Pink Out, Green In

If last summer you couldn't move for Magenta Pink, then this summer it's certainly going to be all about Acid Lime Green. Why? Oh just another music artist absolutely smashing the marketing?of their music.?

Last week Charli XCX released her 6th studio album Brat, and since then, feeds across the world have been turning the unmissable bright green of her album artwork. Meme pages?of course immediately had a field day, which is the highest order when it comes to marketing these days, but equally this lady also certainly?knows a thing about more evergreen (sorry) marketing techniques with distinctive assets, consistency, crafting everything and just being absolutely?everywhere all at once. She is yet again, another female popstar who is the master of their own creation, and her?marketing is a huge part of that.

In this GQ interview she states:

“I think this [Brat] campaign is so good because we’re so f**king bullish and laser-focused on every single f**king thing. I’ve had hour-long discussions about the positioning of font or like what I’m gonna post on f**king Instagram... There’s no weak sh*t going on in the way that there are with some other pop campaigns right now.”?

In January XCX’s team received a list of absurd-but-serious marketing gambits via her label. Suggestions included: crashing drag brunches, getting her nipples pierced at Claire’s; and faking a mental breakdown on the Tube in a full ballgown.?“They were really obsessed with me having viral posts, I was like, ‘OK, everyone’s going to try their best!’ But I don’t think we can live and die on this hill of ‘We must have a viral post.’ So when they sent me these insane ideas, I was like, ‘Obviously, we just have to post this document.’”

And knowing the power of memes, every good memorable idea is of course now not complete without a meme?Generator, which often can be fan created (ideal), so go ahead, have fun and make your own Brat meme. Below is the best I could think of lol.?

Her PARTYGIRL Shows in the last couple of weeks at Primavera, The Outernet?in London, New York, Chicago &?Los Angeles?have been absolute fan frenzies, plus she surprised a few Pride parties too, and on top of this she has also released a Capsule Collection?with Spotify for her fans.

But despite all this, and being Metacritic's top rated album of the year so far, she only made it to number 2 in the UK album chart last week, with another mega popstar claiming her sixth week at number 1 in the UK, which as per, came with its own controversy.

There is no denying however, that Charli XCX has truly mastered the art of appealing to different audiences whilst remaining authentic - a hard thing to work out for any brand. She can on one hand be turning up to Jamie XX's recent 10 day residency?and selling out Boiler Room sets to critical acclaim, whilst simultaneously remembering?she is an absolutely mega pop star whose roots in queer communities is her core heartland. It's no coincidence her album launch was perfectly timed with Pride, knowing it would become the unofficial soundtrack to the month.

She really is winning at creating her brand and has all the ingredients we talk about day in day out - distinctive brand assets, an engaged community and fandom, authenticity, plus a shed load of unhinged energy and a candid presence for good measure. You go girl! Excited to see the rest of her marketing around this over the summer ahead.

This month at VCCP London we are celebrating Pride, and our fantastic DEI Collective are putting on a whole host of talks and events, including?a Drag Bingo Show with Cheddar Gorgeous on 4th July from 5pm, and a talk on How to have Open Conversations with your Children which is happening this week on Wednesday from 1-2pm. Check out Thrive for more info.