People have finally caught up to Charli XCX

If you couldn't tell by the persistent lime green glow on your timelines, this is the year of Charli XCX. Something changed the minute he let go Brather sixth album and a tribute to being a party girl in your thirties, dealing with all the anxieties that come with that age.

Brat dominated the cultural conversation over the past month, becoming the type of all-consuming pop culture moment fans of the future pop princess are dying for. From the bold green album cover to the sassy comedy of the lyrics of “Von Dutch” and “360”, the album was everywhere before people even heard the full text. Each of her choices has felt authentic to the album's aesthetic and sound. Every step of her setup is more meticulous than just throwing a bunch of ideas at a wall to see what sticks and becomes successful.

It was a bonus that the album – and the deluxe counterpart released two days later – were some of Charli's boldest and most brilliant songs to date. Not from her Vroom Vroom The EP has leaned so hard on her rave roots. Turns out, that's what everyone wanted to hear this summer.

Brat Summer has been a long time coming. Fittingly, it arrives a decade after Charli's breakthrough on Iggy Azalea's “Fancy” and Icona Pop's “I Love It.” Aside from the hits she's been featured on – and/or co-written with – the likes of Camila Cabello and Selena Gomez, this Internet-dominant, chart-topping pop hit has largely eluded her solo releases star She has always been critically acclaimed with a consistent, sold-out touring schedule. But while her previous albums have remained some of her most compelling pop releases year after year, that hasn't always translated into A-list pop stature in the way she's long deserved. It has deviated from projects of their time that dig from underground scenes (Broom Broom EP, Pop 2) and more bare-bones attempts at a mainstream moment (Sucker, Conflict). Part of that disconnect can often be attributed to how undeniably weird and trend-setting Charli has insisted on being, never leaning too hard into the offbeat sounds and schticks her peers have embraced over the years. He's been way ahead of the pop curve for a long time, especially as an early supporter of Sophie, AG Cook and the PC Music scene that's been relentlessly copied over the past decade.

All these have met within BratHis flawless launch, which kicked off with the bombastic 'Von Dutch' and a bustling Boiler Room set. From the jump, Charli didn't align herself with other pop stars as much as she incorporated pop culture It Girls into her image. Julia Fox and Addison Rae were big guests on Boiler Room and at the center of the rest of the circle. Rae's scream on the “Von Dutch” remix has gone viral while the most mentioned “360” is “I'm so Julia,” in reference to Fox.

Of course, Charli meant it when she said she's everywhere: There's no shortage of influencer podcasts or viral TikTok series she hasn't appeared on, either to specifically promote the album or just to make her presence known. Pop-up events in New York and London were also instrumental in making this moment feel particularly larger than life. Her surprise Lot Radio set drew a huge crowd as she previewed some of the upcoming music. In the week since then BratFollowing its release, Charli further reinforced the album's party cause with more DJ sets, including one at Glastonbury later this month.

The way she has developed her pop alliances has been more strategic than ever. A remix of “360” featured club pop godmother Robyn, while indie sleaze's newest DJ/singer prince Dare produced “Guess” Brat and it's the same, but there are three other songs, so it's not, the superbly titled deluxe edition of the album. But nothing compares to the Lorde remix of 'Girl, so confusing'. For the past few weeks, the internet has been picking apart the lyrics to Charli's song about a rocky relationship with a fellow pop star, and almost unanimously concluded that it was about Lorde. Lorde took to the dance floor and delivered an honest, intense verse that squashes any hint of animosity between them. In the days since the song was announced on Thursday, hours before its release, it turned out to be the biggest moment in the entire release and could end up being the hit of the summer.

The excitement surrounding the Lorde collaboration is a reminder that the true key BratIts cultural take is a cult following, growing steadily for over a decade now. None of this needed a runaway Number One song to feel noteworthy. The Brat The agenda was already understood by millions of listeners who have seen her vision ever since True romance. And for an artist who has built a career on being authentically and unflinchingly herself both as a musician and as a public figure, no era in her career has felt more distinctly Charli XCX than this one.