spoiler
Has your life been touched by a block of lime green and low resolution Arial font this summer?
The cultural phenomenon that is "brat" has inspired millions of posts, plenty of dance moves and even reached the heights of American politics.
But as the days become smaller and the nights draw in Charli XCX - who spawned the phrase - has said it's over.
The singer posted to say "goodbye forever brat summer" along with some of notable brat-related moments.
But some fans - particularly those in the southern hemisphere, where summer is yet to arrive - have vowed to keep the spirit alive.
Brat is the name of Charli's sixth studio album which has found critical success and worldwide appeal as people have rushed to embrace its rebellious attitude.
The singer told the BBC's Sidetracked podcast brat was a concept that represented a person who might have "a pack of cigs, a Bic lighter and a strappy white top with no bra".
It is thought of by some as a rejection of the "clean girl" aesthetic - which suggested a groomed ideal of femininity.
"You’re just like that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes," Charli explained on social media.
"Who feels like 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." 'kamala IS brat'
It does not take much for the heat of US politics to spawn endless memes, but brat has hit the race to be the most powerful politician in the world.
Shortly after President Joe Biden announced he was leaving the US election race and endorsed his vice-president Kamala Harris, Charli posted "kamala IS brat".
The Harris campaign then scattered references to the album across its social media accounts, renaming her profile Kamala HQ.
Obviously, it had to be a new lime green photo in the style of the Brat album cover.
Experts have said it was part of an effort for Kamala Harris to appeal more to younger voters.
We'll find out how successful it's been in November.
The Apple legacy
No, not to do with the phone.
Millions of people have tried (and mostly succeeded) in splitting an apple down symmetrical lines.
The TikTok trend has had courageous attempts from celebs such as Glen Powell, Amelia Dimoldenberg and Daisy Edgar-Jones trying to move their arms up, down and side to side, in sync to the lyrics of Apple.
But as the trend eventually fades away, the videos and memories remain.
We'll let you decide if they are rotten right to the core.
So is brat summer actually over "forever"?
Not everyone agrees with Charli that we are done with the lime green entirely.
"It’s our responsibility as Australians to create a Brat Summer," writes one fan.
"Don't forget about South America," says another.
And ultimately, "brat summer is a state of mind, not a season," according to another fan.
Charli herself has teased a possible Brat Autumn.
So as we approach the mild orange chill of Halloween season, is it maybe time to rebrand?
Thus begins the 𝔸𝕌𝕋𝕌𝕄ℕ 𝕆𝔽 ℂ𝕆ℕ𝕊𝔼ℚ𝕌𝔼ℕℂ𝔼𝕊. I wonder if Harris will be able to get another pop culture bump or if the only strategy going forward is the Joyful Nuremberg Rally. If she isn't brat, she's just the candidate who couldn't win a single state in 2020.
It was probably over when she eternally tied it to genocide by doing the girl boss endorsement for Kamala but w/e
I keep hearing about this meme from normie boomer media, but I've never actually seen it in the wild. I'm starting to think it was a failed astroturfed fellow kids meme.
The only place I've actually seen it is the DNC convention where it was sold as Blue MAGA merch. My university is around 80% liberal and I haven't seen a single mention of it. Lots of pro-Palestine tagging but no visible support for Harris or brat as a branding attempt. Like the Khive it's so inorganic and empty. "Pokemon Go to the Polls" energy right out of the gate.
you ain't tapped in then
young women talked about brat all the time at it's peak... its probably past it's sell by date now though.
It’s popular with a certain type of gay on Twitter and TikTok. I’ve seen it a decent amount but try to scroll past when I do lol
nah it was legit, brat blew up as the zeitgeisty hyperpop slay sexual empowerment type album, and then her song on the Barbie soundtrack kept the hype train running and directed the Barbie hype back into Brat again. Then she collabbed with it-girl influencers and that was it really. Brat summer reigned supreme.
I'd say it's growth was pretty organic. I didn't notice any ridiculous marketing ploys for it before it saw success. Then it blew up and everything that could glom onto it did glom onto it, in part probably because the iconic 'brat' green with text over it is so easy to replicate.
Normally I don't give a shit what celebrities say and wouldn't post them. Here it's wider political context that interests me. Kamala's honeymoon period rested solely on not being Joe Biden and this stupid forced meme. The DNC convention, her official social media accounts, everything was brat. The absence of brat means a campaign without policies beyond "Only 99.9% Hitler can defeat 100% Hitler" and a politician with less charisma than JD Vance. The only messaging crutch they have left is limply calling republicans weird so I think this is the moment where they begin to lose steam.
Charli XCX makes pretty good music but no idea how anyone could not get sick of this shit after a week. Music will continue to get worse as long as there's no clear distinction between the marketing behind the music and the actual music. It's all for effect.
Is this a kink thing? That's the only context I have for "brat", subs being super annoying until their doms, idk, fuck them? But, like, that's what I think whenever i hear someone saying Kamala is brat. Like she's throwing things at her dom or poking them or doing whatever to be annoying for sexual attention in a kink context.
: |
The youth of today use it in the way we'd call someone a hot mess or a party girl. I don't think it has any actual cultural footprint beyond this one musician though.
Belgh. Well, small blessings, I've never had to wince at tweenagers calling each other "brat", then. There are some advantages to being a hermit living in a cave on a mountain splitting the rent with a blackbear and two raccoons.
nah seriously what's your source on this I can't find anything about it
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Umpherston_Aitchison
her great grandpa allegedly, no confirmation on her ancestry other than the surname
funny that they've got the same name but I really doubt that link
Aitchison is pretty common for a surname
Charli XCX looking at what the Democrats are doing with the cover she gave them
yeah right
she's a money machine
if had a worthwhile opinion she would've said it by now
I'm now waiting for the next pop culture thing that I don't understand to manifest itself out of the ether.
On its own no. If a pop star declares anything, it's just a generic tweet. But this is the main thing democrats have jumped on to humanise Kamala Harris with young voters who hate her for Palestine. As far as I've seen they don't seem to have anything else lined up after it. To me this is the stupid meme moment where a campaign begins floundering.
