TikTok-viral Unofficial Bridgerton Musical wins Grammy for best musical theater album

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

The first Recording Academy win for a project that began on TikTok was for The Unofficial Bridgerton Musical.

The songs created by Emily Bear and Abigail Barlow have racked up millions of views on TikTok. Writing from the perspective of characters on the show, Bear and Barlow used TikTok to solicit suggestions, interact with fans, and share the songwriting process with viewers. The duo recorded and released a 15-song album in September. A request for comment was not immediately responded to.

Barlow said in her acceptance speech that she could not have imagined that she would be holding a gramophone in her hands. We share this with you.

Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cinderella, Steven Sater's Some Lovers, and Girl from the North Country were nominated.

The success of Bear and Barlow is an example of how TikTok can translate to more traditional success for creators, even if they don't have a mainstream presence. More than three times as many songs reached 1 billion views in 2020 as last year, according to the company.