TikTok has quietly rolled out a new platform called TikTok for Artists, currently in testing across Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia, according to Music Ally. The platform offers analytics and promotional tools to help artists understand streaming performance, see which fan content is going viral, and launch campaigns for pre-saves on Apple Music or Spotify.

Platform-driven strategy: The service is free—similar to Spotify’s or SoundCloud’s artist dashboards—and follows ByteDance’s shutdown of the experimental “TikTok Music” streaming service in a few countries. This suggests a more platform-driven strategy for boosting music engagement. Its soft-launch comes as TikTok’s future in the U.S. remains uncertain. TechCrunch notes that artists can spotlight fan videos through a “Music Tab Fan Spotlight” feature on their profiles.

TikTok’s uncertain future: President Trump faces a deadline to either greenlight a sale or enforce a ban on the app. As reported by Music Ally, one plan would create “TikTok America,” where ByteDance licenses its recommendation algorithm but holds under a 20% stake. Amazon, AppLovin, and OnlyFans founder Tim Stokely have reportedly put forward last-minute bids to shape TikTok’s U.S. operations. Meanwhile, Oracle, Perplexity AI, and a consortium rumored to involve Blackstone are interested as well. The looming sale or ban follows bipartisan legislation passed under then-President Joe Biden, though President Trump has postponed the original deadline.

International expansion continues: While corporate talks continue, TikTok’s music team is pressing ahead internationally with TikTok for Artists, offering analytics and cross-promotion tools for upcoming releases. The platform’s ultimate role in the U.S. depends on any ownership changes emerging from the ongoing negotiations. For now, artists overseas benefit from an early jump on fan engagement, even as the app’s fate in America hangs in the balance.