2 Old 4 TikTok

Daniel J. Mertzlufft, Ratatouille TikTok Musical

Daniel J. Mertzlufft (@danieljmertzlufft) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about how excited they were to interview Daniel about his work on all the famous viral TikTok Musicals. They gush over him gushing about Alan Menken and “Beauty and the Beast.” TikTok celebrities truly are just like us. 

Daniel J. Mertzlufft Interview ~4:40

Daniel tells us about his background in music, education, and science. He reveals how he first learned about TikTok from Luca Padovan at a theater festival. The first videos he liked were duets with accompanists to songs like “Defying Gravity.” We hear about how the “Avatar: The Last Airbender” musical was his first big hit on TikTok. Then he tells us about his next viral sensation, the Grocery Store Musical, and what happened when that hit Twitter. 

Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical ~16:15

Rocky Paterra (@rockysroad, songwriter of “I’m an Accountant”) tagged Daniel in the original Ratatouille TikTok video by Emily Jacobsen (@e_jaccs). Then Daniel called upon inspiration from “The Little Mermaid” and “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” to create his version. His friend Cori Jaskier provided the female vocals. We hear more about the rise of the Ratatouille Musical, the coverage from Vulture, Buzzfeed, Rolling Stone, and The New York Times, the first statement from Disney, and the snowball of press leading up to his James Corden Thanksgiving appearance. He describes getting the call to create a benefit concert in less than a month and the work that ensued. Rehearsing with Kevin Chamberlin (@chamberlin_kevin), André De Shields, and Mary Testa. He tells us about his appearance on “Good Morning America” and “The Late Late Show with James Corden.”

Daniel’s For You Page ~34:20

Daniel is deep into Woodchuck and Sea Shanty TikTok currently. He gushes over his love for Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, Stephen Schwartz, Alan Menken, Howard Ashman, and “Beauty and the Beast.” He’s mostly on Musical Theater TikTok, Gay TikTok, Absurd Deep TikTok, and keeps seeing videos of the audio snippet of Jessie J singing “Night.” 

Broadway Stars on TikTok ~45:20

Dena mentions some of her favorite Broadway stars on TikTok like Tyler Warwick

(@tyler_warwick), Broadway Bob (@broadwaybob), and Laura Bell Bundy (@laurabellbundy) from the “Legally Blonde” musical. Daniel tells us a hilarious anecdote about playing Emmett in college. Some of his favorites are Kevin Chamberlin (@chamberlin_kevin), Scott Alan (@scottalanmusic), and Natalie Weiss (@thenatalieweiss). Besides musical theater stars, he likes Gabe Esco (@gabesco). But has no idea who the Straight TikTok stars are—is her name Allison Rae?

Lightning Round ~51:10

Daniel reveals his favorite TikTok Trends: Ratatouille (obviously), “Oh, she passed away, okay,” “Native New Yorker,” and the Harry Potter TikTok dance parodies. Least favorite trends are anything on Straight TikTok. Favorite musical: Rent. Advice for TikTok creators. He’d fill his Hype House with either The Gays of LA (Neil Patrick Harris), Jacob Collier (@jacobcollier), or the entire Ratatouille Musical team. The Broadway actor he’d most want to star in one of his shows is Andrew Barth Feldman (@andrewbfeldman_), Wayne Brady (@waynebrady), or Brendon Urie. He spills the tea on the Patti LuPone miscommunication on “The Late Late Show.” The craziest idea he’s ever had for a musical was with the Ratatouille team coming up with ideas for a “Breaking Bad” musical. The Saul Goodman song would have some real “The Music Man” vibes. Then we ask him to come up with a jingle for 2 Old 4 TikTok! 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Rynn Star, Political TikTok

Rynn Star (@rynnstar) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about the Inauguration, the viral Bernie Sanders photo, Amanda Gorman, and Al Roker.

