TikTok's 'Tube Girl' wants you to dance as if no one is watching, like she does

If you were to start dancing on the train, what would other people think?

Sabrina Bahsoon, affectionately known to the internet as “Tube Girl," has a quick response: “I just don’t care.” And she's pioneered an entire genre of subway-set videos that show just how much she doesn't care.

In the Sept. 13 video that started it all, Bahsoon rides London’s transportation system (known as the tube) while dancing to Nicki Minaj. Above her, the text is overlaid: “Being the friend who lives on the other side of the city, so you gotta hype yourself up during the commute.”

The nearby passengers appear to be unfazed by the woman dancing at the end of the car. Or maybe, the camera doesn't linger long enough for us to know. That's because Bahsoon, herself, seems immune to shyness — which is good, because the video ended up with 8.5 million views on TikTok.

And thus, “Tube Girl” entered the chat. A new main character online, she personifies some ideas that are already very much in the zeitgeist: Romanticizing your life, manifesting, and “being delulu” (or delusional).

By dancing on the subway, Bahsoon’s lack of anxiety is shocking people, even from miles away. “Social anxiety is afraid of u girl…” commented @flowerg1rl7 on her TikTok. Bahsoon responded “As it should be I’m vibingg…”

TODAY.com caught up with Bahsoon to understand the Tube Girl mentality and how we can take a bit of it with us — whether or not our jobs involve a subterranean commute.

How Tube Girl happened

Bahsoon starting tube girling right when she was supposed to start adulting.

Born and raised in a small town in Malaysia, Bahsoon moved to the U.K. to study when she was just 16 years old. After spending a gap year working to pay for school, then studied law and graduated earlier this year. She had the degree — but not the passion.

"I did lot to appease what I thought (my parents) expected of me," Bahsoon says.

Bahsoon was searching for a creative outlet to counteract the feeling of, well, growing up. She struggled to execute her vision, or find people who were believed in it too.

When a friend declined to help her film videos, she turned to the one person she knew would help her: herself. All she needed was her phone (and lots and lots of confidence).

“I was sitting on the tube and I was listening to my music and I felt the wind and I was like, wait a moment,” says Bahsoon. "‘I’m gonna film a TikTok and there were people in the carriage. I just, I just don’t care. And I was just like, you know, what? Might as well?”

The Tube Girl effect

Her confidence has been contagious online, with people following suit across the globe, from New York to Warsaw to Sydney, posting their own videos of themselves dancing freely in public.

TikToker @kelsealouuu posted her version of the trend, writing “Tube girl energy taking effect … Realizing you’ll never see these people again, no one really cares what you do, Confidence is key girlies.

Bahsoon said she’s happy to see people recreating her videos. She also recently launched a Spotify playlist so people can get into the "Tube Girl mindset."

“If I was to influence anyone about anything, it’s to not care. Stop caring about what people think.” she says. “Because at the end of the day, you’re left with your own thoughts, your own accomplishments. If you’re having regrets, because you started to just listen to people and what they would think then it’s just like, so sad.”

So what's next for Tube Girl? Walking the runway, for one. Bahsoon participated in a fashion show for MAC Cosmetics.

Despite all the attention, she says that no matter what, she'd still be dancing like nobody was watching.

"If I wasn't filming, that's how I'm acting anyways. I like always have my headphones in." said Bahsoon. "You don't have service. You can't do anything else. So I'm just dancing."

This article was originally published on TODAY.com