fashion

OPINION: The biggest conversation at Australian Fashion Week wasn't about the clothes.

Going viral isn't a new phenomenon for TikTok 'it girl' Sophia Begg. In fact, it's a pretty common occurrence for the 21-year-old, Australian influencer, better known by her social media handle, Sophadophaa.

When she was just 17, she went viral on TikTok for wearing a blue corset. That item of clothing immediately sold out everywhere and her influencing career skyrocketed. Since then, she's amassed almost three million followers, launched her own fashion label and is a Gen Z style icon.

So, last week, when Sophia appeared at Australian Fashion Week, there was an expectation her outfits may go viral, just like they did last month at Coachella. What was unexpected though, was for a disparaging comment about the influencer to go viral and overshadow the whole event.

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Mamamia.

In a now-deleted video, a journalist asked content creators attending the event to name a 'micro-trend final boss'. The term is popular on TikTok and is used in a derogatory way to describe someone who chases fashion trends and doesn't have personal style. It's worth noting that publication this journalist represented also participated in creator interviews during the event.

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While most creators interviewed looked uncomfortable and avoided answering the question, controversial influencer Jamie Azzopardi, named Sophia. They said, "I love watching Sophadophaa, but I felt like sometimes she doesn't do fashion the way I do fashion."

The celebrity stylist, who is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns, was instantly labelled a hypocrite online, with many questioning their decision to wear a dress from fast-fashion brand, Shein, on day two of the event.

Sophia addressed the drama on her TikTok on Thursday night. In an eight-minute-long video that has amassed over a million views, Sophia said, "I feel like the Australian influencer scene is already so toxic, and we have such big like tall poppy syndrome, like we don't need other creators bringing people down. Also, I got named as one of them by someone that wore Shein to Australian Fashion Week, so not sure what that's about."

@sophadophaa

AFW debrief …

♬ original sound - soph

Jamie responded in a lengthy statement on their Instagram story. In it, they backtracked and claimed they didn't understand the question. They went on to say they had been unfairly edited, but was ultimately disappointed by how Sophia addressed it. "I think what you've said is questionable at best," they said.

Carriageworks' famous brick wall became the backdrop for a Hunger Games-esque interview gauntlet, as journalists tried their best to cultivate viral moments. Influencers found themselves the subject of an invasive line of questioning, all in a bid to drive engagement at their and their fellow influencers' expenses.

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Sophia Begg couldn't hide the shock on her face when a journalist asked her how much she earns. The fashion influencer labelled the media's questions as 'diabolical' and 'inappropriate' in her TikTok address.

Talking candidly with her 1.3 million followers, Sophia said, "I feel like the interviewers' sole purpose this year especially, is just to catch people out with tricky questions that they know they're gonna get like juicy answers from like, I feel like a lot of the questions, they're trying to get tea, they're trying to get juicy answers, and a lot of the questions you can see are visibly making the creators feel uncomfortable."

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In addition to being asked about how much she gets paid, the Sydney-sider was also asked to divulge the biggest brand deal she'd ever turned down. The journo wanted her to name and shame the brand too.

Sophia gave an insight into just how uncomfortable she felt saying, "You can see that I'm like stressed because it's already a really stressful environment and I haven't had media training or anything, so. And I'm kind of there like alone. Like I'm not with my manager or my mum, so I'm like freaking out."

It's not the first time Sophia has been rattled by a live interview. The fashionista was trolled mercilessly after a brief on-stage exchange with Tony Armstrong at the 2023 TikTok Awards. During the interaction, Armstrong asked how she was feeling, saying, "You look ecstatic and I'm pumped for you." Sophia responded, "Thank you. Wow! Stop flirting with me."

While this clip has dropped off TikTok For You Pages, the moment still lives rent-free in Sophia's mind. It's understandably difficult for the subjects of these types of viral moments to forget the brutal commentary and trolling that comes with it.

During Thursday's TikTok debrief, Sophia conceded that she's often asked how she's so confident, and she said, "I'm the least confident person ever. Like I have raging body dysmorphia, I'm on antidepressants. Like it's not all what it seems like this was a really negative video, which is exactly what I'm saying that we shouldn't be doing."

Feature image: Instagram/@sophadophaa_

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