The 87-year-old said she is “flabbergasted and excited” following the resurgence of her 1962 ballad.
WASHINGTON — Connie Francis, the voice behind “Pretty Little Baby,” is the latest music legend to join TikTok after experiencing a career resurgence thanks to the short-form video app. The 87-year-old joined the platform over the weekend after the 1962 ballad went viral online, appearing in more than 17 million videos and generating more than 27 billion views globally.
“I’m flabbergasted and excited about the huge buzz my 1962 recording of ‘Pretty Little Baby’ is making all over the world,” Francis said in a video posted to her new account. “To think that a song I recorded 63 years ago is captivating new generations of audiences is truly overwhelming for me.”
Francis also posted a video of her lip-synching along to her song, writing that it was her first time ever doing so.
Originally released on her album “Connie Francis Sings ‘Second Hand Love’ & Other Hits,” the song reached number 111 on the Billboard album chart at the time. But its retro sound and romantic lyrics have found a new life among Gen Z creators and celebrities like Kim Kardashian, North West, and Kylie Jenner.
Last month, “Pretty Little Baby” charted on Spotify’s Global and U.S. charts for the first time after its weekly streams increased more than 20,000%, generating over 4 million streams in the U.S. across all streaming services.
“Thanks to the TikTok community, this little-known track from the 1960s has been given a new lease of life, and has introduced Connie Francis and her incredible legacy to a whole new audience, both on and off the platform,” Tracy Gardner, TikTok’s global head of music business development said.
The viral success has led to new international versions of “Pretty Little Baby” being released digitally in French, German, Italian, Spanish and Swedish. A remixed dance version by German duo Lizot has also been released.