#FreeCongo: On TikTok, creators drive awareness and aid for Congo

Ablexu, a Congolese pop and R&B artist born and raised in Switzerland, uses his TikTok account of over two thousand followers to raise funds for displaced people in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Despite being away from Congo, he is distressed by the lack of media coverage of the country’s ongoing crisis.  

Last year, Ablexu announced on his TikTok plans to donate  80% of proceeds from his song “Not That Type”  to provide critical supplies, including medicine, feminine care products, and other urgent necessities. 

“I want to use my gifts to support people. If we promote “Not That Type”, it means bigger revenue, which allows us to donate even more,” Ablexu said.

Ablexu’s initiative reflects a broader trend among TikTok users leveraging the platform’s monetisation tools— music promotion, filters or live broadcasts— to raise virtual gifts and funds for social causes.

“Because Congo has been in the news for so long, people are becoming desensitised to what’s happening there. The more people use the sound the more reach and awareness it gets,” Ablexu said. 

The DRC has been plagued by decades-long conflict which has evolved into a battle for control over the country’s resource-rich eastern provinces, particularly Ituri, North Kivu, and South Kivu. The resurgence of the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group in 2021 has displaced over 700,000 people, pushing the total number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to seven million. 

On Jan. 28, M23 seized the city of Goma, escalating the crisis to its most severe level since 2012. The United Nations warns that the conflict risks spiralling into a broader regional war, further compounding the humanitarian crisis. In 2024 alone, 358,000 more people have been displaced, child rights violations in eastern DRC have risen by 30%, and 23.4 million Congolese face food insecurity—the highest globally.

With many individuals displaced by ongoing conflict and numerous children left orphaned, TikTok-driven fundraising efforts by creators of Congolese heritage aim to bring much-needed attention and support to the crisis. 

TikTok’s monetization tool doubles as a fundraising tool 

TikTok offers artists royalties when a song is used on the platform like music streaming services Spotify and Apple Music do. Artists receive royalties through music distributors who process payments after a two-month collection period. Each distributor and label operates under specific agreements with TikTok, dictating the artist’s payout. 

Artists earn based on video count rather than play count. The platform pays approximately three cents per video featuring an artist’s song. If a song is used in one million videos, it can generate around $30,000. While viral hits like Lottery by Renegade or Yo Bunny by ProdbycpkShawn have surpassed 1 million videos, often driven by trends, artists like Ablexu rarely hit that milestone. However, they can still generate substantial revenue with multiple songs which they donate to grassroots organisations.

“My distributors collect all my royalties, and the funds are transferred from my royalties account to organisations that do the groundwork, like Focus Congo and Friends of the Congo,” Ablexu told TechCabal.

Friends of the Congo, an advocacy organisation that collaborates with grassroots Congolese groups, has a history of partnering with artists for fundraising. In 2024, the group worked with Yana the Artist, an independent musician with over 24,000 monthly Spotify listeners. Through her TikTok campaigns, Yana helped raise $19,000, which was split between two programs: $9,000 went toward providing medicine, food, and essentials for displaced people in Kisangani, while $10,000 supported a women’s empowerment initiative in Kinshasa that produces reusable menstrual pads and promotes menstrual health education. The group also has an ongoing collaboration with Gangstagrass, an American musical group.

Beyond music, TikTok allows creator to earn money from designing popular effects such as quizzes, colour grading, filters, animations and AI-generated elements, thanks to TikTok’s $6 million Effects Creator Rewards program which launched in 2023. Creators can earn $700 for every effect used in 500,000 unique videos within 90 days. While many creators use this program for personal income, some leverage it to raise funds for causes like the Congo crisis. One such effect allows users to feature the flag of the DRC as a backdrop, promoting awareness and support for the country.

Raising awareness is another crucial aspect of these campaigns. Emerging creators like Hadija Ali, who has over 75,000 followers, use creative content to shed light on the humanitarian crisis, often focusing on the personal stories of those affected. Others, like Congolese-born content creator Patricia Orti, have taken her efforts further by launching a GoFundMe campaign to raise €30,000 for displaced Congolese. Her campaign has so far raised €2,065, largely driven by TikTok engagement.

These fundraising initiatives are not without skepticism. Some TikTok users question the authenticity of fundraisers, worrying that individuals may exploit the cause for personal gain. 

“We conduct thorough vetting before collaborating with TikTokers,” Maurice Carney, co-founder of Friends of the Congo, told TechCabal.

Despite criticism and bans in some countries like India, Senegal, and Russia, TikTok remains a powerful tool for social good. 

Its dual role as a music promotion platform and a fundraising tool underscores its potential to drive positive change, proving that digital activism can make a tangible impact in crisis-stricken regions like the DRC.