Rynn Star Interview ~5:45

Rynn tells us about her TikTok journey, starting with Musical.ly and growing a following with her posts on social justice and the Black Lives Matter movement. We hear about her viral video about over-policing in Black neighborhoods, and how celebrities like Ben Platt, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC), Jonathan Van Ness, Benj Pasek, Cynthia Erivo, and Sarah Silverman have engaged with her content. We ask Rynn about “shadow banning,” censorship, and TikTok’s new program for Black Creatives. We all wonder why she doesn’t have the blue check mark yet. Rynn tells us about sponsorship opportunities and working with brands like The Coldest Water and MAC Cosmetics. We talk about celebrities on TikTok and how random people are just more entertaining. She tells us what’s on her For You Page, lots of comedians mixed with politics, media, music, linguistics, and current events.

Political TikTok ~29:00

We get into Political TikTok, discussing how TikTok covers the spectrum. And how much of “Political” TikTok is just about human rights. There’s a level of accountability that comes with the personal video recording on TikTok, versus on a blog post, that hopefully encourages empathy. Political TikTok is more about learning about others first-hand experience and culture, rather than political systems. Rynn mentions content creators in the Native American community. She tells us about her experience with “trolls” that she was able to turnaround. We hear more about her crack fic of Tucker Carlson, Chris Cuomo, and Don Lemon.  

Lightning Round ~42:00

Rynn reveals her favorite TikTok trend: The Buss It Challenge. Least favorite TikTok trend: Twerk For Me / Stand By Me. Advice for TikTok creators. Thoughts on Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Drivers License.’ And favorite accounts: @human_espresso, @daejahtalkstv, @jordxn.simone, @daniellekirk731, diamond_dog74, @geronimo.warrior, @feminist_fatale, @mavrlous.

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Yasmine Sahid, POV Trend on TikTok

Yasmine Sahid (@ladyyasmina1) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about their study abroad experiences. They give details on their new TikTok account (@2old4tiktok_podcast) and 2 Old 4 TikTok tee shirt giveaway! Follow us on TikTok and Instagram (2old4tiktokpod), leave a review on Apple Podcasts, then DM us on Instagram by January 22, 2021 to be entered. 

Yasmine Sahid Interview ~7:40

Yasmine tells us how she first got into TikTok after initially being opposed to it. We hear about her first viral video, WAP Choir, and the small town girl character. Dena explains how Lana Del Rey’s “Mariners Apartment Complex” accompanies most of the “main character” videos on TikTok. Yasmine gushes about her study abroad experience and tells us more about her background in theater, film, acting, writing, and content creation. We hear more about her music videos “Baroque” and “High for the Holidaze” and her experience creating sponsored content. She tells us what’s on her For You Page, mostly comedy and cats. She’s as far from Straight TikTok as you can get. We talk about the mystery of Straight TikTok, Charli D’Amelio, and Bella Poarch. 

POV Trend on TikTok ~37:20

We get into the POV trend on TikTok, discussing some of our favorite creators like Adam Ray (@Adamrayokay) who does POV’s as Rosa, Alyssa Mckay (@alyssamckayyy) who parodies TikTok influencers during the pandemic, and Stephen Hart (@realstephenhart) doing POVs of basic bros. Yasmine recommends Zach Hone (@zachhone) for school and theater kid POVs. Dena brings up another type of POV where Ben Cante (@ben.cante) takes you on his parkour adventures. Yasmine tells us some more of her favorite creators: Jay Love (@flossybaby), Kyle Gordon (@kylegordonisgreat), Ivehadenoughofthis animations and cartoons (@iheot). And we find out how she comes up with new ideas for her POV sketches. 

Lightning Round ~48:00

Yasmine reveals her favorite and most annoying TikTok trends, who she’d have in her Hype House (@flossybaby, @zachhone, @_ehiz, and @itscaitlinhello), and her advice for TikTok creators. 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Eddie Doyle, Giving TikTok

Eddie Doyle (@eddiepdoyle) joins 2 Old 4 TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about the Ratatouille TikTok Musical. Then, we get right into today’s interview. 

