Behind “Brat Summer:” Femme Empowerment In Pop Culture
“It’s so confusing sometimes to be a girl,” so let’s redefine femininity as seen in the fashion and philosophy of Charli XCX’s Brat.
Credit: YouTube/@Charli XCX
From the clubs to the Pride parades, Charli XCX has released her latest project, and its impact is visible to all. Highlighting a collective of influential and highly celebrated femme icons, the recent trend of “Brat Summer” is a cultural phenomenon like no other.
#bratsummer
The generation of kids raised by the Bratz dolls are all grown up. The artists, influencers, models, and moguls of Gen-Z are participating in “Brat summer” following Charli XCX’s recent album release. The world is drenched in neon green, cloaked in dark denim, and disguised by black sunglasses. The reign of Charli is here. But what led to this sudden explosion of fierce and unapologetic fashion and even sharper attitudes to supplement?
Many may be familiar with the predecessors to the “Brat” phenomenon. Office siren, minimalism, and club fashion are the most notable entities that led to the brat aesthetic: skinny glasses frames, natural makeup with bold eyeshadow, and an emphasis on feminine mystique. The mythology of the vengeful “siren,” placed in a corporate setting, adds layers of irony for feminists in the capitalist regime. Bloodthirsty and deceitful, we see the beginnings of a new wave of femme-presenting beauty.
The “Brat” Cinematic Universe
The visuals for the Brat album have been nothing short of clever chaos. The music videos for singles “Von Dutch” and “360” feature campy plot lines and iconic outfits. Above all, though, these videos showcase the reoccurring themes of glamour, intensity, and absurdity coexisting beautifully. The hilarious yet irreverent “Von Dutch” video shows XCX serving face while being dragged by a floor washing machine and seemingly being chased by the camera through an airport, of all places.
Further, the music video for the second single, “360,” showcases the larger theme of the Brat era. A collective of “Internet it girls” gather to find the next of their kind, including influencers such as Julia Fox, Chloe Cherry, and Gabriette, to name a few. Each notable icon of unapologetic and “knowable but unknowable” women is dressed in muted and earthy tones of brown, grey, black, and blue.
These figures of ferocity, fashion, and even friendship are the girls you’d want to sit with at lunch in high school. Unlike a Mean Girls movie, where pink disguises ugly intentions, these girls are upfront and honest. The bold looks they serve offer a genuine representation of their femininity. Moreover, each member is unique in their choices of leather, fur or soft fabric textures to highlight the many forms of “It girl.”
Club Couture & the Queer Community
Charli XCX‘s impact has been most notable in the Queer community. Her music spans from 2019 to the 2024 release of Brat, and XCX has released many experimental and/or dance tracks that resonate with Queer culture. Because she aligned the release of Brat with the beginning of Pride month, Queer people were eagerly anticipating the album.
The club scene has been integral to Queer culture since the age of Stonewall. Throughout the decades, with growing acceptance and public celebration of the community, Queer culture has found ways to break barriers both within and outside of the ballrooms and clubs. A notable Queer icon in music and style is the late experimental musician Sophie, one of XCX’s dearest friends and inspirations. The influences of Queer nightlife are undeniably present in Brat‘s sound and aesthetic.
Though not Queer herself, XCX has stolen the hearts of a boundary-breaking community. Her Brat album employs techno and dance music for an unapologetic and celebratory atmosphere, reflective of her music’s origins as well as the resulting aesthetics surfacing post-Brat. You will find sheer or mesh textures rising in popularity to match the closet of a frequenter of hot and sweaty nightclubs and rave scenes.
Check out some more amazing musicians within the LBTQIA+ community here!
“Girl, so confusing!”
Among the many infamous moments of Brat summer thus far, the Charli XCX and Lorde collaboration was by far the most anticipated. After years of comparison in the media, the two women “work(ed) it out on the remix” of XCX’s song “Girl, so confusing.” This vulnerable duet added even more layers to the intimate detail and rawness of Brat‘s lyrics.
“You’re all about writing poems / But I’m about throwing parties,” sings XCX on the original track. And to her point, XCX and Lorde have had drastically different aesthetics in both music and fashion since the beginning of their careers. Parallels can be drawn between their breakthrough successes at rather young ages, though even the way each woman came to fame differs from their counterpart. Despite the contrast between the dark clubbing attire of XXC and Lorde’s ethereally melodramatic looks, the two have been pitted against one another for years — until now.
Interestingly enough, one of the most notable aspects in Brat‘s exploration of femininity is the theme of conformity. In “360,” some of the Internet’s most acclaimed and adored women are alike in their uniqueness. Though sharing similar color palettes and a cohesively chaotic wardrobe, each icon shines as their own person rather than a token of a collective. Individuality of expression seems to be very Brat summer.
The many women involved in the Brat era add to a larger conversation of being a “girls girl.” Showcasing women supporting women while highlighting the double standards that exist behind that concept is undoubtedly important. Following the bright pink and bubbly summer of 2023, which saw Barbie skyrocket in the media and overall culture, Brat summer is about authentic representations of modern feminism.
