This past summer there were so many different “albums of the summer” to represent an aesthetic. The top two were easily Brat by Charlixcx and Short n’ Sweet by Sabrina Carpenter. Both of these albums created a fun and exciting atmosphere during the summer. The two albums were huge hits and even though both are pop they have so many unique differences that make them special. Brat was released in the beginning of summer creating the perfect album to really start summer off with a bang whereas Short n’ Sweet was released at the end of summer providing a nice end to the summer to transition into the school year and fall.
Anybody with a phone this summer knows Brat was a huge hit in the media. It gained a lot of attention quickly becoming the summer album. People from all around started saying it was a Brat summer, an aesthetic surrounding the chaos and imperfections people have. The album has an upbeat electro-pop vibe to it that was a big part of the aesthetic that surrounded it. Brat’s aesthetic was a big switch from the “clean girl” vibe that was a huge trend, the “Brat” aesthetic was much more chaotic y2k energy. The lime green album cover quickly became the statement color, anything Brat inspired included the bright color. In my opinion every song on the album is a hit, they each have a unique sound and feeling and the songs all are upbeat and great to dance to with friends, which I think is very important. Some of the more popular songs are 365, Von Dutch, Apple, 360, and Everything is Romantic. The album as a whole was a huge success as it was the headline of the summer, it’s very effortless and a true work of art.
The album created many mini trends such as the Apple dance, “so Julia” being referenced, being included in the popular Roblox game Dress to Impress, and even Vice President Harris being included in the trend and being referred to as Brat. It was a huge success for an album and not only had great songs but created a whole experience for people all over the world to connect and enjoy the summer.
The Disney kid to pop star is not an uncommon career path but Sabrina Carpenter is dominating it right now. She’s had many popular releases over the years and was recently opening for Taylor Swift’s Eras tour. She released an album called Short n’ Sweet on August 23rd. Although the album was released towards the end of summer she released 2 of the tracks earlier. She released Espresso which was a huge hit and people were quickly obsessed with it. It had a nice retro beach aesthetic and a fun pop beat to start the summer. Around a month later, she released another song off the album, Please Please Please. We received music videos for both songs, the ending of Espresso was a transition into the Please Please Please music video. The end and beginning of the two songs connect to each other, the end beats of Espresso transitioning into the latter. The smooth transition and connection between the videos is such an interesting concept to observe and really gains the attention and anticipation for the next song for fans. These two songs had lots of attention during the summer and kept many anticipating the release of the full album and she did not disappoint. Considering most of her fans are Taylor Swift fans as well, it was a great experience being able to piece together her own easter eggs as fans began to understand her hidden messages.
The full album is a very refreshing listen. It’s a blend of her captivating melodies and meaningful lyrics, each song deserving multiple listens to really appreciate each aspect. Some of my favorite parts of this album are her unique style. She is naturally very sarcastic and witty, it’s easily one of the most endearing things about her. Another great thing is how she plays into her femininity. She continues to show how she is independent and capable of being successful but has fun. It’s admirable to be able to see women become such big influences in the music industry and embrace femininity as well. This album showcased her growth as an artist as well as gave people new refreshing pop songs to enjoy. It’s definitely an album to have on repeat.
Overall, both of the artists created amazing albums with so many unique traits such as the ability to put such intense feelings into music to help bring out a distinct side of people, letting them feel truly themselves. The two rising pop stars are bringing back the refreshing and authentic pop music. They both were able to indirectly work together to create an ideal summer, with both albums having such stunning songs that were not only just full of talent but also an exciting messy energy.. I know for me at least these two artists, along with Chappell Roan, really dominated the summer playlists. It’s going to be interesting to see how they go about their next moves to keep the traction of their attention going and really rewrite the modern day pop industry.
