Sep
Charli XCX Announces the End of ‘Brat Summer’ After Three Months of Viral Trends
Charli XCX has officially declared the end of “Brat Summer,” a trend that took social media by storm over the past three months. On Monday, the singer took to her social media accounts to announce, “Goodbye forever brat summer,” sharing a series of videos on Instagram set to tracks from her album Brat.
The phenomenon began in June with the release of Charli XCX’s sixth studio album, Brat, featuring a distinctive lime green cover and lowercase title. The album quickly gained traction, especially on TikTok, sparking a wave of memes and viral dances.
Charli XCX herself defined the term “brat” in a TikTok video: “You’re just like that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes. Who feels herself but maybe also has a breakdown. But kind of like, parties through it, is very honest, very blunt. A little bit volatile. Like, does dumb things. But it’s brat. You’re brat. That’s brat.”
The trend reached a new level of prominence when President Joe Biden announced he would not run for re-election in 2024. Charli XCX supported Vice President Kamala Harris by tweeting, “Kamala IS brat,” a tweet that garnered over 55 million views. This tweet inspired a flood of TikToks, social media posts, and even cable news segments. Harris’ campaign embraced the Brat aesthetic, updating their social media banners to reflect the album’s cover art. The Kamala HQ Instagram page used the “Brat” theme to announce their rapid response page for the campaign, referencing Charli XCX’s tweet.
Even former President Barack Obama joined the Brat Summer fun, including the album’s final track, “365,” on his summer playlist shared on August 12. “It wouldn’t be my playlist if it didn’t include an eclectic mix,” he wrote.
Despite previous speculation about the trend’s decline, which Charli XCX playfully addressed on July 25 by sharing headlines about its supposed end with the caption, “oh ? see u next week :),” the singer has now firmly declared its conclusion. This announcement comes after Labor Day, which unofficially marks the end of summer, though the season officially continues until September 22.
But who knows? “Brat Summer” might just give way to “Brat Autumn.” After all, stranger things have happened in the world of memes.
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