Charli XCX and Chappell Roan: Rumors or Reality?

If you’ve been on the internet at all this summer, you’re well aware that it’s been universally declared to be a “brat summer,” following the smash release of dance-pop icon Charli XCX’s album, brat. You’re also well aware of the more recent dance-pop icon Chappell Roan, or “your favorite artist’s favorite artist,” and her skyrocketing to stardom after a show-stopping Coachella set earlier this year (despite being a part of the music industry for about a decade).

But you’d have to be in the depths of the internet to hear the good word: rumors of a Charli XCX and Chappell Roan collaboration coming soon. Both artists maintain strongholds in the queer music scene. Charli’s house beats about sex, drugs, and dancing, but also complex emotions are an unexpectedly good match for Chappell’s 80s-tinged pop tunes that are about the same thing, but sapphic.

Charli started her career over 10 years ago performing at warehouse raves and blowing up from there. Chappell kicked things off around the same time and has been grinding ever since to finally get her flowers with her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.

Charli will perform with Troye Sivan at Ball Arena in October, and Chappell headlined the Boulder Theater and featured local drag queens in her show this past April. The hardworking pop divas complement each other both in aesthetic (Charli’s industrial-yet-girly vibe behind the decks to Chappell’s iconic drag looks on stage is a magnetic combo) and sound. If you’re anything like this author, both have been in your playlists, separate and together, long before and certainly ever since brat summer commenced.

Since the release of brat on June 7, Charli has been in something of a remix era. The first of these was the groundbreaking “girl, so confusing” remix featuring Lorde, whom she’s supposedly had beef with for a long time, but that is laid to rest here. The surprise collab with Billie Eilish on the track “Guess” from the brat deluxe album, brat and it’s the same but there’s three more songs so it’s not, became viral following its release on August 1, especially with recently-out Eilish’s line “Charli likes boys, but she knows I’d hit it.” Further, there’s loose confirmation of a collab with the one and only Kesha, whose new dance-pop single “JOYRIDE” was released on July 4.

While Charli hints at new music, many fans still speculate an upcoming Chappell collab following the singers both using a remix of Chappell’s song “Femininomenon” and Charli’s song “365” that’s been going around TikTok. Chappell also posted a selfie with a brat CD in the checkout line of a Target, which reasonably put fans into further hysterics over a potential collaboration. The only question left, seemingly, is which song? This author is pushing for a Chappell verse on “Apple” or “Everything is romantic.”

Photo from X user @pctchedup.