TikTok Hosted A Black History Month Event With Nicki Minaj. Black Creators Say They Were Left Out Of The Conversation.
“I feel like there's no due diligence and really catering to the Black creators on their app even when it comes to something as simple as setting up an event.”
Black creators say they were excluded from a TikTok event for Black History Month, which featured rapper Nicki Minaj and was dominated by non-Black voices.
While some creators took direct issue with the non-Black TikTokers who were present at the event held on Zoom on Feb. 8 and accused them of monopolizing the space, others saved their criticisms for the platform itself.
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“I don't see how inviting a celebrity or creating an event last minute and sending the invite to people who aren't Black makes sense for a Black History Month event,” said creator Erick Louis, who has just under 1 million followers on TikTok. He told BuzzFeed News that he was not invited to the meetup.
Erick Louis
Erick Louis
“I feel like there's no due diligence and really catering to the Black creators on their app even when it comes to something as simple as setting up an event, paying respect to the culture, the architects, and the people who run the trends,” he said.
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TikTok had billed the event as “Black History Month Creator Meet Up x Nicki Minaj,” according to emails shown in a TikTok by creator Dessy Joseph. “We are kicking off Black History Month with an exclusive virtual TikTok Creator Meet Up with a very special musical guest,” the calendar invite read.
Those in attendance said it missed the mark. Joseph recounted her experience to her 636,000 followers on TikTok, where she alleged that the capacity for the meetup was approximately 300 participants and that some Black creators were not given a link to join for up to 10 minutes after the event started at 6 p.m.
“When we finally did get in, it was giving very 2% Black, honestly,” she said in a TikTok. “You also had non-Black people asking Nicki to say their name and shoutout.”