Can I participate in a TikTok dance trend without infringing on someone's copyright?
Copyright Law
Even when others copy a trending dance on TikTok, the original creator of the dance has the copyright to that dance. In fact, anytime a person creates and shares some kind of art– music, dance, writing, film, etc.–that person has created a piece of material that is copyrighted.
Having a copyright gives an artist many protections, including ownership over that piece of art. In the example of a viral TikTok dance, the creator owns the copyright to the choreography and it cannot be taken away from them even when other users post themselves doing the dance.
So, how can others on the app recreate this dance if another user owns the copyright? It’s because the creator of the dance actually wants people to copy it. The original creator probably wants to go viral or share their art and the best way to do so is by having others post themselves dancing with their choreography.
Many social media platforms understand that content creators want to both get credit for the trending material they create and allow others to copy their work in order to go viral. TikTok, for example, has a few features that are designed to balance these needs and even act as a way for the artist to grant others permission to use their copyrighted art.
Hashtags: Using a key word or phrase in a hashtag is a great way for artists to link their work back to their account. However, a person copying a trending dance does not have to use the hashtag to copy the dance. It’s just a tool the original creator can use to try and have others go back to their page if they like the trending dance.
Stitch and Duet Features: Similar to hashtags, this is another way for artists to have their work linked back to their account. Users who want to copy the original dance can put their recreation video next to the original video side by side in a post. Again, this is not necessary in order to copy the dance, it’s just a feature a person can use to link the dance back to the original account.
Music You Might Use for a Dance: TikTok has its own guidelines designed to protect artists. In order to use another artist’s music to accompany your dance, make sure you are following TikTok’s rules. A few of these rules include not using music as a stand alone (without anything else in the video) or altering the music (speeding it up or slowing it down). To read more about TikTok’s rules, click here: Music Terms of Service | TikTok
As you can see, copyright issues pop up a lot in social media! An artist still owns the copyright to their work, but actually wants others to copy it to gain popularity and go viral. So, if you do decide to copy a viral TikTok dance, it’d be respectful to the artist to use their original hashtag or Stitch/Duet their original video, but it isn’t necessary. But, be careful what music you use since you might be infringing on someone’s copyright if you don’t have permission to use it.
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