Grannycore and Mugithi on TikTok – Youth, Nostalgia, and the Digital Reimagination of Kenyan Identity

Abstract

A distinctive cultural trend is emerging among Kenyan youth on social media, especially TikTok, where users dress and act like their grandparents—using walking sticks, donning vintage attires, and dancing or lip-syncing to classic Mugithi Music. Popularly labelled as ‘grannycore,’ the highlighted trend goes beyond mere entertainment; instead, it signals a growing and deeper engagement with digital performance, ethnic identity, and cultural heritage. This study scraped and analyzed publicly available TikTok videos that focused on Mugithi (126 videos) and grannycore (39 videos). The study utilized Apify for data scraping, and statistical analysis was conducted using STATA. Quantitative elements like views, likes, shares, comments, and saves were evaluated alongside qualitative elements like user engagement and video content. The findings reveal that Mugithi enjoys high engagement and visibility, with average views hitting 409,642. In contrast, grannycore, with average views of 177,551, is in the niche category. Despite this, the granny-themed videos show strong audience interactions through saves, comments, and shares. The trend illustrates that Mugithi and grannycore are more than entertainment, and the two act as mediated forms of identity construction and general sociocultural critique. Young Kenyans on TikTok are blending tradition, satire, and digital creativity to promote and assert cultural belonging and continuity during these uncertain times.