Eddie Doyle Interview

Eddie tells us about his background creating content and how he started posting videos of his grandma on TikTok. We talk about the community-building aspects of TikTok and how engaged fans of his granny have become. One of our favorite granny moments was when she put a ton of garlic on her food, turns out the apple doesn’t fall from the tree. We all reminisce on our grandparents' terrible eating and lifestyle habits. We hear more about his adventures as an Uber driver and how he grew his YouTube subscribers to over 100k. He tells us what’s on his For You page and we all share some of our favorite videos. 

Giving TikTok ~33:55

We get into Giving TikTok, the side of TikTok where people give charity to those who need it. We discuss some of our favorite accounts like Lexy Burke (@lexylately) who uses Venmo Challenges to tip big when she goes out to eat. Isaiah Garza (@isaiahgarzaintl), a jewelry designer who helps those in need in Los Angeles by giving them clothes, housing, and he even paid for someone’s health insurance. AK (@akramadinas) uses TikTok to film regulars at his Fresno market, his followers use venmo or cashapp to buy them food. We talk about Dave Portnoy’s (@stoolpresidente) fund to help small businesses struggling due to the pandemic. Eddie tells us some of his favorite creators like: @dumbdumbguitarsongs, Jax (@jaxwritessongs), Stephen Hart (@realstephenhart), and Jimmy Curr (@thejimmycurr). Dena mentions one of ours: @thetalkofshame, the TikTok expert on all things Bravo. 

Lightning Round: New Years Edition ~50:30

We ask Eddie for his New Years resolution, TikTok predictions for 2021, hype house picks, advice from his grandma, and more. 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Davis Burleson, Fashion and Beauty TikTok

Davis Burleson (@davisburleson2) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about New Year's resolutions. They get excited discussing how Cheerios (@cheerios) is on TikTok recreating one of their classic 1990’s commercials thanks to a TikTok creator’s (@corispruiell) idea. 

Davis Burleson Interview ~7:40

Davis tells us how he first got into TikTok earlier this year and how he’s grown his following to over 270k. We hear more about his Jeffree Star impression and his first year in college during the pandemic. Melissa gets riled up about bagels. We all bond over living in New York City during college, Trader Joes, Bagel Bob’s, and Newsbar Cafe. David tells us how he became real life friends with TikTok stars Audrey Peters (@theaudreypeters) and Serena Shahidi (@glamdemon2004). We hear about his experience as one of the TikTok creators invited to tour the Empire State Building. He tells us why his profile picture is of Jamie Lee Curtis and what type of content is on his For You Page. 

Fashion and Beauty TikTok ~34:30

We get into Fashion and Beauty TikTok, discussing some of our favorite accounts like Nabela Noor (@nabela), Brittany Xavier (@brittany.xavier), and Kate Bartlett (@kateebartlett). Melissa asks Davis to explain some Youtubers she doesn’t know: Tana Mongeau (@tanamongeaulol), Tati Westbrook, Jeffree Star, Emma Chamberlain (@emmachamberlain). He explains what happened with James Charles (@jamescharles), Tati Westbrook, Shane Dawson (@shanedawson), and Jeffree Star at Coachella. Davis tells us more of his favorite TikTok creators like Noah Miller (@nmillz1). 

Lightning Round: New Years Eve Edition ~50:10

We ask Davis for his NYE resolution, fashion predictions for 2021, hype house picks, thrift store advice, favorite TikTok trends, worst TikTok songs, and more. 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod).

