As TikTok stars build large and loyal followings on the short-form video app, talent managers and agents from both upstart companies and traditional Hollywood talent firms are racing to sign them as clients. The opportunity is clear for industry insiders. TikTok trends are spilling over onto Instagram, YouTube, and TV shows such as Saturday Night Live . Its stars are appearing in ads for the US Super Bowl and late-night talk shows. And songs that become popular on TikTok are topping Billboard and Spotify charts. Agents and managers who already have built-in connections across the entertainment industry can sometimes turn a TikTok comedian, dancer, or singer into a mainstream star in just a few months. “I think it’s super exciting to have a new platform that is another pipeline for us to discover talent,” said Joe Izzi, a digital agent at the Hollywood talent agency WME. “Regardless of the platform, the No 1 thing we always look for is talented creators – people that we can help build a business around that’s long-lasting.” “It started this frenzy,” WME digital agent Justin Greenberg said of TikTok. “We found it really interesting because we are now dealing with sort of the premier Gen Z creator, who is defining the various pop-culture trends for teenagers.” TikTok’s most followed creator, 16-year-old Charli D’Amelio (66 million followers), signed up for the app just a year ago and has already danced alongside her idol Jennifer Lopez , voiced a part in an animated movie, and is teasing a reality TV project. “Charli is just so popular right now in mainstream culture,” said Greg Goodfried, co-head of the Hollywood talent agency United Talent Agency that represents D’Amelio and her family. “There’s tonnes of brands that she loves, so [we’re] making sure she’s connected to those brands and getting those opportunities.” D’Amelio, her older sister Dixie, and two parents are co-managed by the firms Outshine Talent and Manncom Creative Partners, and represented by UTA for larger business ventures, such as going on tour. Dixie also has a large following online (27 million TikTok followers), and last week she released her first song, Be Happy . One of her managers, Billy Mann, who is the founder of Manncom Creative Partners and The Well, had writing credit on the song. While traditional talent agencies such as UTA and WME have been aggressively signing TikTok stars in recent months, there are also a variety of upstart talent firms that have popped up recently to help TikTokers capitalise on social-media fame. Devain Doolaramani founded a TikTok-focused talent management agency, The Fuel Injector, while studying finance at university. After graduating this spring, the 21-year-old now represents dozens of TikTok stars, many of whom have millions of followers on the app. The talent management company TalentX Entertainment – co-founded by two YouTubers in December 2019 with a focus on TikTok creators – has been expanding rapidly, poaching agents from legacy firms such as A3 Artists Agency and expanding into new business categories like gaming and music. “These guys are the next generation of YouTubers, like it or not,” said TalentX co-founder Michael Gruen. “When you put a video with their name in the headlines, they’re going to get 100,000 views.” Read the full story at Business Insider