How to Use Instagram and TikTok Trends to Promote Your Song Organically
In present-day music marketing, where everything is digital-leaning, platforms like Instagram and TikTok have been revolutionaries for independents and labels alike. With good timing, any new artist can go viral by cleverly making use of trending audio or visual formats, even if there is no marketing budget involved. And I tell you, it is far from a matter of luck: going viral requires planning, creativity, and guts.
This guide walks you through how artists (especially from labels like Maa Records India and UK) can use Instagram and TikTok trends in a more organic way to promote their music, build dedicated fanbases, and connect with another audience.
1. Know Understand Instagram-TikTok
TikTok:
TikTok’s algorithm is engagement, watch-time, and creativity-oriented. Since short video duration ranges between 15 and 60 seconds, it is an excellent medium for music discovery. Hence the chart-toppers went viral initially on TikTok: Ask “Old Town Road” and “drivers license.”
Instagram:
Instagram Reels tries so hard to be a clone of TikTok. With Stories, Highlights, and Guides, it gives artists much more room for self-expression and personality-building as well as for promoting full-length tracks or music videos.
Both platforms are a fast, visual, and interaction kind of scene, so they are perfect for launching small clips of your new songs or creating some sort of challenge that grabs public participation.
2 Keep the Trends in Mind
Early adoption of trends maximizes one’s opportunity to catch the algorithm’s wave. Here’s how:
Check the Explore or For You page every day.
Stay informed about what challenges, filters, or memes are trending.
Take time to recognize currently trending sounds or beats and ask yourself: Can I do a remix or my own version?
When a dance trend or comedy skit takes off, think about how you might place your music or personality within it. Be authentic-everybody hates a fake, and after all, it’s all about timing.
3. Create a Trend Around Your Own Song
Rather than remaining a follower of trends, transform yourself into a trend.
How?
Take the most catchy and shortest section of your track and put it out through an Audio post on TikTok, Instagram, or both.
Then, follow it up with a visual format or dance move.
Communicate with fans, friends, influencers, labelmates; ask them to use this audio in their content.
For instance, Maa Records could start a “Maa Music Moment” where a new release is paired with a visual trend that reflects either something fun or something emotional.
Remember #BananaDropChallenge or #BottleCapChallenge as a viral sensation. If the hook is worth it, so shall be the trend.
4. Use the Right Hashtags
Generic hashtags such as #music or #artist have an over-saturation of posts and need to be further targeted and trending for greater discoverability.
Try something like this for your hashtags:
Two to three trending hashtags (#foryou, #viral, #trendingaudio)
Two to three music-specific ones (#newmusic, #indiemusic, #hiphoprelease)
One or two custom ones (#YourSongName, #MaaRecordsChallenge)
Bonus: Search hashtags before using them and see if your content will be noticed or lost.
5. Working with Influencers or Content Creators
They do not necessarily have to be celebrities; local, engaged fanbases suffice.
Partner with micro-influencers passionate about music, dance, and comedy.
Give them early access to the song.
Encourage them to initiate the trends or use the sound creatively or skillfully.
Maa Records could collaborate with regional creators to localise a trend-e.g., Tamil Reels creators for a Tamil song or UK lifestyle influencers for a romantic Hindi-English track.
6. Engage With Every Comment and Share
Engagement = Reach.
Shoot an answer to every comment that comes in.
Likes and shares to cherished fans’ content that applies your audio.
Reposting Stories and Reels into your own Stories or Highlights.
Getting away with less engagement diminishes that feeling of being part of your journey. This is the way underground artists grew a cult following.
- Post Consistency and Strategy Are of the Essence
A once-viral post can’t help someone grow their career. Come in every few days with…
Behind-the-scenes content.
A countdown to your release.
Fans making videos using your sound.
Unfiltered performances.
“Making of the beat” breakdowns.
You don’t need a team—just your cell phone, a little creativity, and a pinch of preplanning.
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