ORLANDO, Fla. – Hair Stylist Emily Velasco says TikTok changed her life.
“I went from working in a corporate salon to having my own business and being booked all the time and not having to worry about it,” said the TikTok influencer.
After one of her videos went viral last year, gaining over 1 million views, she says nearly half her clients came from TikTok. That’s why she believes the TikTok ban would be devastating.
“It’d really gonna be tough for a lot of people out there and it’d really concerning. I know not just in the hair industry there are so many small businesses that rely on this,” said Velasco.
The popular app could be banned this Sunday under a law that forces the platform to cut ties with its China-based parent company, ByteDance, or shut down its U.S. operation.
“I understand the concern but speaking from the perspective of a 19-year-old college student, I think in the terms and conditions of every app we sign over so much that we don’t care about,” said Bre Martinborough, who attends Rollins College.
Several local college students who use the app constantly say they don’t want the app to go away, but they are preparing for the worst.
“I hear a lot of people talking about Red Note, that new app. I’ll probably just stick to Instagram,” said Jayla Cargill, a Rollins College student.
Velasco says she’s also preparing.
“Oh, I’m already on Red Note,” she said.
She’s already saving her content from TikTok to a hard drive and plans to post it on Red Note, reels on Instagram, and other platforms.
However, she believes the other options won’t have the same impact as TikTok because they won’t cater to her target audience the same way.
The Supreme Court is set to make a ruling on the ban this week.
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