One of the terms thrown around this year has been ‘Brat Summer’ and if you haven’t heard of it then you must have been living under a rock. Charli XCX’s Brat truly has been the sound of the summer. Although one song on the album really stands out as encapsulating the feeling of having the best time of your life, von Dutch.

The high energy lead single to the Brat album is just so addictive. This song has been just about everywhere: clubs, TikTok, radio, you name it. Charli XCX captures the party atmosphere through a blend of pop melody and dance beats on this track.

This is a composite of pop and electronic music. The song was produced with EASYFUN, similarly to one of her other song, Speed Drive. Von Dutch has a very heavy bassline and synths to give that electronic feel.

This was the single released before the album and I think it gave a great taste of what was to come. The lyrics are very ‘it-girl’ coded. There is a lot of repetition of “I’m your number one” throughout the song.

Charli XCX seems to embrace being an ‘it-girl’ who gets criticised but in response taunts her critics by saying, “it’s okay to just admit that you’re jealous of me”. I think the lyrics show that public icons are hated on, but this is why they are so fascinating. Charli says she is a “cult classic”, like the brand American fashion brand, Von Dutch.

Von Dutch provides commentary on our society, where critics look to tear people down but also shows that this is what makes our musical icons so untouchable. The video of Von Dutch also adds to this idea of main character energy and rebellion. Charli XCX is seen in Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport.

She is trying to evade the paparazzi, fight with the camera, and cause chaos on a plane. The video ends in Charli being strewn out on the carousel next to luggage. There is a very messy feel to the video, where she is quite often fighting with the camera and throwing punches.

The camera is always following Charli and feeds into this “obsession” she describes in her lyrics. The timing of Von Dutch’s release made it perfect to be a summer song. Although the single dropped in February of this year, a remix with Addison Rae was then released in March.

The full Brat album then followed, coming out in June. I think Von Dutch geared up excitement for the album release but releasing a remix kept it relevant throughout this period until the full album. I honestly just keep coming back to this song and I think for me it will be synonymous with 2024’s summer.

It has been a very strong year for music, especially in the pop world. However, I think that the entire Brat album and Von Dutch have been the best releases of Charli XCX’s career so far. Solidly crowning Von Dutch as my song of the summer.