Summer 2024 set a high bar for the pop industry. Neon green blazed across the screens of today’s youth in the reign of “brat summer.” The internet is still mourning our departure from the carefree vibes fostered by Charli XCX’s 6th studio album that awoke the party-girl spirit in us all through hits like “B2b” and “360.” In a similar vein, Chappell Roan’s revealing, lyrical storytelling has captivated audiences following the release of her debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, a definite focal point of the Missouri native’s career thus far. In another comparative rise to stardom, Sabrina Carpenter flooded the Billboard Hot 100 charts in June with her hit single “Espresso” which became the catchy radio bop of the summer at number three and “Please Please Please” which was notably her first number one hit.
All of these names have been circulating in the music industry for over a decade now. You may recall Charli’s fun and frivolous collaboration with Swedish synth-pop duo Icona Pop on their song “I Love It” from 2012 and her 2014 hit single, “Boom Clap” —a beat that’s become exemplary of a time when Tumblr was still a defining internet space. Charli, now 31, began posting songs to her MySpace in 2008 when she was only 14 and signed to Atlantic records at 16. Following a similar trajectory, Chapell signed to Atlantic in 2015 at 17, making the big leap out to Los Angeles. Hoping to break into the industry, she has now carved her name into the backbone of a new era of pop. Carpenter, only a year younger than Chapell at 25, was also floating around the music world at a young age when she signed a five-album record deal with the Disney-owned Hollywood Records at 12. The hardwork of all three pop queens has now culminated in a collectively iconic and extraordinary display of recognition and success.
The pop scene has been long overdue for a fresh new face. Who knew that the women frontlining this shift to a form of more authentic pop would be names we’ve known all along? It’s misinformative to dim down their success to mere luck or TikTok algorithms. The stars have been trailblazing for a while now with the support of successful record labels and creative directors working behind the scenes. Alexander Guy Cook (A.G. Cook), Charli’s longtime executive producer and the creative force behind British music label, PC Music, has defined this as an era of “more poptimism.” In an interview with Elephant, an arts and entertainment magazine, A.G. said that “a year ago people were quite cynical saying ‘Pop is over,’ and then already this year with Charli, Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter, it’s like ‘Oh wait, is pop back?'”
“You can’t understand Charli XCX without understanding the scene she then immersed herself in for the better part of a decade: the label PC Music” writes Kate Mossman at The Guardian. PC Music was at the forefront of producing “hyperpop” music, an experimental sub-genre in the pop sphere that is eccentric and rule bending. Thanks to the label’s autotuned adlibs, poignant sound effects, and electric charm that distinguishes their music from the norm, fans and creatives applaud the label for their authenticity, similar to the overwhelming response to brat. “She is uniquely placed at the intersection of pop and alternative music” continues Mossman. Charli XCX’s sound extends beyond the mainstream because it is uniquely her own. Charli reveals to Mossman that releasing her pop album which has revitalized the need to bump any and all club classics “feels intrinsically who [she is].” She states, "I wasn’t worried about rhyme, or the traditional things; it’s really just about capturing a feeling of chaos and saying the most blunt thing that is at the top of my brain.”
Pop enthusiasts no longer champion releases from artists who appeal to trendiness and inauthentic marketing ploys. The heaps of criticism thrown at Katy Perry following the release of her most recent album, 143, exemplify this. In a 2-star review by The Guardian, 143 is described as a “mediocre pop album with the misfortune to be scheduled in the wake of Charli xcx’s brat, Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess and Sabrina Carpenter’s Short N’ Sweet, a trio of messily inventive and hugely successful albums that collectively suggest a certain raising of the pop bar has taken place.”
