Brat Summer take over: behind the cultural phenomenon

How Charli XCX’s album “Brat” moved into mainstream culture and defined Summer 2024.

Brat summer has been the sensation of the last few months, with everybody from former President Barack Obama to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) talking about it. But what does any of it mean, and how diverse of an influence did Charli XCX have on the last summer and wider pop culture? 
 
On June 7, singer Charli XCX released her sixth studio album, “Brat”. The album has a club-pop sound and was met with widespread acclaim, debuting at number two in the United Kingdom and number three in the United States. The cover art is lime green with the title featured in a generic lowercase font across the middle, resulting in an easy replicable format that would take over the internet through memes.  

On June 10, a deluxe edition of “Brat” was released, featuring three additional tracks. The cover art for the deluxe version has a white background with “brat and it’s the same but there’s three more songs so it’s not” written in the same black lowercase font as the original version. Additional releases feature cameos from artists such as Addison Rae, Yung Lean, Billie Eilish, and Lorde. 

The album touches on topics such as female sexuality, the music industry, and the struggles of being successful as a woman without children. 

“Am I less of a woman if I don’t have a kid? Will I feel like I’ve missed out on my purpose in life?” Charli told Rolling Stone UK. “I know we’re not supposed to say that, but it’s this biological and social programming.”  

Leading up to the release of the album, a wall in Brooklyn was painted lime green and various references to the album, later being repainted to promote the deluxe edition. The wall was nicknamed the “brat wall,” prompting fans to call anything lime green brat. 

The term “brat” became a lighthearted and positive adjective when attached to anything and can also be used in an endearing way. The positive connotation of the word was picked up by pop culture, resulting in many young people claiming anything from doing responsibilities to being bold and assertive to being brat. 

Throughout the summer, international media began to pick up on the usage of “Brat.” The London Eye observational wheel, the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, was lit Brat green June 6 to celebrate the Essex native. National Geographic released a Brat-themed article featuring historical rebellious women, such as Wu Zetian, former Empress of China and Cleopatra, former Queen of Egypt.  

Former President Barack Obama endorsed Charli XCX’s music following the release of his annual summer playlist, stating that Charli is doing a great job as an artist, after the addition of Charli’s song “365” on his playlist. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) posted a Brat-themed image online, with the word “peace” over a lime green background. The United States Postal Service also had a Brat-themed social media post, warning that “mailing mercury is NOT brat.” 

The impact of Brat also fell into political campaigning during the summer. The Green Party of England and Wales posted a Brat meme simply stating “vote green” during 2024 United Kingdon general election campaigns. Following President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the 2024 United States presidential election, Charli posted “kamala IS brat” on X. Following the social media post, presidential candidate Kamala Harris’s campaign changed its social media banner to “kamala hq” in imitation of Brat’s album cover.  

Charli told New York magazine Vulture that her Kamala Harris social media post was not explicitly intended as an endorsement, but rather as something lighthearted and positive. “To be on the right side of democracy, the right side of women’s rights, is hugely important to me,” Charli said. “I’m happy to help prevent democracy from failing forever.” 

Brat-themed events have been happening throughout the area, ranging from raves to laser shows. Showbox SoDo in Seattle held “Brat Rave” on September 13, and the Pacific Science Center in Seattle hosted “Laser Brat Summer” featuring a Brat-themed laser show on September 18. Upcoming events include “brat dance party” at Seattle club Chop Suey on October 12 and 13 for those 21 years and older. 

“People were very enthusiastic and even were doing some of the dances associated with the different songs, like the TikTok dance for “Apple,” said Emily Early-Griffith, one of the Pacific Science Center’s laser artists, told the Ledger. “It just felt like the perfect time. The shows were a ton of fun to perform and we’re going to keep an eye out for more opportunities to showcase Charli’s music with lasers.” 

Charli XCX’s “Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat” releases October 11 on all major streaming platforms, and Charli XCX and Troye Sivan will be performing October 23 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle.