Excerptability, Participatory Affordances, and Platformed Visibility: An Exploratory Case Study of Viral Music Circulation on Douyin

Abstract

Short-video platforms have changed the unit through which popular music is encountered: users often meet a brief excerpt embedded in a repeatable video format before hearing the complete song. This article develops excerptability as a sensitising concept for examining how musical form becomes available for platform reuse. Rather than seeking population-level effects, it presents an exploratory, interpretive case study of viral music circulation on Douyin. The core analysis compares ten purposively selected songs and reconstructs appendix-reported uses associated with 100 highly liked videos; a convenience survey of 201 Douyin users is retained only as supplementary audience context. Eight songs circulated through excerpts containing chorus material, but only six used a chorus alone, and excerpts ranged from under 17 to 45 seconds. Three catalogue tracks released before Douyin existed—one in 1990—also achieved renewed circulation. These cases show that excerptability can be retrospectively realised through selection and reuse rather than only designed into new music. The reconstructed records further suggest two configurations: performance-led circulation through covers and challenges, and narrative-led circulation through mini-dramas, plots, and atmospheric use. The article conceptualises excerptability through boundedness, recognisability, repeatability, and actionability, and relates these dimensions to participatory affordances, platformed visibility, and catalogue recirculation. Its contribution is conceptual and analytical rather than statistically generalisable: it offers a vocabulary and case-based framework for future comparative research on platformised music culture.