Sep 11, 2025
by Parasition x Hugo
DON’T SKIP THIS ONE
Like always, every trend and sound in this issue comes straight from Hugo — Parasition’s AI that spots what’s breaking through on social media.
GLOBAL TIKTOK TREND (SOUND) OF THE WEEK
2.2M+ likes
I’m Not Them | them & I
Genre: Alternative
Video style: Random
This sound starts softly, with airy vocals layered over gentle instrumentation and birdsong in the background. The effect is calm and cinematic, almost like a soundtrack written for reflective edits, like travel recaps, nature clips, and personal throwbacks.
The calm and spacious mood makes it universally relatable, and it’s one of those sounds that doesn’t steal any spotlight from the video.
Takeaways
— Opening with a distinct sound (birdsong here) makes your content memorable
— Reflective, scenic sounds thrive when creators lean into nostalgia, travel edits, and memory posts
LOCAL TIKTOK TREND (SOUND) OF THE WEEK
United States
500k+ likes
Rocky Mountain Way | Joe Walsh
Genre: Rock / Blues rock
Video style: Random
This sound opens with a bold guitar riff that hooks instantly, setting a playful yet confident tone. Its slower tempo leaves space for narration or text, which makes it ideal for storytelling with a comic edge.
On TikTok, creators use it to highlight personalities, quirks, or funny self-introductions. The groove supports longer captions and voiceovers, which explains why it’s surged to #1 in the US.
Takeaways
— Distinctive guitar hooks can turn a track into a character theme, making it perfect for personality-driven or narrative content
— Slower BPM tracks create space for captions and voiceovers
Hugo spotlight
Hugo’s waitlist is still open. He’s Parasition’s AI platform designed to rethink how music marketing works.
Instead of scraping text, Hugo actually watches and listens to over 100,000 TikToks every day. He catches trend spikes the moment they form, from viral dances to meme waves, and links them straight to the songs that fit.
Then he goes further: mapping which tracks to push, the creative that will land, and the best timing to launch.
You can still grab early access here: https://hugo.love/
WHAT’S HAPPENING IN SOCIAL MEDIA:
Instagram rolls out new Reels metrics
Instagram just rolled out new Reels metrics, including retention charts and skip rates, giving users precise insight into when viewers drop off. For music marketers, this means you can measure exactly how well your track or visual hook holds attention in the first few seconds, and adjust everything accordingly. Strong openings are a non-negotiable, and now it’s much easier to understand their performance.
Instagram is also testing Picture-in-Picture (PiP) for Reels, which could keep music content playing while users multitask.
DATA | THE WORLD OF MUSIC QUANTIFIED
Spotify’s weekly global top 5 songs
— #1. Golden | KPop Demon Hunters Cast // 55 m weekly streams
— #2. Tears | Sabrina Carpenter // 42 m weekly streams (NEW)
— #3. back to friends | sombr // 37 m weekly streams
— #4. Manchild | Sabrina Carpenter // 34 m weekly streams (NEW)
— #5. Ordinary | Alex Warren // 32 m weekly streams
Spotify’s weekly global top 10 artists
— #1. Sabrina Carpenter // Pop (NEW)
— #2. Taylor Swift // Pop
— #3. Bad Bunny // Latin trap
— #4. Drake // Pop
— #5. The Weeknd // Alternative R&B
— #6. KPop Demon Hunters Cast // KPop
— #7. Fuerza Regida // Regional Mexican
— #8. Justin Bieber // Pop
— #9. Ariana Grande // Pop
— #10. Billie Eilish // Alternative Pop
TIKTOK VIDEO OF THE WEEK:
“What do we have? … No, no that … Oh, Tacos!”
Views: 12,400,000 | Likes: 2,400,000
This Canadian couple’s evening walk video shows how simple setups can still explode. What starts as a quiet clip of a girl filming her boyfriend turns into one of the week’s most shared moments.
— #1. Built-in curiosity. Filming the bag first makes viewers wonder what’s inside, pulling them into the exchange before anything’s even said.
— #2. Visual pop. The strong evening light hits the guy’s face perfectly, giving the scene a cinematic glow that grabs attention mid-scroll.
— #3. Fun, unexpected punchline. The deadpan “crippling depression” flip to the sudden joy of “Oh, tacos!” is so sharp it begs to be shared.
— #4. Silence as a feature. With no background sound, the raw conversation stands out even more. What’s normally a drawback becomes the hook here, making the clip feel authentic and different.
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MUSIC EVENT OF THE WEEK:
Rock in Rio
Picture from IQ
Rock in Rio regularly pulls in crowds of more than 700,000, making it one of the largest music festivals on the planet. The multi-day event takes over Rio de Janeiro’s Olympic Park with sprawling stages that have hosted legends across genres. Think Queen, Iron Maiden, and Guns N’ Roses on the rock side, Beyoncé, Katy Perry, and Drake on the pop stage, plus global stars like Rihanna and Ed Sheeran. Alongside the headliners, the festival is known for spotlighting Brazilian talent, very cool art installations, and carnival-style energy.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Make sure your tracks are in YouTube Shorts’ Sound Library
If you work with a big label, chances are this is already covered, but everyone should make sure their tracks are in YouTube Shorts’ Sound Library. If it’s missing, creators can’t use it. The Library is powered by YouTube Music, so releasing your track there ensures it’s selectable inside Shorts.
To upload it correctly, confirm your distributor delivers to YouTube Music and double-check that the track appears under your artist profile. Always check that your song is searchable by title and artist, and encourage fans to use it once live.
Shorts is now one of the biggest content platforms worldwide, and since many creators pick sounds at random, simply being available can spark unexpected virality.
PARASITION: Campaign breakdown
30k+ likes
Dying Lights | Vilhelm Buchaus
Genre: Indie pop
Video style: Random
Dying Light is a heartfelt pop-rock track built on strong vocals and nostalgic themes, so the campaign leaned into clips that felt cinematic and emotionally charged.
Here, our creator nailed it with striking lighting and a clean, darker background that put all focus on the subject. The face framed perfectly at horizon height gives balance, while the slow movement away creates a subtle but powerful hook. Lastly, the humor and relatable caption makes the video feels personal and shareable.
Campaign learnings
— A clear trend was built around this track, and once creators joined in, it quickly scaled into a viral moment
— The top-performing video shows the blueprint: strong visuals, movement, and a relatable caption: all key ingredients for repeatable success
ROUND-UP
— Calm sounds connect. them & I’s I’m Not Them proves how spacious, cinematic audio thrives in reflective edits and nostalgic recaps.
— Guitar riffs drive trends. Joe Walsh’s Rocky Mountain Way shows how classic hooks can spark playful dance challenges and personality-driven content.
— Simple setups win. A Canadian couple’s “Oh, tacos!” clip shows how curiosity, good lighting, and a sharp punchline can rack up 12M+ views.
— Platforms evolve fast. Instagram’s new Reels metrics and PiP test underline how data and multitasking features are reshaping music discovery.
— Campaigns scale with trends. Vilhelm Buchaus’ Dying Lights shows how establishing a concept early helps creators jump in and push a track viral.
We’ll wrap it there. Music trends never sleep, and neither does Hugo (he’s already watching the next viral spark take shape). Join the waitlist at https://hugo.love/.
