It was the middle of October when we were scrolling through TikTok one morning and stumbled upon a video by Sophia James. “If you’re watching this video, you are in Group 7,” she told us. We didn’t think much of it until we scrolled on, discovering that we weren’t alone, and that many, many others were delighted to show off their Group 7 pride. As of this writing, the video has been viewed 85.5 million times, and counting.
Why that video in particular took off the way it did, even Sophia can’t say. She’s an independent singer-songwriter doing what she can to share her music with the world, and the video was just one of several videos she made in an attempt to promote her song, “So Unfair,” and see what might stick with the algorithm. Needless to say, it succeeded.
We had the pleasure of asking Sophia all of our most burning questions, both about the song and about the viral moment she engineered around it. Whether or not you found yourself in Group 7, keep scrolling to read our full interview with the star.
Sweety High: What is the story behind “So Unfair”? What inspired you to write it?
Sophia James: I used to be pretty closed off about co-writing, but when I met producer/writer Alex Bilowitz a couple years ago, I realized I was working with someone who was just as excited about making out-of-the-box music as I was. We wrote a ton of wacky songs that didn’t adhere to structure or rules or marketability, and it was pure fun. One day, however, I walked into a session and he asked the question that would lead us to making “So Unfair:”
“What would happen if we tried to write a song that had around four chords and followed traditional pop structure?”
I was up for the challenge. Throughout the process, I realized it’s actually just as fun to work with boundaries as it is to work with none; it’s like piecing together a puzzle.
When it came to lyrics, we began talking through our own experiences with heartbreak and general dissatisfaction with certain life experiences. At the time, I’d been grappling with feelings of disillusionment towards the music industry and my own messy romantic entanglements (canon event for your early 20s, I guess). Translating that conversation to song was pretty easy; we basically just took pieces of what we’d said aloud and wrote them down on paper.
SH: What does the song mean to you, and what do you hope it will mean to your listeners?
Sophia: “So Unfair” has taken on different meanings to me at different times, and I hope listeners will experience the same. Whatever it means to you is what it’s about.
To me right now, however, it is a lament about being an independent artist in an industry that is largely gatekept by corporations. It can be a frustrating uphill battle to get to the point where you’re making a living off of doing the thing you love; you can put all your time and resources into making and promoting it, but it’s hard to cut through when those resources are limited.
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SH: What’s your favorite lyric from the song? Why?
Sophia: My favorite lyric is the first line of the chorus: “I’m on the record, but you’ve put me on the B-side.” From what I know about the old days of record-making, songs on the “B-side” of a record were viewed as more disposable by record companies. The lead singles (the songs that were given the most attention and marketing support because they were assumed more “hitworthy”) were typically featured on the “A-side” of the album to ensure people would listen to them first. There are many beautiful songs throughout history that I believe never got the recognition they deserved because of their unfavorable placement. I felt this was a perfect metaphor for the story of “So Unfair”: even if you put your all into something or someone, it can still be viewed as disposable.
SH: How did you come up with the TikTok social experiment to use the seven groups as a way to promote the song? Did you expect it to be as big of a success as it has become?
Sophia: Ironically, the idea was born out of having no ideas. I’d heard that “spamming the algorithm” with batches of videos is one of the best ways to gain traction on the app, so I impulsively decided one night to detach from all pride and expectation of outcome and posted multiple videos with “So Unfair” playing in the background. After posting around three improvised videos that mostly revolved around opening a fresh parking ticket (still need to pay that, by the way), I ran out of video ideas, so I began numbering the videos in a completely arbitrary way. My videos hadn’t been hitting the algorithm in quite a long time, so they started to feel disposable. I leaned into that. I assumed that at most, my friends and niche audience would see them and we’d all have a laugh about it. I never could have guessed that one of those videos would skyrocket in the way that it did.
(Photo credit Stephanie Saias)
SH: What do you think it is about “Group 7” that not only took off with the TikTok algorithm, but then became a culture in itself? P.S. We started seeing Group 7 videos on TikTok early on and they packed our FYPs for a couple of weeks!
Sophia: Seeing this all unfold has reminded me of how starved for community we are. Sure, I posted a video, but it took off because of how people were interacting with one another in the comments. People took it upon themselves to characterize Group 7 as a group of “baddies,” “winners,” whatever it may be, and inadvertently created this sense of pride and belonging among whoever became a part of it. Once that tone was set, it began spreading like wildfire.
P.S. I’m giggling—that’s so wild to hear.
SH: Any favorite “Group 7” posts you can share with us?
Sophia: I was floored by Malala’s Group 7 post. She’s such an icon. Also the Blue Man group post was chill.
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SH: Anything you can share about what’s next for you?
Sophia: I’ve got a whole album’s worth of material that I plan on releasing in 2026. Hoping to do some touring too. Stay tuned.
SH: Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Sophia: Keep supporting independent artists—there are thousands of us doing our best to get our music heard, and through the whole Group 7 phenomenon blowing up “So Unfair,” I’m now certain that it’s still possible for us to cut through. I’m forever touched by the scale of support for my music. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
For even more from the artists we love, click HERE to read our interview with Lily Meola ahead of her Wild Horses Festival debut.
