Strolling down Cambridge’s cobbled streets used to be a stress-free activity for the average student. Now, however, students rapidly scroll through their Spotify playlists before heading out, trying to find the perfect song to listen to in case they are stopped by the “TikTok guy.”

Josh Robinson, also known as OSHU, is a twenty-year-old TikToker living in Cambridge. He first came to the attention of students at the end of January when, as part of his TikTok, he started to approach students, asking them what music they were listening to.

Josh told Varsity that he’s been active on TikTok for a while. At first he would make “prank videos”. But, one day, after finding himself bored of the music he was listening to, he asked strangers on the bus what music they enjoyed, and found it “really enjoyable to listen to new genres of music”. He then decided to take to the streets with his microphone and camera to find out what more people were listening to, in order to “help people that don’t have the confidence that [he does] to explore new genres of music.”

The subjects of Josh’s TikToks are usually Cambridge students. Josh explained: “there are a lot of students in the UK, so everyone’s really in the same boat. If I can find out what a student is listening to in Cambridge, then students from all over the country will relate to them and so it can help them to explore new music.”

Josh’s first music TikTok was posted on January 31st, and has 3.3 million views. He also has a playlist with over 6,000 likes to which he adds all the songs that people he asks are listening to.

When asked about students’ reactions to his TikTok, Josh told Varsity it’s been “mixed”. “Some people fear me”, he said, adding that many people worry that their music taste is “weird”. However, others really like to be asked so that they can share their music taste with people across the country.

Talia, a student who was stopped by Josh for one of his videos, said: “Josh caught me off guard when he stopped me so I was a little taken aback by his energy. I was excited to be featured in his TikTok though as I really enjoy watching his videos - they always help me find new songs to listen to!”

Annie, another student who was stopped for a video, said, although Josh was “really polite”, that “the whole experience did instil a mild sense of fear.”

Josh told Varsity that he “live[s] to make TikToks and YouTube videos”. When asked about the future of his channel, he said that he is hoping to one day collaborate with big brands such as Spotify and Amazon Music.