Boring, mundane businesses have an exhilarating, viral life on TikTok

Illustration by Claudia Chinyere Akole In a minute’s time, you can see a beekeeper remove tens of thousands of bees from a compost bin with her bare hands. Watch a man cut open a tree with a chainsaw, water spewing out of it like a gaping wound. Or see a bare patch of desert transformed into a luxury oasis dotted with waterfalls and palm trees in the snap of a finger. These normally humdrum tasks have become fodder for viral videos on TikTok, where clips of seemingly dull jobs like landscaping, car detailing, and powerwashing regularly rack up millions of views. The app has turned sometimes-hidden jobs or dirty behind-the-scenes necessities into soothing, thrilling, or otherwise intriguing videos. It’s also presented an opportunity for enthusiastic business owners, letting... Continue reading…