Brat Summer? No, Brat Semester

Charli XCX’s recent album, “Brat,” took the world by storm this summer. Her electropop album included club bangers, like “365,” and vulnerable ballads, like “Sympathy Is A Knife.” The juxtaposition between techno-beats and emotional lyrics caused the album’s popularity to surge. Charli’s collab with Lorde, “Girl, So Confusing Remix,” was arguably the album’s tour-de-force, discussing how mental health and body image can impact female friendships. She even collaborated with Billie Eilish for the raunchy song, “Guess.” However, even though Charli and the world have joked that brat summer is over, the brat mentality lives on in what I deem brat semester.

Brat semester is all about being your most authentic self. While “Brat” is full of club bangers that exude confidence and attitude, a lot of the songs discuss more stigmatized topics. For example, in “Sympathy is Like A Knife,” Charli talks about comparing herself to other women in the music industry. Feeling inferior, she sings, “I couldn’t even be her if I tried.” 

“Girl, so confusing” echoes these types of insecurities, as Charli struggles to know how her friends feel about her. She states, “I don’t know if you like me, sometimes I think you might hate me.” These songs remind the listener that it is okay to be vulnerable and scared of your emotions. It’s okay to be loud at parties, to overshare and make stupid decisions. Those are just natural parts of life. Even a famous icon like Charli struggles with these thoughts of self-worth. 

Charli has also elaborated on how “Sympathy is like a knife” and “Girl. so confusing” break down unrealistic expectations for women. She dived into those expectations in an interview, “If you support women, and you like other women, then you’re a good feminist,” she said. 

“The reverse of that is, if you don’t like all other women who exist and breathe on this Earth then you’re a bad feminist. If you’re not a girl’s girl then you’re a bad woman.” These songs show that modern feminism is a lot more nuanced and that it is unrealistic to expect unwavering support from every woman you meet. It also shows how our patriarchal society inherently compares women, creating a competitive and toxic environment for women, especially in the music industry.  

There are a lot of comparisons in college. It is very easy to look at other students and think, “Oh wow, she’s got it all going on.” Even pop star icon, Charli, struggles with comparison. When explaining the meaning behind “Girl. so confusing,” Charli admitted, “When ‘Royals’ came out, I was super jealous of the success that that song got, and that Ella got. You piece all this stuff together in your brain, like: ‘She was into my music. She had big hair; I had big hair. She wore black lipstick; I once wore black lipstick.’ You create these parallels and think, ‘Well, that could have been me.’” Similarly, it is common for college students to feel a sense of competitiveness with other students. 

For me, it is often hard to let myself make mistakes. But, mistakes are a natural part of life. Sometimes it’s nice to just laugh or dance them off because sometimes it’s not that serious. Charli exemplifies a similar sentiment with Brat. She is uniquely herself and allows herself to be vulnerable with others. I think it is important to embrace this mindset, especially in college. You only live once so be your most authentic self, the good, the bad and the ugly.

Brat content is still coming out to keep us going through the fall semester. For example, Charli’s “Sweat” tour just started in Detroit last week and she even released a remix of “Talk Talk” with Troye Sivana and Dua Lipa speaking in Spanish and French for the intro and outro. She also announced a long-anticipated “Brat” remix album titled, “Brat and It’s Completely Different but Also Still Brat.” The album is set to come out on Oct. 11. 

There are already many confirmed remixes on the Brat remix album. For example, remixes with Lorde, Billie Eilish, Troye Sivan and Addison Rae will appear on the album. It was confirmed at The Sweat Tour that Shy Girl will most likely be jumping on the track for a studio version of their 365 remix. Many fans have been speculating as to who the other features will be. 

These new remixes will revive brat summer and let the brat mentality live on this semester. In an interview with Off The Record on TikTok, Charli defined being a brat as “being that girl who is a little messy, who loves to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes. She explained the nuance of being a brat by explaining that “she feels herself but then also maybe has a breakdown but kind of like parties through it.” 

Even though college students are preoccupied with academics, extracurriculars and internships, we can still have a brat semester. College has a very work hard, play hard mentality. The brats know that it is okay to let loose on the weekends after a stressful week—to let it all out and just dance!

One of the reasons “Brat” was so popular in the first place was because Charli was blunt and raw with her audience. Some of the songs read like a diary entry. She was not afraid to talk about her insecurities and her personal struggles. This semester, let us all strive to be our most authentic selves, whether that is being the life of the party or the wallflower in the corner. 

• brat
• charlixcx
• college