There is banana-scented vape smoke in the air. A girl in a hot pink MAGA hat is taking a selfie, the glow of a ring light illuminating her puckered face. Upstairs, a blonde in a fur coat is leaning over a glass railing, surveying the plebeians below—those with enough connections to land an invite to TikTok’s exclusive inauguration party but not to make it into the VIP section, where influencers, many of whom have millions of followers, mingled with members of Donald Trump’s campaign staff Sunday night.
This could easily have been a funeral to mourn the loss of their beloved TikTok. The Chinese-owned social media platform went dark on Saturday just hours after the Supreme Court ruled that it either had to be sold or banned to protect national security.
But, on Sunday morning, Trump announced his intent to sign an executive order delaying the ban on the app by 90 days. By 5:30 p.m., the 47th president declared “TikTok is back”—and the platform flickered back to life.
Now, at a nightclub just five blocks from the White House, hundreds are celebrating the resurrection of the app at the TikTok-sponsored Power 30 Awards. Throughout the venue, influencers are posing in front of walls emblazoned with the hashtag #SaveTikTok. A girl with long, white acrylic nails passes out tequila shots to four influencers—including Bryce Hall, a boxer with more than 23 million TikTok followers, and his Argentine model girlfriend Mikaela Lafuente.
“To TikTok!” someone shouts across the bar, and the quartet clink their tequila shots.