What would the pop genre be like if it didn’t have Charli XCX? For starters, the world might be devoid of some of the most iconic bops of the past decade—and you already know ‘Boom Clap’, ‘Boys’ and last year’s Barbie entry ‘Speed Drive’ (a cultural reset, if we must say) all sit comfortably on that list. Then, there were those cosmic collabs. Take her unforgettable tie-up with Iggy Azalea in ‘Fancy’, ‘1999’ with Troye Sivan or the addictive serve that was ‘Beg for You’ with Rina Sawayama. And if you still needed bonafide proof that the industry would sound a whole lot more depressed without her, then maybe just hit Google on “Charli XCX’s ‘Partygirl’ Boiler Room” from earlier this year.
So her musical legacy has long been inscribed into the hypnotic haze of every rave out there—as has her indisputable cool girl status. And it’s one she’s clearly locking in again, as she embarks on her next ride, with Brat, her upcoming album. In fact, she’s already let us in on the aggressive first single, ‘Von Dutch’, which music video sees her zooming her way through an airport—the voyeuristic camera lens framed as her arch nemesis. But in its name, she’s also blatantly referencing a Y2K-favourite brand: Von Dutch. Apt, considering we’re in the throes of a full nostalgic swing to the early aughts, and the brand’s cult classic trucker hat serves as the epitome of obsessive virality. Whilst no such accessory actually made its way into the music video, the progressive shredding and metaphorical escape from her choice of airport garb (Saint Laurent and Acne Studios, no less), is just one other witty instance of how Charli ecstatically plays with her fashion in the building of her narratives.
Ahead of Vogue Singapore’s April ‘Pop’ cover star’s hotly-anticipated world tour and the scheduled summer drop of her enigma of an album, we recall some of the most directional style moments from Charli XCX’s music video looks, below.
1 / 20
'Superlove' (2013)
It’s Tumblr girl era, circa 2013. Cue the grunge girl’s platform boots paired with a candy cane-hued bodycon number—one that’s got a matching choker to go with it, no less. Against the neon punk aesthetic of Tokyo’s notorious night streets, Charli’s even got that plaid skirt aesthetic down to a tee.
2 / 20
'Superlove' (2013)
3 / 20
'Break the Rules' (2014)
Turn back the clock, stat. This was the ultimate school girl anthem, especially so for all the good girl turned bad girl wannabes. Her chic sailor girl fit was swiftly replaced by biker gal leather jackets, the nonchalance of a directional pair of sunglasses and that rebelliously va-va-voom frock that was perfect for prom night.
4 / 20
'Break the Rules' (2014)
5 / 20
'1999' (2018)
‘1999’ with Troye Sivan was iconic for its sheer amount of references alone. Together, the pair indulged themselves in plentiful pop culture callbacks—from the leather-clad Neo and Trinity of The Matrix to Titanic’s Rose and Jack. Charli even copped the iconic baggy pant style of the year’s It-group: TLC.
6 / 20
'1999' (2018)
7 / 20
'1999' (2018)
8 / 20
'White Mercedes' (2019)
In what might be Charli’s most feminine aesthetic yet, the singer-songwriter dons a frothy pink tulle frock paired with knee-high combat boots for ‘White Mercedes’—as if to match her soaring vocals in this emotional ballad turn.
9 / 20
'Good Ones' (2022)
If she crashed and burned in ‘White Mercedes’ from the Charli album, then maybe Crash brims with all her feminine rage threatening to burst through from beneath the seams. Enter Charli in her dark, sinister era: delivered in sheer black tulle, netted details, latex arm sleeves and a delicious array of skin-baring lingerie.
10 / 20
'Good Ones' (2022)
11 / 20
'Beg for You' (2022)
When Charli and Rina Sawayama decided to sample ’08’s smash hit ‘Cry for You’, we already knew it was going to be phenomenally addictive. In attending to the longing mood of the track, they opt for subversive dresses, billowing silhouettes that move with the desert’s wind and of course—a heart-wrenching palette of crimson.
12 / 20
'Beg for You' (2022)
13 / 20
'Baby' (2022)
She’s a complete riot in the ‘Baby’ music video—as she dolls out her most suggestive choreography yet and turns up the heat in an animalistic two-piece leather lingerie set, complete with some extremely tactical fringe accents.
14 / 20
'Used To Know Me' (2022)
One for the books. Amid the lot, ‘Used To Know Me’ sees Charli switch into a whopping eight outfits for this music video alone—each one with its own eclectic twist. Like her blushing rendition of Marie Antoinette, as she dolls up in the regency-worthy gown and zhuzhed-up bouffant. But not before she goes full dominatrix in a chained cat suit, or America’s favourite blonde cheer captain—decked out in pink. Talk about versatility.
15 / 20
'Used To Know Me' (2022)
16 / 20
'Used To Know Me' (2022)
17 / 20
'Hot In It' (2023)
Charli turns up the sex in her titillating return with DJ Tiësto. Getting down and dirty in a typical diner, she flawlessly flits between a flirty-formal ensemble to barely-there separates which included the hottest skirt of that season: Glenn Martens’s belt skirt for Diesel from fall/winter 2022.
18 / 20
'Hot In It' (2023)
19 / 20
'Von Dutch' (2024)
So a new era begins. Aimed at the perverse, inhumane commodification of women in the music industry, ‘Von Dutch’ sees Charli literally shed and tear at her initial uniform, the one that belongs to the pop star. Instead, her inhibited personality is freed, and excavated in shredded fabrics, leaving her with the skin-baring sets that this rave master will surely be donning all through the rest of Brat.
20 / 20
