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Charli XCX’s Brat Summer Will Last Forever Now Thanks to Dictionary’s ‘Word of the Year’ Title

The Collins Dictionary deemed the title of the singer's smash sixth album "one of the most talked about words of 2024."

Charli XCX’s Brat Summer Will Last Forever Now Thanks to Dictionary’s ‘Word of the Year’ Title

Brat summer is now endless. After the title of Charli XCX‘s smash sixth album became an inescapable meme this year, the Collins Dictionary has dubbed the “brat” its word of the year for 2024.

The dictionary announced the designation on Friday (Nov. 1), noting that “brat” refers to someone who is “characterized by a confident, independent and hedonistic attitude.” According to the full entry, “Brat, newly defined in 2024 as ‘characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude’, has been named Collins’ Word of the Year 2024. Inspired by the Charli XCX album, brat has become one of the most talked about words of 2024. More than a hugely successful album, brat is a cultural phenomenon that has resonated with people globally, and ‘brat summer’ established itself as an aesthetic and a way of life.”


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The singer’s own definition of “brat” is “that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes,” which, when paired with the album’s signature lime green square background and blurry Arial font created an aesthetic that ruled the summer. Charli’s also described the aesthetic as, “me, my flaws, my f–k ups, my ego rolled into one” and “that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and maybe says some dumb things sometimes. Who feels 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.”

Some of the necessary items for a brat girl summer, according to Charli, include: “a pack of cigs, a Bic lighter, and a strappy white top with no bra.” The vibe became so hot, in fact, that Vice President Kamala Harris began using it to boost her presidential campaign after Charli declared “kamala IS brat” in July.

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Experts at Collins comb through their 20-billion-word database to make their annual list of new and notable words that represent the evolution of the English language. Other words that were short-listed for this year’s WOTY included: brainrot, era (defined as “a period in one’s life or career that is of a distinctive character” in honor of Taylor Swift’s global tour), as well as looksmaxxing, rawdogging, anti-tourism, delulu, romantasy, supermajority and yapping.

This article was originally published by Billboard U.S.

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Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 perform on stage during Day 3 of Hurricane Festival 2024 at Eichenring on June 23, 2024 in Scheessel, Germany.
Matt Jelonek/Getty Images

Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 perform on stage during Day 3 of Hurricane Festival 2024 at Eichenring on June 23, 2024 in Scheessel, Germany.

Chart Beat

Sum 41 Scores Second Alternative Airplay No. 1 This Year With ‘Dopamine’

The band's second and third No. 1s have led over two decades after its first in 2001.

After earning its first No. 1 on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart in over two decades earlier this year, Sum 41 scores another as “Dopamine” rises a spot to No. 1 on the Nov. 30-dated survey.

The song follows the two-week Alternative Airplay command for “Landmines” in March. The latter led 22 years, five months and three weeks after Sum 41’s first No. 1, “Fat Lip,” in August 2001, rewriting the record for the longest break between rulers for an act in the chart’s 36-year history. It shattered the previous best test of patience, held by The Killers, who waited 13 years and six months between the reigns of “When You Were Young” in 2006 and “Caution” in 2020.

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