“Ice cream so good, Gang gang, Yes, yes, yes.” was probably the first gateway to the world of TikTok NPC streamers for most people. These catchphrases belong to Pinkydoll, one of the most viral TikTok NPC streamers. The nonsensical catchphrases are her real-time reaction to gifts sent by viewers.
The key here is not to break character even if she is rapidly responding to each gift. Pinkydoll can make $7,000 USD a day or more from her streams and videos. Today, let’s dissect the bizarre NPC TikTok girl trend and why people are spending money on it.
Why are people watching it?
A huge one would be the instant gratification the viewers feel from controlling the human NPC’s on-camera reactions. They also enjoy the fast-paced tempo of live streams. Gifts are given simultaneously and in real-time, making the whole experience unpredictable. When they do break character, it can go viral.
These NPC TikTok girls also include ASMR, which leaves some listeners with a tingling sensation in their bodies. Pinkydoll’s ASMR is staring directly into the camera, speaking in soft tones, and even popping popcorn kernels with a hair straightener. Cherry Crush usually barks and makes “nom nom nom” sounds.
“It’s very stimulating, because it’s fast and very repetitive, so people sit and watch it to see the next reaction or if I will break character or mess up somehow from too many gifts,” Cherry Crush, a popular NPC TikTok girl, told the New York Times in an interview.
Or it’s just plain old fascination with NPC TikTok Girl behaviors. It’s creepy and uncanny—the same feeling one might get from watching human-like AI. It could also be a sexual fetish. These girls are also considered conventionally attractive, so viewers might just go for that.
So, why do people send them money?
Because the viewers saw it as sending gifts—a way to make them react. It is an on-demand entertainment. When the viewer sends a gift, an ice cream, Pinkydoll immediately mimics the action of eating ice cream before saying, “Mmm, ice cream so good.”.
It’s also gamified; the gifts are in coins, so viewers are not spending a fixed amount of money. They are not sending the NPC TikTok girl 1 or 2 dollars—it’s 10 roses, which equals to her going, “Thanks for the rose.” 10 times.
On top of that, some viewers tend to be competitive in nature, wanting to rank as #1 on the donation leaderboard. The top spenders can get their names shown based on how much they spend, and sometimes, they can also get shoutouts.
Summary
TikTok NPC streamers are successful because they combine things that viewers like and covet. They will be here as long as people are still sending them money in the form of gifts.
Want to learn more about topics like this? Stay tuned for our next blog post.