Bonus Episode: Rosie O’Donnell and Frankie Jonas on TikTok

Dena and Melissa couldn’t wait to do another round-up of the latest celebrities on TikTok. We pay special attention to Rosie O’Donnell (@rosie) and Frankie Jonas (@iamfrankiejonas). They both have taken to TikTok in a totally authentic way—responding to fans, talking directly to the camera, and testing out the TikTok waters with trends and editing features. We showcase Rosie’s TikTok journey so far, and compare it with our own, and humbly ask that she join the podcast one of these days. (Share this episode and help us get the message to her!) 

Frankie Jonas ~10:30

We describe Frankie’s content and fangirl over how funny he is. We share Haim’s song about the Bonus Jonas and explain the funny TikTok Frankie made to accompany it. He also parodies some audio from Kevin Jonas’ old reality TV show. Dena wants to try to meet him in New York City. We both want him on the podcast so we can get his recommendations on TikTok creators and find out what’s on his For You Page. 

Paul McCartney ~21:00

Paul McCartney recently joined TikTok too. His account is more likely owned by his team, promoting his new album. Rather than the Rosie and Frankie vibe, it’s more polished and meant for expanding his work into a new medium. Melissa shares her experience seeing Paul McCartney perform at Saturday Night Live. Dena brings up the Grammy performance from Kanye West, Rihanna, and Paul McCartney of 'FourFiveSeconds' where younger people apparently didn’t know who Paul was. So it comes full circle that he’s branching out to TikTok now. 

TikTok Trends: Parodying Facebook Moms, Weird Celebrity Moments, Stitch Questions, Snowman song ~ 28:00

Melissa speaks about the trend all over her FYP with creators parodying moms on Facebook. Dena talks about her latest FYP trends like asking people to tell us about their weirdest celebrity encounter or weirdest celebrity talk show moment. She brings up another Stitch trend asking what’s something wrong with your body that you haven’t fixed. And the Snowman song (by Sia) in one breath singing challenge. 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Ester Steinberg, Mom TikTok

Ester Steinberg joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show wishing everyone a Merry Christmas from their favorite Jewish women. Dena, Melissa, and Ester all met back at NYU in the AEPhi sorority, so a Christmas episode seems fitting.  

Ester Steinberg Interview ~ 1:30 

As a comedian and new mom, Ester tells us how she’s been using social media during the pandemic and why TikTok scares her. She’s the poster child for millennial fear and confusion of TikTok, but by the end of this episode, we convince her to give it more of a try. We get her thoughts on putting kids on social media. She tells us how she got involved with Facebook communities for Jewish moms. And we gush over how much we love her realistic take on being a mom with her new podcast, “Stand Up Mom,” and new late night show on Hulu “Up Early Tonight.”

Mom TikTok ~ 28:00 

We discuss the Mom side of TikTok, highlighting accounts like @greyandmama and @sulheejessica. And trends like kids criticizing their mom’s food and listing your favorite baby names. Ester gives us her thoughts and spins up some ideas of her own for mom and baby content. 

Lightning Round: New Mom Edition ~ 60:00

We wrap up picking Ester’s brain on new mom life, with questions like: What’s the most difficult thing about being a new mom? What’s been the most surprising thing about having a baby? What do you know now that you wish you knew before having a baby? What’s the best part about having a baby during a pandemic? 

Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

Justin Bartels (@peach_club), Fitness TikTok

Description: Justin Bartels (@peach_club) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Melissa start the show talking about Perez Hilton’s TikTok ban and his plea to the D’Amelio family. At 11:40 we begin our interview with Justin Bartels of @peach_club. We first hear how he got onto the app as the typical millennial during quarantine, but he soon realized the potential of creating a niche fitness account and growing a following. He tells us how the name Peach Club came about, the importance of strengthening the glutes, and how his background in marketing helps to shape his content. Justin explains how he’s built an engaged community, with the help of the book Superfans by Pat Flynn. Justin and Dena discuss Elite TikTok, Fit Tok, and the misinformation out there about health and fitness. Melissa talks to Justin about his experience with improv comedy. At 43:00 we get into Fitness TikTok, discussing some of our favorite nutritionists: @leanne_ward_nutrition, @happystronghealthy.rd, @chicago.dietitian. Dena brings up a pole workout she saw from Quan Bui (@quan.buii) on PopSugar Fitness. And Melissa points out one of her favorite dance instructors on TikTok @chronicdancer. Justin’s favorites include: Tim Thebodeau (@timmytimmadome), Petey (@peteyusa), Ben Palmer (@palmertrolls). The Lightning Round starts at 53:40, where we ask Justin fitness, TikTok, and mask workout advice. Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod). 

