Musical.ly is a free to use video social networking app, downloadable on all IOS and Android devices. The app originated in China and mainly focuses on video creation, editing and live broadcasting. Users can create short videos of 15 seconds to 1 minute, they can then edit the speed of them, add pre-set filters and or effects and add music or audio – offering users the opportunity to express their creative talents.
When creating a Musical.ly account, users must provide either a cell phone number or email address. Musical.ly will verify user authenticity by sending a short combination of numbers via SMS or they will send a confirmation email in which there will be a link which can be clicked. This will then automatically verify your account.
After registering an account, you can personalize your account by choosing a username and ‘Nickname’ which will display on your profile and can be searched by other users. You can also add a display picture and a ‘Bio’ to your profile. A ‘Bio’ is a short segment of writing about you. In this section you can add things like interests, hobbies and what you do in your free time. You can also connect other social media accounts to your Musical.ly profile. All videos you share with your followers will appear on this page, otherwise known as your ‘Profile’.
When browsing through Musical.ly you can react to other user’s videos by liking them, commenting on them and sharing them directly with your friends or sharing them publicly to other social media platforms. When you find someone who posts videos you enjoy, you have the option to ‘Follow’ them which means that all videos they post in the future will feature in your central feed known as your ‘Home page’.
Within your central feed there is a section called ‘For you’ and in that section there are videos posted by users related to other people you might follow or videos that have been very popular among the Musical.ly community. You can search for videos by hashtags, music or sounds used within the video or by the user itself.
In order to use Musical.ly, users must be at least 13 years of age. It is also not uncommon for younger users to use the platform.