What is ‘TikTalk’? The bizarre Kim Kardashian-inspired accent may be the future of language

Tick-tock — it’s only a matter of time before we’re all speaking TikTok talk. 

Having been under the heavy influence of celebrities and viral tastemakers for the past few decades, it’s no wonder that rising Gen Z and millennial social media starlets have collectively adopted the signature cadences of VIPs such as Kim Kardashian, Britney Spears and Ariana Grande. 

It’s a voice-mimicking trend known as “TikTalk” or “influencer accent” — and a linguistics specialist warned that it’s likely to be the future of the English accent. 

“’TikTalk’ is a feature that’s been spreading as an innovative thing young people do — and seeing it online might encourage the continued spread of these features,” University of Warwick linguistics professor Christopher Strelluf recently explained to NationWorld of the buzzy phenomenon. 

He identified two distinct features of the viral internet voice: “uptalk,” which he describes as “using a rising intonation in declarative sentences,” and “vocal fry,” which is adding a “low gravelly sound on vowels.”

“Uptalk and vocal fry are already very much part of English,” explained Strelluf.