Nobody saw this coming: Charli XCX to the rescue of rock
The pop star's guitar album divides critics and raises the question of whether the Briton is caricaturing the genre or reclaiming it.
Charli XCX received the Breakthrough Artist of the Year award at the Variety Hitmaker of the Year gala in December 2024. During her acceptance speech, she praised The Velvet Underground's debut album, The Velvet Underground & Nico, released in 1967, describing it as a mix of the sublime and the vulgar. Charli XCX's comments were made after she had been drinking champagne and before thanking her producers and collaborators.
The album that earned her the award, Brat, has a very different style from The Velvet Underground's work. Charli XCX's speech appears to have hinted at her next project, a rock album.
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