"Brat" — a term that quickly became linked with the bright green of its simple album cover in a short period.
Following in the footsteps of Bottega Veneta’s Kelly green, Valentino’s PP pink, and Gucci’s Ancora red, Charli XCX has fully embraced a color that permeates contemporary life.
Online, fans are spotting the musician in unexpected places like sticky notes, slightly overripe avocados, traffic cones, Shrek, and even a budget bathroom bin.
And come to think of it, wasn't Zendaya's press tour wardrobe for Challengers subtly influenced by the Brat aesthetic? What about Chappell Roan appearing as the Statue of Liberty at the Governors Ball? Or the iconic green witch in Wicked and the Green Lady of Brooklyn?
Brat green has become so ingrained in the cultural consciousness that I found it difficult to focus on Gucci, Prada, and Martine Rose's spring/summer 2025 men's shows, which prominently featured bright green coats and ink-splattered shirts.
Charli, who had tested 65 colors before settling on the right shade, elaborated in a recent Vogue Singapore profile that she aimed to choose a provocative, unconventional shade of green to evoke a sense of discord.
"I want us to challenge our perceptions of pop culture," she stated. "Why are certain things praised and accepted while others are criticized? I'm intrigued by the narratives surrounding these perceptions and aim to provoke thought. I'm not here to please everyone."
But what is it about this particular shade that lingers in our minds? Green, the most natural of colors, traditionally symbolizes positive concepts like growth, health, abundance, and serenity.
However, this shade appears as though nature's graphics card may have malfunctioned, or printers ran out of blue ink, leaving a yellowish tinge.
It's an unsettling in-between hue—not quite chartreuse, nor exactly lime. It evokes images of toxic waste, computer viruses in infographics, artificial fruit flavors, and synthetic materials like plastic astro-turf.
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