SAIRA KHAN’S PICK OF THE WEEK

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It’s wonderful that Edinburgh University student Katie Gregson-MacLeod has won herself a huge record deal with Columbia Records after posting a clip of herself singing on TikTok. This is real good news.

When the 21-year-old singer-songwriter from Inverness shared a 45-second snippet of her love song Complex, she woke up to find it had gained 100,000 views overnight. It has now racked up more than seven million.

Katie spends her summer break working in a coffee shop in her home town, and within days of her posting the clip, record labels turned up there asking to sign her. At one point, reps from three of the major record labels were at each table! She went with Columbia (inset top, with friend Dougie Brown), which also represents Harry Styles and Beyoncé. That sounds like a scene in a film – Katie might be signing a movie deal next!

What I love about this story is that Katie has created her own opportunity by going online and sharing her voice. She now has 218,000 followers on TikTok.

I also love that it’s because of other people, who have shown kindness by liking and sharing her song, and making it go viral. Together, they’ve helped to make Katie’s dream come true. Her song even inspired pop stars including Camila Cabello and Tom Walker to sing their own cover versions.

Social media allows people to send their own message and highlight their own strengths. It’s about doing what you love, sharing it with others, and sticking with it. You never know who’s watching and what opportunities might arise from it.

‘ Complex was released a fortnight ago and, at the time of writing, is in the running for the No. 1 spot in the charts. I hope Katie (seen above, performing at Connect Music Festival in August) ends up succeeding in what she loves. When used in the right way, social media can change lives for the better.