Bold, rebellious & confident. These 3 words would be the last ones you’d think of when you’d hear the word “brat”.But Charli XCX had other plans while composing what would be the very definition of a brat.
Charlotte Emma Aitchison, A.K.A Charli XCX, released her new album, “brat” earlier this June right before the summer holidays kicked in. Being in this industry for over 11 years, Charli had developed a niche audience of queer individuals with her unique sound and retrofuturistic, almost camp aesthetic. However, she had failed to become mainstream with her biggest solo song being “Boom Clap”– which was mostly attributed to it being on the soundtrack of one of the major films “The Fault in Our Stars”.
However, her sixth studio album, the first album she released after renewing contract with Atlantic Records, changed all that by taking the internet by a storm. Whether it be the minimalistic bright green album cover with “brat” written in simple font, or the “Club Bangerz” she cheffed with, this album has caught the attention of the world. So much so that the U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris used the album aesthetics for her 2024 presidential campaign on her X profile, after being endorsed by Charli via an X post. 
Brat Summer: The Rebellion Season Begins
Charli knew she struck a homerun with the aesthetics of her album. The people were changing their profiles with their names written in brat font (Get yours here!), doing TikTok dances of songs like “Apple” and fully embracing the brat summer. Celebrities like Kyle MacLachlahn, famously known for Twin Peaks and being the Internet’s baby girl, posted videos of themselves with songs like Girl, so confusing remix featuring Lorde.
It isn’t too far off to say that her album defined what it is like to be a brat this summer. When you think of a brat, you can imagine a person, rocking, in her words, “a pack of cigs, a Bic lighter and a strappy white top with no bra”.
“You’re just like that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes,” Charli explained on social media. “Who feels like herself but maybe also has a breakdown. But kind of like parties through it, it is very honest, very blunt. A little bit volatile. Like, does dumb things. But it’s brat. You’re brat. That’s brat.”
The Tracks:
“360”, the opening track is a perfect opening track to the album launching her hyperpop party. In the self empowering anthem, embraces her iconic status and the impact she had on the pop industry.
The track “Club Classics” and B2B are certified party girl anthems. However, a lot of the album is also about the internal conflicts she has about partying, regarding that the party-girl persona is just a mask. She mentions themes like wanting to be a mother at some point and how this might affect her in the future.
Her lead track “Von dutch” serves as a big “Fuck you” to people talking behind her back and not caring about them.The track “Sympathy is a Knife” mentions her being self-conscious around certain women to the point it makes her want to shoot herself. Fans speculate that some lyrics allude to Taylor Swift, stating “ Don’t wanna see her backstage at my boyfriend’s show” signifying Taylor Swift and Matty Healy’s, the lead vocalist of the 1975 (also Charli’s boyfriend’s band) short fling. Her releasing the song the day Taylor released her album, while they were fighting for the number 1 spot in UK charts, further heightens the speculations.
The album also has some heartfelt and emotional moments. The track “So I” talks about singer-producer SOPHIE, who tragically died in an accident a few years back. She was a collaborator in Charli’s album Vroom Vroom and an artist who majorly inspired Charli’s music. In the song, Charli processes her grief and talks about how she should’ve been a better friend to her and not pushed her away.
However, the final track on Charli’s eighth album, BRAT, “365” again recaptures the theme of a never ending cycle of partying, 365 days party girl, all. It was a nod to the opening track as well which indicates being a brat throughout the year.
My personal favourite track from the album was “Apple”. Detailing themes of generational trauma, introspection, and escapism, she describes herself as an apple – hanging on her family’s tree.
The track, along with “I think about it all the time” talks about her relationship with her family, specifically her mother and shares personal details like the intent of having children of her own someday.
She has 3 bonus tracks and released them in the deluxe edition album titled “brat and it’s the same but there’s three more songs so it’s not”. Billie Eilish, from her bold espousing of her queer identity in the song “Lunch”, jumps straight into the brat summer madness with “Guess”. The sultry, sexy song over EDM beats is truly a fun song to bop to.In a unique twist, Charli is going to release an album filled with star-studded remixes of all her songs in october. With names like Addison Rae, Dua Lipa,Troye Sivan, Troye, it might not be too far off to say that a second wave of brat summer might be coming soon.
The Big Break:
“Brat” was a slight digress from her previous album “Crash” as it focused less on being experimental, but being more true to her signature hyper-pop, club sounds all the while tackling more mature, vulnerable and dark themes. It has been critically acclaimed as well as seen global success.
Commercially, it debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and reached the top ten in 12 additional countries, including the U.S., where it debuted at number three, Charli’s highest debut. The album was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize for 2024 album of the year. According to Metacritic, it is the highest-rated album of 2024 and the 16th-highest-rated album of all time as of August 2024. Her song “Guess” with Billie Eilish is still on the Top 50 charts in Spotify and the album has surpassed 500m listens on the platform alone.
Final Verdict:
“Brat” is a very personal album to Charli XCX. On the surface it may look like a club sensation with back to back party anthems. However, it includes some mellow tracks too and songs where she tackles serious themes of grief, friendship, motherhood, love and the music industry.
This was the album she made when she was the most vulnerable and insecure and with the album she wanted to reinstate that she was back to her most authentic and best self. The hyperpop/electro-pop melodies and tunes kept the album true to her roots yet was a step up from her previous album, “Crash”.
I listened to the album with the goal in mind that I would simplify the album for whoever is looking to find the meaning behind her strong words. I had a good time with this album and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a way out of a monotonous life succumbing to the social construct. Also to the ones who have a particular affinity to partying, this is the perfect go to album. Personally, I would rate it a solid 8.5/10.
