“I think the dance floor is dead / So now we’re making rock music.” With those provocative lyrics, Charli XCX has officially signaled the end of the Brat era and the beginning of what she describes as her “rock reinvention.” Her latest single, ‘Rock Music,’ arrived shortly after her collaborator, the Dare, premiered the track during an opening set for PinkPantheress in Brooklyn.
The track features production from long-time associates A.G. Cook and Finn Keane (formerly known as EasyFun). Eschewing the hyper-pop synths that defined her recent chart-topping success, ‘Rock Music’ is anchored by a raw, distorted guitar riff. The lyrics lean into the intimate, often messy social dynamics of her inner circle: “Me and my friends / We go out, we take pictures / We make stuff together, and sometimes we cry / We kiss each other, real incestuous vibes.”
Accompanying the release is a stark, black-and-white music video featuring the artist navigating urban landscapes and smoking next to oversized piles of cigarettes—a visual departure that mirrors the song’s shift in sonic direction.
Flipping the Form: A New Creative Chapter
The release of ‘Rock Music’ follows a period of intense speculation regarding Charli’s next move. In a recent cover story for British Vogue, her upcoming work was characterized as a pivot toward rock. Addressing the shift in a social media post from Paris’ Rue Boyer Studios, Charli noted that while the song is titled ‘Rock Music,’ it remains filtered through her unique pop lens, avoiding the “macho” tropes often associated with the genre.
“For me, it’s fun to flip the form,” she explained. “If I’d made another album that felt more dance-leaning, it would have felt really hard, really sad. We were doing our version of analogue… making sure that nothing felt too macho was important.”
This single follows a prolific streak for the artist, including her work on the Wuthering Heights companion album—the soundtrack to Emerald Fennell’s film starring Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie—and contributions to David Lowery’s Mother Mary alongside Jack Antonoff and FKA twigs.
Expanding into Cinema and the Festival Circuit
Beyond her musical output, Charli XCX is significantly expanding her presence in the film industry. She is slated to appear in several high-profile projects, including Julia Jackman’s 100 Nights of Hero, Gregg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist, and an upcoming project with director Takashi Miike. She also recently starred in the Brat-themed mockumentary The Moment.
Fans will have ample opportunity to see the new material live as she hits the global festival circuit this summer. Her schedule includes headlining slots at Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, and the Reading and Leeds Festivals. Later this year, she will join Lorde and Twenty One Pilots as a headliner for Austin City Limits in Texas.