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wiredmagazine•8 months ago•OP•1
If you’ve been on TikTok in the last couple weeks, you’ve probably noticed people posting about belonging to “Group 7.”
The trend is actually an experiment by indie singer Sophia James, who released a series of videos set to her song “So Unfair” in an effort to manipulate TikTok’s algorithm and get more people listening to her music. After trying a few different tactics, following typical TikTok formats, James started placing people into exclusive groups. And it’s worked— Group 7, the final video in James’ TikTok “science experiment,” has garnered over 76 million views and spawned legions of comments and reaction videos, with even Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai repping her elite status as a member.
But even James seems confused that she managed to hack the algorithm. WIRED asked James about why she decided on this experiment and the double edged sword of using social media as an indie artist.
Our Q&A:
Read more: https://www.wired.com/story/the-group-7-creator-still-doesnt-know-how-she-hacked-tiktoks-algorithm/
