If you’ve been scrolling through TikTok recently, you’ve probably come across the Group 7 meme, and it’s understandable if it left you puzzled. The meme has a single source, and intriguingly, it’s a cleverly designed promotional strategy.

It’s not particularly difficult to understand. We discussed Group 7 when it originally surfaced online, and it has since gained even more popularity. As Mashable’s Chance Townsend pointed out earlier this week, the trend started with singer Sophia James promoting her track “So Unfair” on TikTok. James posted seven unique videos to market the song, sorting viewers into “groups” according to which video popped up in their feed. The concluding TikTok, tagging “Group 7,” unexpectedly went viral, racking up around 63 million views.

So why did it achieve viral status? Essentially, it morphed into an inside joke—something to belong to because TikTok users jointly determined it was. Suddenly, everyone wanted to be associated with Group 7. The comments section built the narrative: Group 7 was exclusive. Popular comments on James’ original post included, “I didn’t select Group 7, Group 7 selected me!” and “Group 7 is a crew full of baddies that always triumph, just saying.” It’s akin to the 6-7 meme—seemingly trivial, but full of meaning because we, as a community, deemed it significant.

“I was merely trying to promote my song. That’s all it was,” James shared with Mashable via email earlier this week. “But the reason I create and perform music in the first place is to build community and connect with people, so the way this phenomenon is uniting individuals is truly a dream realized.”

The trend has undeniably nurtured a (albeit unusual) sense of community among TikTok users. People genuinely wish to join Group 7. User @popsamcam pointed out how this is a stroke of marketing brilliance.

As user @not.bethel described, TikTok has a tendency to seize upon something and run with it. Once it builds momentum, there’s no holding it back.

Ultimately, it overflowed into the real world—people inquiring with their coworkers if they belong to Group 7, for example. It’s an inside joke embraced by millions on the app.

Over time, everything became connected to the Group 7 meme. A TikTok about reviving the term “grody” by @wesleyryann drew nearly 200,000 views and, of course, referenced Group 7 at the conclusion.

What was once niche even saw the relatively traditional PGA Tour (yes, the golf league) posting about it. When mainstream brands got involved, the trend surged in popularity.

It’s astounding, yet perfectly TikTok, to take something so innocuous and magnify it. This week, we discovered that Group 7 is here to remain—or at least until the next significant trend surfaces.

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