TikTok announces its first awards show in the US | TechCrunch

TikTok announced on Monday that it’s launching its first-ever TikTok Awards show in the U.S. The awards will include “Creator of the Year,” “Video of the Year,” “Muse of the Year,” “Breakthrough Artist of the Year,” and more.

The announcement comes just weeks after Instagram introduced its “Ring” awards program. Unlike Instagram, however, TikTok is taking a more traditional approach to its awards, as it’s hosting an actual awards show where winners will be revealed live at the event. The event will feature a red carpet, live performances, and a live audience of hundreds of creators, TikTok says.

The awards show will take place on December 18 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles and will be livestreamed on the TikTok app and on Tubi. The show will be available to stream on demand on Tubi the following day.

Users will be able to vote for their favorite creators on a new portal on TikTok launching on November 18.

It’s worth noting that although this is TikTok’s first awards show in the U.S., it has held similar events in other countries, including Germany, Mexico, Korea, and more in the past.

The nominees for “Creator of the Year” are adamw, alixearle. brookemonk_, keith_lee125, and kristy.sarah. The nominees for “Breakthrough Artist of the Year” are alexwarren, katseyeworld, laufey, ravynlenae, and sombr.

Other awards categories include “Storyteller of the Year,” TikTok for Good Award,” “MVP of the Year,” “Okay Slay Award,” “TikTok LIVE Creators of the Year,” and more.

The full list of awards and nominees can be found on TikTok’s announcement post.

By launching an awards show, TikTok is positioning itself as more than just a social media app and more of a notable force in the entertainment industry. Given that TikTok serves as a launching pad for several emerging artists and actors, it makes sense for the company to celebrate its top users with its own branded show.

“The trophies presented on stage will beam a colorful glow upon the creators defining this new era of culture encompassing many areas, including fashion, beauty, sports, TV and film, and new forms of entertainment,” TikTok wrote in the announcement post.