We're So Here for #BratSummer

This summer,?a?“Femininomenon ”?is in, and the?male gaze ?is?so?out.

At least that’s the case made in reviewing the?rise of pop vocalists like?Chappell Roan Sabrina Carpenter , and?Charli XCX ,?an iconic lineage of pop’s top female singers who all exhibit?the "Brat" mentality , according to?this Atlantic article ?(and TikTok, where #BratSummer ? features in nearly 6k videos).

Brat Summer capitalizes on an aesthetic that plays with?stereotypical notions of what it is to be a woman, such as Carpenter's porcelain makeup and vintage skirts, or Roan's flamboyant hyper-femininity. These musicians are encouraging audiences to get hot?like a Papa John's pizza ?for?themselves—?not for the appeasement of a man,?who supposedly couldn't be bothered to pay them any mind otherwise. Their music is bolstering a movement of young women embracing bad-girl energy with a boldness or overwhelming confidence that cuts through the sickly-sweet notes of songs such as?"Good Luck, Babe!" ?"Espresso," ?or "Please Please Please," ?all of which fuel?ongoing trends ?on?TikTok ?that place “the girls, gays, and theys ” in the driver’s seat.?

(Younger cohorts are?markedly more likely to identify as trans or nonbinary , which adds a complicating layer to trends that center on a binary of how men or women engage. Compare: In the?#OfficeSiren fashion trend—which is?featured in 31.8k posts ?on TikTok—Vogue asks whether “women are in on the joke” even though social users engaging in the trend seem highly self-aware of a sociological dimension to their outfits.)

Looking broader: The idea of “subverting ?the male gaze” has been a part of academic discourse in?art history ?and?film theory ?for decades.?

But now,?propelled by algorithmic recommendation engines, ?performers like?these pop stars are mainstreaming their critical perspectives on gender.?As a result,?there’s been plenty of discussion about?an increased alienation between?Gen Z men and women , and whether it plays a role in how people on social?share their enjoyment ?of these?singers' content .?

What it means for brands:?Since Charli XCX’s album “Brat” first dropped on June 7,?acid green memes ?and other content celebrating her work have been trending online. But we see this level of tongue-in-cheek discourse as more than a real-time agile content opportunity; their authenticity, boldness, and individual expression are reflecting a broader trend that continues to challenge traditional gender norms and expectations.?

Other news and trends

• Suing "BBL Drizzy."?Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Records have all?filed ?lawsuits ?against two AI audio companies, Udio and Suno, for?"BBL Drizzy," ?a completely AI-generated tune that went viral across social media. The music groups say AI music in general is in copyright because of how it competes for listeners’ attention; “BBL Drizzly,” for its part, has to compete with Kendrick Lamar?breaking Amazon Music’s platform streaming records ?by performing diss tracks like "Not Like Us" six times at his sold out?"The Pop Out–Ken & Friends" concert? in Inglewood, CA. This legal action?marks ongoing steps ?in a separate (but just as heated) beef between the music industry and companies offering AI tools.

• Threading deeper Into the fediverse.?In March, Meta announced that Threads would be entering into?the fediverse , i.e., a collection of social networking services that can communicate with each other. This began with users aged 18+?being granted the ability ?to "federate " their accounts and share their Threads posts on other ActvityPub-compliant servers. Yesterday,?the company announced ?that it is taking it one step further; in the past, users were unable to view responses on a Threads post shared on a different platform from the app itself, requiring a lot of back and forth to engage. Now, Threads will allow people to like and view replies on posts syndicated to other federated social media platforms. Access to the Threads fediverse had also been?limited ?since its integration, but?Mark Zuckerberg confirmed ?that all features will be available across 100 countries starting today.?

• How to party.?What's summer without a party or two? The New York Times is here to, presumably, help. In its Style section, the paper published an article titled?“HOW TO PARTY (Without Regrets) ,” an amalgamation of tips and tricks, at least according to a roundup of interviews with dozens of socialites, party planners, and other "socially adept people." The common wisdom goes that you should never read the comments on the Internet, and yet here we are: nearly 250 comments are sounding off about the Times’ elitism, and?some substack authors ?are mocking the Style section for being rather out of touch.
• Trending on TikTok: How many likes??People are trying to game the system by extending their native platform engagement into real-world earnings. It began with?women texting their husbands/partners ?how much?engagement it would take ?on their TikTok post to be gifted a designer bag or other luxury items, and while the numbers seemed farfetched at first, the online community was quick to grant it to them. Since then, the trend has expanded to encompass?children asking their parents ?for something they want, employees emailing their bosses about the stakes to?earn a raise ?or?free vacation , or?students reaching out to their professors ?for the number of likes it would take to cancel a final exam.?The posts typically include “Million Dollar Baby ” (featured in 5.5M videos) or— #BratSummer here we come—“Espresso ” (722k views).

Contributors: Head of Social Content and Engagement Strategy Cristina Lawrence , Senior Vice President Jerry Lawrence , Group Vice President Andrew McKernan , and Senior Vice President Tammy Pepito . At Razorfish, we help brands define their higher purpose—the emotional reason why they belong in people’s lives. Ready to find your purpose? Learn more here .

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