Writer Allison Treanor reflects on the turbulent professional journey of ‘brat summer’ sensation Charli xcx.
Writer Allison Treanor reflects on the turbulent professional journey of ‘brat summer’ sensation Charli xcx.
In 2024, Charli XCX finally gave up on commercial success.
With the release of “brat,” an album purely driven by Charli’s creativity and vision, she said she’d finally stopped her attempts to break into the mainstream.
The album subsequently blew up, achieving the highest chart success Charli had seen in over 10 years and kickstarting several viral trends, including “brat summer.”
For the millions who think they’re just now discovering Charli — you’ve been listening to her unknowingly all along. The truth is, “brat” is just another step on the staircase Charli has been building — and every other pop artist has been following — for the last 10 years.
Behind “brat” is an artist who never gave up pursuing her vision, with one of the most fascinating stories in pop history.
The paradox of Charli’s career began before her official career did, when Swedish duo Icona Pop released the international hit single “I Love It” in 2012. The song was written by and featured vocals from Charli, but she didn’t think the song captured her well enough to release it herself.
Her first official album, “True Romance,” released in 2013 was comprised entirely of songs Charli felt represented her. Despite the album garnering decent acclaim, it didn’t share the single’s commercial success.
Although she could have achieved commercial success by writing songs like “I Love It” over and over again, she decided to keep following her creative instincts, according to a 2020 interview with Red Bull.
In between her first and second albums, Charli achieved yet another smash hit in “Fancy,” an Iggy Azalea song she co-wrote and featured on. She carried over this sound to more commercial success in her second album, “Sucker.”
The album housed two of the biggest singles in her discography, “Boom Clap,” and “Break The Rules,” but Charli didn’t feel the album fully represented her. She later called “Break The Rules” the song she most regrets.
The album was the highest selling of her career, until “BRAT.” She’d shown she could achieve commercial success, if she wanted to.
But she didn’t.
In 2015, Charli met Scottish producer SOPHIE, who was affiliated with up-and-coming pop label PC Music, spearheaded by A.G. Cook. They specialized in over-the-top, weird, obnoxious music. Charli felt like she had found her home. She planned a third full album with them, which was subsequently leaked and scrapped.
Not to be dissuaded, Charli, SOPHIE and A.G. Cook continued their work, which officially culminated in the 2016 EP “Vroom Vroom,” changing the parameters of pop music forever.
The EP was louder, noisier and more expansive than pop music had ever been before. No other artist had been brave enough, or had enough vision, to do anything like “Vroom Vroom.” Although many pop fans revered the EP, it was not well critically received, nor did it touch any major charts.
After “Vroom Vroom,” Charli released two twin mixtapes, “Number 1 Angel” and “Pop 2.”
“Pop 2” especially showcases Charli’s futuristic vision of pop, sounding almost alien and featuring many smaller pop artists to expand its sound.
Although “Pop 2” was also a commercial failure, it started her age of critical acclaim, being named to Pitchfork’s “best new music” list and averaging an 84/100 on Metacritic.
Even after making her masterpiece and changing pop forever, Charli continued to create.
In 2019, Charli released her first full album since “Sucker,” titled simply “Charli.” The album began the artist’s modern era, and her first attempt to return to the mainstream. She went on a massive press tour to promote the record and lead single “Gone,” to little avail.
Neither Charli or her fanbase were expecting another album from her for some time, as “Charli” had been so eagerly anticipated. Charli, inspired by boredom, created a historical account in album form of quarantine, titled “How I’m Feeling Now.”
After the world got back on track, so did Charli, with “Crash,” “brat”’s antithesis. The record was a concept album based on what Charli would be if she actually sold out. Again, she went on a long press tour and promoted the singles even more than she did for “Charli.”
It seemed the harder Charli tried for commercial success, the more it eluded her. No songs from “Crash” fared well, although the album did chart noticeably better than any endeavor since “Sucker.”
Charli felt unsatisfied with the record, however, and has since denounced nearly every aspect of it.
She tried the commercial success thing. It failed. Then she decided, once and for all, to purely pursue what she wanted, and nothing else.
Enter “brat,” her highest selling and charting album and the biggest cultural phenomenon she’s ever contributed to.
Predicting where Charli will go next is, historically, futile. Whatever she does will inevitably change music, again and again.
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