What Is the Raindance Trend? Origin, Format and How to Join

If you have seen a video that starts on a plain photo and then cuts to someone singing on a wooden pier at sunset, you have seen the Raindance trend. The person singing is usually the person who posted it, placed in the scene with AI.

Quick answer

• What it is: a short vertical video format for TikTok and Instagram Reels.
• The sound: "Raindance" by Dave featuring Tems.
• The look: a pier, the sea, low golden light, someone singing to the camera.
• The twist: the posted video shows the poster in that scene, made with AI instead of a film shoot.

Where it started

"Raindance" is a song by the British rapper Dave with the Nigerian singer Tems. It is on Dave's album The Boy Who Played the Harp (October 2025), and its music video, shot on a beach and pier in Lagos, came out in January 2026. In late September 2026 people started recreating that seaside setting with themselves, their partners and their friends, and the format spread from there.

Only the pictures are AI. The song is human-made, and we cover that in Raindance song: real or AI?.

Anatomy of a typical post

| Beat | What happens | | ----------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------- | | 0:00 | An ordinary photo: a selfie, a graduation picture, a couple shot | | ~0:01 | A cut on the beat into the pier scene | | 0:01 - 0:08 | Slow push-in, warm light, the performer sings or sways | | Throughout | The Raindance sound plays under the whole clip |

Common variations

• Solo: one person on the pier, singing to the lens.
• Duet: one person waits at the end of the pier and the other walks up to sing. Popular for anniversaries and long-distance couples.
• Rain version: the same pier in summer rain.
• Comedy version: an unexpected person or pet on the pier. If it is a real person, ask first, and do not use the format to impersonate anyone.

Making your own

You can film it, edit it, or generate it. If you want the generated route, Raindance AI takes one or two photos and returns an 8 second vertical video from one of its original scenes. The video is silent, so you add the official sound when you post. The full walkthrough is in the Raindance AI tutorial.

Posting tips

• Add the real sound inside TikTok or Reels and lower the clip's own volume.
• Show your original photo for about a second before cutting to the video.
• Turn on the AI-generated content label. TikTok asks for it on realistic AI video.
• Stay under 15 seconds so the loop feels tight.

About this site

Raindance AI is an independent tool. It is not affiliated with Dave, Tems, their labels, TikTok or Instagram, and its scenes are original clips, not footage from the official video.