Self Aware

The band was formed by three musicians Chen Kordova and Aviv Barenholtz of the duo "Sync", and Eytan Peled in Los Angeles, California.^[4] Kordova and Barenholtz have worked together since they were 12 years old, and previously produced songs for prominent artists such as Noa Kirel and Netta Barzilai.^[3] The three have previously collaborated on the songs "Why So Serious" and "Where We Are" on British label NoCopyrightSounds.^[5][6]

The song combines influences from indie rock and alternative pop. It is characterized by a "dark" and rhythmic sound, which has been compared to the works of Steve Lacy, Hozier,^[7] Cage the Elephant, and The Neighbourhood.^[2][4]

Temper City began teasing the song on TikTok on 28 January 2026, via clips of them recording the song in the middle of the desert.^[8] The snippets highlighted the second half of the pre-chorus and the first half of the chorus. The song quickly gained widespread recognition, due to its stylistic similarities to 2010s indie rock bands such as Cage the Elephant and The Neighbourhood, as well as its emotional lyrics.^[2]

According to Luminate, the song earned 128,000 official on-demand streams in the United States during the week of its release (13–19 February 2026). The figure rose to 388,000 the following week, an increase of 201%, before climbing to 849,000 (up 118%) in the week of 27 February – 5 March. By 6–12 March, the song exceeded 1.12 million weekly streams, marking a further 32% increase.^[2]

The song also entered the US Billboard Hot 100 chart at number 51, making them the first Israeli band to achieve this feat.^[3]