The second wave of Northern Soul: How shuffling TikTok stars have introduced the 1970s music genre to Gen Z - as fans sell out club nights dedicated to the movement
- Followers of the music scene - known as 'Soulies' - have brought it to TikTok
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People who frequented clubs in the north of England during the 1970s will no doubt remember the tones of Northern Soul music that became the soundtrack of the nightlife scene during the period.
The genre derived from the mod scene, but also featured influences from black American soul music as it grew into a style of its own, known for heavy beats and a fast tempo.
However, while Northern Soul might typically be associated with people who are now in their 50s and 60s, the genre is having a renaissance among Gen Z thanks to TikTok.
Followers of the movement - known as 'Soulies' - have fuelled the rebirth of the genre on TikTok, with related videos racking up a total of 16.6 million views. Meanwhile club nights dedicated to Northern Soul are springing up all over the nation - and they're selling out.
Northern Soul - a 1960s music movement - has found a new popularity in the form of Gen Z and it has taken TikTok by storm. Pictured: Levanna McClean, who hosts a club night in Bristol, posting a GRMW (Get Ready With Me) video
The monthly club night and workshops at Bristol Northern Soul Club (pictured) are very popular events
Characterised by a heavy beat and a fast tempo, its dance styles were associated with industrial towns in the north and the Midlands. Pictured: Northern Soul club night in Bristol
Content creators bringing the genre back on TikTok include Levanna McClean from Bristol, Amy Hodkin from Sheffield and Sally Molloy from Staffordshire - who has even been crowned the world champion of Northern Soul.
As they take to the social media platform to share their love of shuffling, the signature dance move associated with the movement, they're picking up thousands of fans.
Levanna, 27, is the host of Bristol's Northern Soul Club, which she runs alongside her mother, Eve Arslett, 60.
She says that her monthly club night sells out without fail and the dance floor is always packed, with people of all ages attending.
The club nights focus on dancing rather than heavy drinking, which is seeming to appeal to a generation that has been dubbed 'generation sensible' for consuming less alcohol than those that have come before.
Levanna told The Times: 'People really feel like they're part of something. Northern Soul has an atmosphere.
'They haven't seen anything like it before. And then they get into the dancing and just want to practise all the time. They don't want to go a weekend without it.'
She previously told BBC Woman's Hour: 'I've definitely found my love in Northern Soul. It's just one of those scenes where everyone is so passionate about the music and you go dancing all night at the weekend.'
Her mother Eve added: 'I've been into Northern Soul for 40 years and it's never left me.'
Levanna (pictured) says her club nights sell out each time and the dance floor is always packed
Levanna was first introduced to the music scene by her mother Eve, 60 (pictured on BBC Women's Hour)
Sally Molloy from Staffordshire is a world champion in Northern Soul and is another regular on TikTok
Levanna has been involved in the Northern Soul music scene for more than 10 years, ever since Eve introduced her to it as a teenager - and she now posts on TikTok under the username @northernsoulgirl.
Levanna first went viral when she posted a video of herself dancing to Happy by Pharrell Williams with her Northern Soul dance moves, which has now racked up 4.5 million views.
In January, the pair released an album of their top Northern Soul songs called Wonderful Night.
Northern Soul originated in the north of England in the late 1960s and early 1970s amongst the working classes and industrial towns.
It began to be associated with certain dance styles, which were displayed at the Twisted Wheel in Manchester and the Wigan Casino.
It was popularised by artists such as Frank Wilson, the Just Brothers and Nolan Porter.
The youth culture mainly focused on black American soul music.
And the classic music scene has now come to TikTok, with many creators offering dance tutorials and launching their own gatherings.
Amy Hodkin (pictured), 31, also runs a Northern Soul TikTok account under the username @sheffieldsoulgirl, and boasts almost 60k followers
Amy captioned one of her clips with 'Northern Soul KTF', which stands for 'keep the faith' and fosters a sense of community between daners
TikTokers are offering tutorials and online courses for the dancing. Pictured here is Aranivah, who lives in New York
Amy Hodkin, 31, also runs a Northern Soul TikTok account under the username @sheffieldsoulgirl, and boasts almost 60k followers.
She also runs a youth club through which she introduces the soul music and dancing to younger people.
After discovering Northern Soul two years ago, she started to collect records and picked up dancing again - after giving it up when she was younger.
She told her followers: 'My dad brought me up on Northern Soul music.
'I've travelled all over the country, met amazing dancers and made friends for life.
'It's a community - people call each other soul brothers and sisters so it's like a family. It's a way of being, it's a way of thinking, it's a way of connecting with other people, it's a way of surviving life and getting through the mundane.
'There's soulful lyrics, and it's so up tempo that it makes you want to dance. I feel really lucky to have something that means so much to me.'
Sally Molloy from Staffordshire is a world champion in Northern Soul and is another regular on the platform, where she posts videos of herself performing the energetic dancing style on her account @northern_sal.
She was also introduced to it by her mother and has now been practicing for around five years.
She went on to be crowned World Northern Soul Dance Champion in 2022, telling the BBC at the time that she 'got lost in the music'.
Northern Soul fans take to the dance floor at Blackpool Winter Gardens for the 50th anniversary of the Wigan Casino nightclub in September
The all nighter was celebrating 50 years since the first event of its kind in 1973
Dancers showing off the characteristic fashions and energetic dance moves of Northern Soul on the dance floor at an 'all-dayer', at The Palais, Nottingham, in 1975
Sally added that the key to Northern Soul dancing is to be able to improvise and to have high stamina.
Although Northern Soul nights may not be associated with heavy drinking, it does not mean that they are any less energetic.
Participants also host 'all-nighters', where - as the name implies - they dance throughout the whole night, often from 9pm to 6am.
In September last year, fans took to the dance floor at Blackpool Winter Gardens for the 50th anniversary of Wigan Casino's first all-night in 1973.
Northern Soul nights have also sprung up across the UK in London, Brighton, Huddersfield and Manchester.