TikTok Trends Wrap Up

Dena and Melissa start the show chatting about Dena’s new viral videos: 2020 TikTok highlights and the Kardashians compared to characters in The Crown. Dena tries to convince Melissa to watch The Crown, but she prefers The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City. They discuss if Brooks Marks has a TikTok and creating one for “hospital smell.” Dena is sending Melissa a 2 Old 4 TikTok shirt, but neither of them know how to ship things. They once again rip apart the D’Amelios off-putting YouTube series and a video called “Coke & Mentos With Salem Ilese,” and discuss Dixie’s new song, “One Whole Day” featuring Wiz Khalifa. With Straight TikTok grievances out of the way, they move on to explain the latest TikTok trends: Grace Groski’s (@theofficialgracegroski) rendition of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” set to people sharing traumatic stories that just get worse and worse, Megan Thee Stallion’s “Girl’s in the Hood” as the background to women doing mundane things with #HotGirlShit, and Championxiii’s “Boo!” #ImAGhost dance trend using the Out of Body effect. Dena mentions one of her favorite creators Leenda Dong (@yoleendadong) doing a funny version of the trend. They discuss the #ThisOrThatChallenge and how celebrities like Gordon Ramsay (@gordonramsayofficial) and Bon Jovi (his son’s account is @hamptonwater) have gotten in on the trend with their kids. We explore even more celebrities coming to TikTok like Laura Dern and Rosie O’Donnell, we reminisce on her talk show days, noting how our For You pages are mostly clips from Tyra Banks’ and Wendy Williams’ talk shows. Melissa brings up one of her favorite jokes on TikTok lately, this idea of the “friend chatting with the uber driver while everyone else is drunk.” We showcase videos from @davisburleson2 and @realstephenhart. Special shout out to one of our favorite creators this week: CEO of guessing people’s heights on TikTok Kentai Haven (@kentai.haven). 

Seena Ghaznavi, Fraudster TikTok

Description: Seena Ghaznavi (@seenanow) joins 2Old4TikTok this week! Dena and Seena met through a mutual friend and instantly bonded over their love of TikTok. As co-host of his own podcast, Fraudsters (@fraudsterslpn) on the Last Podcast Network (@lastpodnetwork), Seena shares his perspective on TikTok as a new medium and its impact on the world at large. With a background in both comedy and law, we pick his brain to discuss what kind of comedy works on TikTok and what constitutes fraud on the app. We talk about Cookie Kawaii (@cookieekawaii) not getting credit for her song “Vibe,” how Julia Keith’s (@julia_keith_) mocking of Trump’s dance was taken out of context, Oprah’s fake TikTok account, the feud between John Robert Bell (@jorobe) and Miss Kadie aka That Vegan Teacher (@thatveganteacher), and of course the ultimate TikTok fraud, Trisha Paytas (@trishlikefish88). We come out of the bleak side of TikTok and back into the light with Seena telling us some of his favorite creators: @apoliticalteen, @tooturnttony, @nardwuar, @youngyosa, @itsalanr, @nankles, and @thejonathanmoss. We wrap up with a lightning round asking Seena about his favorite fraudsters, the worst thing people have said to him about TikTok, and his advice for podcasters. Find TikTok videos from all the creators we mention on this episode on our blog (2Old4TikTok.com) and Instagram (@2old4tiktokpod).