Hello hello hello!
Sorry to leave you hanging. I caught the good old writer’s block bug. But not to fear! I decided to start looking at what I know and love best: me. What have I been doing this summer? How do I feel? Well, I have been living out of my suitcase. Granted, it is a giant pink suitcase and I have a couple of totes as well, but still, it’s a suitcase. My parents decided to rent out our apartment to a lovely family who hopefully will not tarnish my little nest on the Upper West Side. So I have been living in my brother’s apartment while he stays with his boyfriend. My brother just started in the art world and has a thirst for SSENSE sales so naturally, his room is on the smaller side. What floor space remains is currently occupied by my explosion of clothing spilling from my suitcase. Dresses are on the floor, shoes are on chairs, products are missing their lids. But it’s a girl mess, so it’s actually really chic and cute.
My camping has elicited a sense of aloof mobility in my everyday life. Because I don’t have a real “home” to return to, I feel okay crashing anywhere. I have undies in my hobo bag constantly, as well as a little ziploc baggie of loose pills (that sounds sketchy but it’s literally Celexa and Advil). My makeup is always somehow from the day before and I have never had so many products from the travel section of Duane Reade. Does this type of lifestyle remind you of anything? Perhaps from what you’ve seen on TikTok or Instagram? That’s right! I am very much living the Brat life. All because of my little big pink suitcase – that crazy girl.
I’m sure you are all welllll aware of this by now, but Brat is the name of Charli XCX’s new album. The past four and a half months have been nothing but Brat. There are walls, parties, Tiktok dances, summer mood boards, even Instagram themes dedicated to it. But, beyond the tangible things that have come from this album, there is a certain feeling and, for lack of a better word, aesthetic to it as well. Knotted hair, smudged eyeliner, cigarettes, tangled wired headphones, wife beaters, energy drinks, etc.
While this has been the Brat summer of the century, it has also been one of the funkiest summers of the century. Am I wrong? You, me, and everyone we know has been emotionally dragged back and forth from rapper beef, to presidential debates, Project 2025, immunity rulings, the Wicked trailer coming out, Paul Mescal, and Kamala Harris potentially being on the next ticket. It’s not a bad summer or a good summer, but it is weird (It's so Julia??). These two dichotomies at play leave kind of a sour taste in our mouths. We are constantly shifting gears and yet have no where to go from here. It's totally staggering! I won't speak for everyone, but the news, political and cultural, is constantly being jammed down my throat, making me feel like I have two people on grabbing each of my arms telling me to follow them. So no wonder I've had writer's block. However, there is the handy dandy theory that when we are in a time of recession, crisis, etc. dance music is at an all time high. I mean think about it. Lady Gaga was at the top of the charts in 2009! So, cue Brat. What better way to let off some steam than to shake our hips to the beat of 360 or make a little TikTok dance to Apple?
I know what you're thinking. But what about the guilt of tuning out the news cycle and Interview Magazine? Well, let me ask you this. Has it made you productive at all? Does it leave you feeling good? Chances are, no. Club and dance music is literally made for you to walk into a dark room, forget your life, and shake your hips. Sometimes when you're feeling stuck, the only thing to do is to get out of your pretty little head. So maybe I’m not the only one living out of my suit case this summer. We all are (metaphorically speaking). The lack of groundedness in our everyday lives and culture makes us feel like we are still getting over yesterday’s hangover. But remember, not being grounded is the essence of Brat. So maybe we just need to lean into our 365 party girl. Instead of feeling confused about why it feels like we aren’t moving forward as a community, turn up the volume on Von Dutch and drown out those pesky little thoughts. They give you wrinkles, anyway. Living out of your suitcase isn’t that bad after all! I for one know that I am definitely gonna celebrate my crazy pink roll away and embrace my summer of being a Brat.
Bình luận