Welcome to the Era of Visual Music
The landscape of music promotion is shifting — fast. In 2025, short-form video platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels are no longer optional. They are the front lines of artist discovery, especially in genres like Phonk, trap, and experimental beats.
The Psychology of Scroll Culture
The average user’s attention span is now less than 9 seconds. Artists who succeed on Reels and TikTok understand:
- The hook is everything — the first 2 seconds must grab.
- Visual identity creates memorability (colors, filters, aesthetics).
- Authenticity > Perfection — raw clips often outperform polished ones.
Phonk artists are capitalizing on this with dark vaporwave aesthetics, loopable visuals, and emotionally intense sound design.
Case Study: How One Clip Made an Artist Blow Up
In March 2025, an underground phonk artist from Eastern Europe posted a 9-second TikTok of a nighttime car ride with one of his unreleased tracks. The sound was reused by over 24k users in a week.
Result: 2.1M views, 48k followers, and his track went top 50 Viral on Spotify.
From Views to Streams: The Real Conversion
Going viral is not the finish line — it’s the entry point.
Artists using smart linking tools, engaging pinned comments, and pre-saves are turning short-form hits into:
- Spotify streams
- Fanbase growth on Discord/Telegram
- Merchandise and show ticket sales
Algorithm Secrets: Why These Platforms Push Music
Instagram and TikTok both have a mission: keep users engaged.
Music = Emotion = Retention.
That’s why original sounds, background beats and “audio trends” get priority. When your track fits into a trend (or creates one), the algorithm rewards you.
Format That Works (Right Now)
- Clip length: 7–12 seconds
- Captions: Use 2–3 word impact lines
- Visuals: Glitches, neon lights, low-light shots, driving footage
- Call-to-action: “Use this sound,” “Drop your city in the comments,” “Tag a friend”
The Data Doesn’t Lie
- 67% of music discovery among Gen Z now happens on short-form video apps.
- Songs with trending TikTok sounds are 240% more likely to hit Spotify editorial playlists.
- Artists using Reels consistently report a 3x increase in fan interactions.
Lunar Media’s Take
At Lunar, we’ve seen phonk creators go from 1k to 100k monthly listeners in less than 60 days using the right short-form strategy.
We help artists not just grow, but build a movement.
Whether it’s content strategy, branding, or full video production — this is the new stage. Don’t ignore it.
If you’re not using Reels or TikTok in 2025, you’re already behind.
But it’s not too late to catch up.
