On June 7, Charli XCX’s newest album “BRAT” was released, becoming the album of the summer. The sixth studio album from the artist has been the highly acclaimed with a rating of 95/100 on Metacritic, and it’s also XCX’s highest charting album in the U.S. Although every song on the album is good, the success isn’t just because of the music.
The rollout of the album is partly why it is so successful. The album is characterized by its bright green cover and low-resolution font on the cover make it stand out. The format was easily turned into an internet trend, further promoting the album before its release.
Another key point in the album release was Charli XCX’s Boiler Room collaboration, which was a hugely popular DJ set. Boiler Room is a company that streams artists’ DJ sets while a live audience is there. That was the perfect setting for what “BRAT” stands for seeing, as the Boiler Room is known for over-the-top performances in small settings.
Although XCX’s performances in the “BRAT” era are massive, they would be nothing without the music being so good.The first single off of the album was “Von dutch,” which set the tone for the upcoming album with lyrics such as “It’s okay to just admit that you’re jealous of me.” The overall theme of the album is being confident and unapologetic about living life to the fullest.
After the song's release, XCX released a remix of the single featuring Addison Rae and A.G. Cook. She continued to bring an “it-girl” energy to this rollout, with her songs like “Club classics” and the “360” music video that featured internet stars like Julia Fox, Rachel Sennot and Emma Chamberlain, among numerous other “it-girls."
Although “BRAT” has a party girl energy with songs like “365” and “Spring Breakers,” it also features some heartfelt songs for the singer, such as the song “Sympathy is a knife,” in which XCX sings about her insecurities in the music industry.
Of course one of the more notable songs from the album is “Girl, so confusing” in which xcx sings about her complicated friendship with fellow singer Lorde. Although the song being about Lorde was a rumor when first released, it was confirmed to be about her when Lorde joined XCX on the remix, “The girl, so confusing version with Lorde.” The song made the internet go crazy, just as XCX predicted in the original version, after years of a rumored feud between the singers. The song has been trending on TikTok, mainly for the line “let’s work it out on the remix.”
Most recently, the “BRAT” wall, a wall painted green that was used as a canvas for releases related to the album, displayed the phrase “ok, bye.” Fans thought this was the singer's way to say it is the end of the “BRAT” era, but XCX took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to say “‘BRAT’ summer is only just beginning.”
I personally hope that “BRAT” is nowhere near over. Charli XCX is currently on a festival tour and will start her joint tour with Troye Sivan come September. She has made a lasting impact with the album “BRAT,” and I for one will definitely be seen at her show in Columbus come September for the end of my “BRAT” summer.
Cassie is a junior studying communications at Ohio University. Please note the views expressed in this column do not reflect those of The Post. Want to talk to Cassie? Email her at cb086021@ohio.edu.
