The Brilliance of #BratSummer: How Charli XCX Captivated Social Media
#BratSummer has taken social media by storm. This genius marketing campaign was done by 32-year old British pop star Charli xcx leading up to the rollout of her latest album. What made this campaign so successful? In this blog we are going to break down the brilliance of Brat.
Physical Meets Digital: Charli XCX’s Brat Wall and the FOMO Effect
On May 2nd, 2024 at 6am Charli xcx’s Tik Tok account livestreams a wall being painted green. Later in the day Charli tweeted revealing an address and time- no context. 30 minutes after the tweet, outside of Lot Radio in New York City she did a pop-up performance lip syncing her newly released single “360” on top of an SUV to a sea of fans. Behind her was a blank green wall, unbeknownst to fans at the time it was the beginning of an iconic era.
Charli changed the wall 7 times, with a live stream for each change included. Charli retired the Brat Wall on July 1st, 2024. Charli marked the end of the era with another tweet stating, “brat wall you will always be famous <3.” She is completely correct about that, as during the run of the Brat Wall, her accounts had 19.6+ million impressions. Google Maps even immortalized the Brat Wall as a monument.
With most people spending a daily average of 6 hours online, she wanted something physical that her fans could interact with, without the barriers or stiffness of normal fan events. Her intent behind the Brat Wall was to create moments you just had to be at. Using fear of missing out as a tool to even further her campaign.
Charli XCX’s Private Instagram: The Ultimate Brat Badge of Honor
Fear of missing out didn’t stop there. During the ongoing campaign, she used a private Instagram account (@360_brat) to share secrets with fans. Accepting someone as a follower immersed them even more into Brat, like a badge of honor. The account currently holds 85 posts of exclusive content that can only be found there. Fans have seldomly reposted content from the account, maintaining its exclusivity.
Brat Aesthetic: Low-Res, High Impact, and Zero Apologies
A major part of the success of the Brat roll-out is due to its simplicity. Sometimes less is more, and this album cover is a perfect example of that. They narrowed it down from 65 shades and landed on Brat green. Charli is quoted describing the color as the most wrong, and that’s why it was selected. She goes on to explain that it was the most uncomfortable and disorienting, which is what eventually led to her decision to go with such an abrasive green. Her longtime creative director, Imogene Strauss, says the color “is the right amount of ugly” and “isn’t everybody’s cup of tea.”
The font they went with is a (cult) classic: Ariel. Stretching it out and dropping the resolution is what makes it Brat. They intentionally killed the quality, which is completely on brand. Because it’s so simple, anyone can make their own version in just a couple of clicks. A fan made it even easier to replicate by creating an online generator for the exact look. The ability to copy and apply the aesthetic to your own brand is a major factor in its success.
Brat Invasion: How Everyone’s Cashing in on Charli’s Campaign
Almost everyone has piggybacked off the Brat marketing campaign one way or another, from Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris to fashion brand Kate Spade. The language learning app Duo-Lingo even used a guerrilla technique by sending a flock of their mascot owls to invade the pit on the opening night of the SWEAT tour.
Charli plans to finish the tour supporting the album on December 2nd, 2024, and she will release her remix album “Brat but it’s completely different but is also still brat” on October 11th, 2024. #BratSummer isn’t over until Charli says it is, and we’ll be watching to see what she does next. Book an appointment with us to find out how we can help make your brand more brat.
