Lynn Singh

Charli xcx is soon releasing her follow-up album “Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat.”

Although the album cover may be simple, Charli xcx’s sixth studio album, “BRAT,” encapsulates many challenges women in today’s world face. The album is incredibly complex, with the repetitive beat giving a facade of party music, while exposing society’s flaws. 

The opening song “360” starts with a catchy synth beat. This synth is persistent throughout the album, however; Charli xcx is able to create a calculated contrast within her songs. Her image and beat serve an aesthetic of ignorant fun, while music sounds like it is suited for a dance party from the beat and her voice. The lyrics are deep and very critical of today’s culture. The album’s lyrics start very artificial, and slowly unravels with each song. The first two songs are very lighthearted and seemingly egotistical. However, the third song is an abrupt cut into intense lyrics. Track three, “Sympathy is a knife,” passionately describes a common issue women face: insecurities. Charli xcx describes her own insecurities, and how the immediate defense mechanism is to be hostile. Using lines like, “Cause I couldn’t be her if I tried” and “Volatile at war with my tongue,” she makes deep cuts. Contrastingly, these powerful lyrics are laid upon an upbeat synth beat. 

Similarly, “Apple,” which recently blew up on TikTok. The song being used for a TikTok dance trend perfectly captures the goal of Charli xcx’s sixth album. The song is upbeat and appealing enough to catch its 15 seconds of fame, while also maintaining powerful lyrics. The song is appealing in a way that it can inspire its own trend, where people dance while the serious lyrics embed themselves into our daily life. “Apple” has lyrics such as, “I think the apple’s rotten right to the core/From all the things passed down/From all the apples coming before.” In this section of the lyrics, Charli xcx uses the symbol of an apple to show corruption. The song is a metaphor for how people can act as mouthpieces for their parents. Generationally, values are built around how you were raised. “Apple” shows how sometimes those who are not raised with moral values can be rotten, simply because the people before them passed down their corrupt beliefs. 

There is such genius in using a club-like electronic beat while simultaneously lyrics that are meant to expose society’s flaws. The way in which Charli xcx advertised this article was appealing to a demographic of younger women, in a different way than usual. The stark green of the album color is such a mood change compared to traditional “girly” albums. While maintaining such a bold image, the way that this album embraces femininity is different than other albums. Its portrayal of womanhood is more mature, less rainbows, glitter and pink. Instead, it is more centric on empowering women in a way that they feel about themselves. How feeling your emotions makes you a woman more than wearing pink does. She doesn’t negate the feelings of those who do love pink and girly things, but rather encourages everyone to experience their emotions with pride. 

 The album portrayed itself as simple, girly, popular and cool. The songs are catchy and incredibly empowering to women. Attracting the demographic with a “girly” image and then showing them that the situations they are going through are normal is intelligent. Charli xcx is normalizing issues that can feel polarizing for many people, specifically young women, through simple songs. “BRAT” is an enjoyable album, whether you are listening for its upbeat presence or its eloquent criticism of society.