Starting as a young girl from Essex to becoming an iconic pop sensation, Charli XCX rises to mainstream fame with her iconic electronic and hyper-pop hits.
Charli XCX, born as Charlotte Emma Aitchison, is a singer-songwriter born in Cambridge, U.K. and raised in Start Hill, Essex. Heavily inspired by 90s music icons, Britney Spears, the Spice Girls and Christiana Aguilera, Charli began releasing her own music under the name “Charli XCX” to her MySpace account in 2008. Her music immediately grabbed the attention of a local club promoter in Essex who offered her to perform at illegal warehouse raves as a DJ in East London. With the support of her parents, who accompanied her at these events, Charli began her gig as a DJ, where she immersed herself in her dream of becoming a music artist.
“I think it was at those shows that I picked up my performance style,” Charli XCX said in an interview with Rolling Stone. “Everyone at those shows was out of their mind on ketamine and tossing glitter around, so being only 14, I felt like I really had to prove myself.”
Soon after performing at raves, she was signed to Asylum Records in 2010 where she released two mixtapes, “Heartbreaks and Earthquakes” in 2011 and Super Ultra, in 2012. However, it wasn’t until she collaborated with Swedish duo Icona Pop on the hyperpop track “I Love It” that pushed her career. Around this time, she was featured in hit songs such as “Fancy” and began releasing more of her own songs such as “Boom Clap” and “Break the Rules,” which pushed her even further into the spotlight.
“I think it was around that time that I realized that things were starting to come together,” Charli xcx said in an interview with Rolling Stone. “My image and my attitude matched my sound, and everything just clicked. Things have been snowballing ever since then, which is really great.”
Since then, Charli has released numerous projects such as “Charli” and “Crash” that have made her a prominent artist in the electronic dance music scene. One of her most recent and popular projects was her sixth studio album “Brat.” The electronic pop album was released on June 7 containing 15 tracks with a running time of 41 minutes that almost immediately broke the internet and initiated numerous trends.
“Brat” began a series of trends all over social media throughout this past summer such as the fun “Apple dance” and iconic “Brat green.” With the popularity that came from the album and the number of trends that were inspired by the album, fans began embracing the idea of Brat Summer. From fun dances to Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign embracing the Brat aesthetic, displaying the prominent impact of the album.
“You are just that girl who is a little messy and maybe says dumb things sometimes, who feels herself but then also maybe has a breakdown but parties through it,” Charli said in an interview on TikTok. “It is honest, blunt and a little bit volatile. That’s Brat.”
Most recently, Charli released a new version of the album, “Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat”, which came out on Oct. 11. Although the album contains the same songs that fans love, Charli decided to feature several artists such as Ariana Grande, The Japanese House and The 1975 to produce new remixes of the songs. The release of this remix version of the album proved that Charli doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.
From performing in illegal warehouse raves to performing on stages globally, Charli XCX has shown her passion and commitment to her craft which perfectly encapsulates her bold, electric creativity. With the viral movement of Brat Summer and her unique music, fans are excited about what to expect next from the artist.
