As Brat Summer fizzles into autumn and “That’s that me espresso” lingers, it’s safe to say that 2024 is officially the new generation of pop music. While veteran pop queens like Kesha and Taylor Swift top the charts once more, fresh faces have stolen people’s hearts and places on the Billboard Hot 100.
After conducting a survey, 63.6% of Grant High School students agreed that Chappell Roan was the “Femininomenon” of the summer. With songs like “HOT TO GO!” and “Good Luck, Babe!” hitting the charts, she has continuously given fans catchy choruses and relatable bridges that have had thousands of people screaming for her on stage. There is nothing “Casual” about her, as her momentous presence has captured millions across the globe, from Coachella to Olivia Rodrigo concerts.
Openers for concerts in 2024 have also made up this Pop Renaissance, the Eras Tour featuring some of the most iconic artists. One of these artists was Sabrina Carpenter, this generation’s feminine yet feisty pop princess who has had outstanding performances for her studio album Emails I Can’t Send. Earlier this year she released her 6th, but by far most popular album, Short n’ Sweet. Carpenter has been making music since 2014 yet only recently has been placed in the spotlight thanks to her songs “Nonsense” and “Feather” which charted in the Top 10 in 2023. She has recently released brand new hits like “Please Please Please” and “Espresso” to truly give that pop summer vibe.
Another artist who has been successful in both catchy slang and lively performances is Charli xcx. She has had a longstanding presence in the music industry and has consistently given jam sessions and throwbacks that everybody knows and loves, but her most recent album, Brat, defined the summer of 2024 as a whole. This isn’t even mentioning the influence she’s had online, with the “Apple Dance” and “Guess” featuring Billie Eilish having everyone in a chokehold. This resurgence of pop music only gives an idea of what the future will hold.
All of these girls have one thing in common, however. They’ve all been in the industry for a while now, their first releases ranging from 2008 to 2014, so why are they gaining traction now? At age 17, Roan signed her first ever major-label deal with Atlantic Records when she released her debut EP, School Nights. She continued to publish singles for her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. Unfortunately, after debuting “Pink Pony Club” she was dropped from the deal’s roster because her music was “underperforming”. Olivia Rodrigo’s GUTS concert, as mentioned before, put her on a pedestal. After being an opener for her SOUR tour, their work together continued to blossom, so much so that Roan even did background vocals for some of Rodrigo’s tracks. After gaining popularity due to her inclusive chants and her enthusiastic performances, she quickly grew on social media and made headlines for events such as Coachella and Jimmy Fallon’s The Tonight Show.
Before Carpenter began making music, she was a star in several Disney shows, her most iconic role being Maya Hart from Girl Meets World. She started her music career with multiple covers of songs, such as “So This Is Love” from Cinderella and “Sign of the Times” by Harry Styles. She began to slowly climb the charts, with a few hits here and there including “Thumbs” and “Looking At Me”. Her creativity struck her as lucky when she went on tour for Emails I Can’t Send, with her creative “Nonsense” outros leaving people in awe at her shows. With her tagging alongside 14-Time-Grammy-Winner Taylor Swift and opening for her tour, this instantly gave her that boost of fame that she needed.
What Roan and Carpenter had in common was their reliability on their friends and their tours to amplify their success, but Charli xcx had something different in mind. On her own, she decided to promote her album Brat by making it come off as a worldwide phenomenon, known as Brat Summer. In a TikTok video, she describes it as “a little bit volatile”, like “feeling yourself but having a breakdown, but partying through it”. Brat Summer is all about being bold and unapologetic in pop culture; think of mascara smeared under your eyes, Chappell Roan telling a reporter to shut up, or partying all day and night. This album has not only been defined as a lifestyle but also as a great marketing tactic for brands. For instance, presidential candidate Kamala Harris has been labeled as a “brat”, which has helped elevate her success amongst younger voters.
Chappell Roan, Sabrina Carpenter, and Charli XCX have not only dominated the charts but have also redefined pop culture. This summer has proven that pop is more than a genre; it’s a movement—one that these trailblazing women are leading into an exciting new chapter.
