Charli xcx thinks Kamala Harris is a ‘brat’. She might be right

sShortly after President Joe Biden announced he was no longer seeking re-election and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination, a wave of high-profile endorsements arrived en masse. One of them came from a relatively unlikely source: pop singer Charli xcx. On Sunday night, Charli took to X (formerly Twitter) to declare: “kamala IS brat.”

For those who don’t know Charli xcx and her recent album Brat, the statement may have sounded cryptic or bizarre. Case in point: On Monday, Rachel Maddow and Senator Amy Klobuchar seriously discussed the possible meanings of the post on MSNBCwhile in CNN, Jake Tapper joked that he “will aspire to be a brat.” People shared screenshots on social media of text messages in which they tried to explain “brat” to their parents. But for many, especially young people and those online, the post was significant; although the answers were mixed, it was clear he had captured the zeitgeist. And he pointed to a notable shift in the number of voters flocking to Harris, a politician whose approval rating fell throughout his vice-presidency.

While Harris is no stranger to a viral moment (see also: coconut trees), Charli xcx’s post had an outsized resonance, the culmination of a feverish wave of Harris memes that have emerged in recent weeks amid calls for Biden to drop the race. Brat, Charli’s sixth studio album, whose club sound and lime-green artwork has dominated pop culture since it was released in June, has become more than just the sum of its songs. The album became a defining pop culture statement of the summer of 2024, expanding into a meme format, a fashion trend, and, for many, a life philosophy.

Brat, both as an album and as a concept, dominated the summer, with the album reaching over 500 million streams on Spotify this week and its characteristic, seemingly omnipresent yellowish-green hue. In the process, the artist reclaimed a pejorative that has historically been used to demean young people and, often, young women. Charli, an iconoclastic artist whose current mainstream success comes after nearly a decade as an audacious darling of experimental indie pop, describes her vision of a brat as a “girl who is a little rowdy and likes to party and maybe say some dumb things sometimes.” ”, someone who has “a pack of cigarettes, a Bic lighter and a white strappy blouse without a bra”. Brat culture is empowerment with a hedonistic side, the party girl with an existential crisis, the need to throw all caution to the wind in favor of fun. Look no further for brat inspiration than Charli’s music video for her song, “360”, for which she enlisted a group of Avengers-level “It girls,” including Chloe Sevigny, Julia Fox and model-musician Gabbriette.

While all of this may not seem like an obvious description of Harris – a prosecutor-turned-politician whose career and identity have neither required nor afforded her the privilege of “brat” behavior – there is an element of truth to Charli’s claim that “Kamala IS a brat. ”

Part of the allure of being a brat in Charli’s mold lies in embracing authenticity and defying expectations. For the contemporary brat, youth is nothing to be ashamed of and imperfections are proof positive of humanity. Although Harris is an established Democrat with relatively moderate politics, there is no denying that in certain contexts she embodies this definition of a 2024 brat. As the first woman of color and of South Asian descent to be vice president, the Harris’s career was characterized by being decidedly different; At 59, she is relatively young, especially relative to 81-year-old Joe Biden and 78-year-old Donald Trump. In her role as vice president, Harris was often the target of harsh criticism, but in true child fashion, she seemed less concerned with being palatable than with doing her job, despite facing criticism for her stances on border policy, access abortion and health. care, among other issues. And on a more superficial level, perhaps no other hopeful Democratic candidate might be better suited to the Summer of the Brat than Harris, whose distinctive and often verbose manner of speaking, frequent heartfelt laughs, and confident dance moves lend themselves well to the chaos. mad. of being a brat.

While a pop star’s endorsement has long been a valuable tool in a politician’s arsenal, few presidential candidates have embraced an artist as bold as Charli, whose musical persona was built on underground club and rave culture. It contrasts sharply with the glitzy and decidedly non-bratty mainstream appeal of pop stars campaigning for Hillary Clinton, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, figures who, at points in their careers, embodied a kind of girlboss feminism. Harris’ campaign alignment with Charli xcx is an unexpected but shrewd choice for a candidate who will need to win over the youth vote. While Harris is obviously not the same candidate as Biden, she inherits much from his campaign, which has struggled to reach young voters.

Ryan Long, a 22-year-old college student who took one of the most viral fan cam videos of Harris on for him a long time ago.

“I think Kamala does a great job of embodying ‘Brat Summer,’” Long tells TIME, noting that he plans to vote for her if she secures the Democratic presidential nomination. “She has a lot of energy and is always so excited to see people and be there. She’s always laughing, making jokes and always dancing, always having fun. She is, as Charli likes to say, ‘the girl.'”

For Jules Terpak, video creator and digital and technology consultant, the popularity of Harris’ brat edits is no surprise.

“Kamala edits are popular because they incorporate humor, joy, dance, and an attention-grabbing multimedia editing format,” says Terpak. “Kamala, deviating from the sad political stereotype in a handful of viral clips she’s had over the years, naturally stood out to people and now serves as a great canvas for editors to use.”

Harris’ group, in turn, apparently embraced this wave of fan support for Harris as a brat. (Although given that Harris has previously named artists like Prince, Beyoncé and A Tribe Called Quest as his personal favorites and was recently filmed buying jazz recordsIt was likely experienced campaign staffers who led this charge, posting TikTok videos using songs by Charli XCX and Chappell Roan.) Harris’s official campaign X account, @KamalaHQ, quickly updated its acid-style header art Braton the album art, cheekily nodding to the ubiquitous “coconut tree” meme in her bio. While a political campaign capitalizing on a viral moment might seem like a surefire way to kill a meme’s organic humor, induce goosebumps or, as some Charli xcx fans worried online, kill the summer brat, Terpak says this is a very online moment. It’s not a common case of going viral.

“It’s such a unique moment that incorporates several layers of cultural timing by chance, so it’s hard to dismiss despite the desire to dismiss it as strange,” says Terpak. “The more you see people dissecting it and the more it is co-opted by mainstream media outlets and companies, your instinct is to run away from it, but there is something healthy about it that remains.” But she has some advice on how the Harris campaign can avoid derailing this opportunity. “I think Kamala’s HQ team has to act calmly, stay focused and not try too hard so that it’s not their fault for the death.” There’s a lot more than music to what they do next.