it’s the authenticity; it’s the fact that my parents are sort of anti-influencers.” TV personality Michelle Visage hosted the awards, which were simultaneously livestreamed on TikTok. Visage characterized TikTok as “everyone’s guilty pleasure.” When questioned about the rationale for honoring TikTok creators with awards, Visage asserted, “Actors and singers get recognised, why wouldn’t content creators? They deserve it.” The award recipients were determined by votes cast by TikTok users, with over 2.9 million votes submitted across all categories. The list of winners includes: Creator of the year – Kyra-Mae Turner; Entertainment creator of the year – Nicholas Flannery; Food creator of the year – Maddi Neye-Swift; Sport creator of the year – John Nellis; Fashion and beauty creator of the year – Uche Natori; Travel creator of the year – Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty; Education creator of the year – Manny Wallace; Voice for change – Iain Ward; High quality content creator of the year – Miles Laflin; Rising star creator of the year – George Harper; Video of the year award – Jay Foreman; and Breakthrough artist of the year – Myles Smith. Additional reporting was provided by Emmanuella Alausa. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external sites and provides information on its approach to external linking.