Charli’s remix of “Girl, so confusing featuring lorde” may be the most exemplary of the direct realness she displays throughout the entirety of brat. The revealing track about balancing the conflicting demands of girlhood reads as a conversation between Charli and Lorde who are literally airing out their past conflicts on the remix. No issue is too taboo. In a series of lines Lorde even tackles her past issues with body image and eating disorders, singing “I’ve been at war with my body / I tried to starve myself thinner / And then I gained all the weight back / I was trapped in the hatred.” Lorde shares a deeply personal message that is relatable and raises awareness for the issue of women projecting hatred onto themselves due to a toxic culture surrounding women’s beauty standards. This message is distinctly sincere in contrast to Perry’s lyrical cliches and the surface level feminist message she shares in her title track, “Woman’s World.” Perry declares in the chorus of the track that “It's a woman's world and you're lucky to be livin' in it.” This is a statement devoid of any true effort to advance equality for women. Instead, the message falls back on a trivial construction of white, liberal, girlboss feminism. Her early 2000s hits including “California Girls” and “Teenage Dream” will always hold a slot in my queue, but she missed the mark on her comeback record.
Authenticity continues to prevail in the case of Chappell’s rampant success. She has undoubtedly stuck true to her craft, converting from a conventional country girl to an authentic pop star known for her raw persona and queer identity. Her initial release of “Goodluck Babe!” in April 2024 launched her onto the Hot 100 chart at number 77 with 7 million streams in just one week. The song has since peaked on the charts at number four as of September 28th, marking her steady yet dramatic rise to the top. Her dreamy vibrato commands in a compelling track about taking the high road after a failed attempt at love. She yearns for a genuine love “who calls [her] baby,” a desire that has become increasingly harder to fulfill with dating in the digital age.
Chappell has found the ground to express her true identity to the world through different partnerships such as with “Pink Pony Club” producer Dan Nigro and Olivia Rodrigo, opening for both Rodrigo’s Sour Tour in 2022 and now her GUTS world tour. There is no doubt that these big time artists have had a hand in Roan’s success, but she has transformed her platform into a space to foster queer visibility. Roan understands the pain of having to hide behind a guise, considering the Christian and Conservative background of her hometown in Missouri that led her to repress herself at times. She unapologetically amplifies her identity in songs like “Red Wine Supernova” where she sings the line “Long hair (no bra), that’s my type (that’s right).” Chappell extends this energy to her drag-esque fashion which she regularly performs in and bestows on her album covers. Many of her looks notably share the likes of Miss Piggy from The Muppets in several uncanny ways. Her entire persona is illuminating and playfully exquisite.
Sabrina Carpenter is exuberantly original in her outward appearance and creative expression as well. She’s garnered much recognition for the music videos that have accompanied hits from Short N’ Sweet like her video for “Please Please Please.” Barry Keoghan, the boyfriend (and now ex) with whom she pleads to disprove her fear of their relationship ending in unfounded heartbreak, stars in the video locked behind a jail cell for a good chunk of it. Sabrina is thoughtfully ironic and teases at bits of her music ahead of the public. Her personality bleeds into her art, quite literally in her other video for “Taste” starring Jenna Oretega. The display took the internet by a storm with Carpenter and Ortega kissing, fighting, and ultimately killing the boyfriend they’re duking it out over by the end of the video — which ends in a funeral. The video’s dark comedy has painted Sabrina in an esteemed light with the public. Annika Bennett, who supported Carpenter on her European tours last year, shared with The Guardian that “she’s just so kind and such a fun person to be around. I think that translates: people can tell that she’s genuinely a cool person.”
The poptimist storm is still in full swing with Chappell and Carpenter remaining at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and with Charli’s new release of Brat and it's completely different but also still brat. Charli’s new album features collabs with artists such as Bladee, Shygirl, and The Japanese House. Michelle Jubelirer, the former Capitol Music Group chief executive, shares in an LA Times article that “[Charli, Chappell, and Carpenter are] all incredibly strong, independent women who are a little brash and who build worlds and remain authentically themselves.” Each of these women have the power to influence and inspire through their personal brands. Personal identity shines through each of their distinct pop personas in a way that continues to define this new movement in pop music.
