Girl, So Confusing
By: Deanza J. Andriansyah
There is no doubt that artists use music as a means of self-expression, even when they are writing songs about other people in their lives. From fans investigating who Taylor Swift is writing about in her songs to rappers creating infamous “diss tracks” on one another, this phenomenon clearly has a hold on pop culture due to these celebrities’ public lives being so intriguing to fans.
Critically acclaimed and adored by many fans, Charli XCX’s album “BRAT” has made waves online this summer. One of the tracks entitled “Girl, So Confusing” had many fans speculating who Charli was conversing with due to the compelling lyrics. Listeners immediately interpreted the song as being about a certain rivalry that Charli had with another woman — most likely in the music industry as well. Fans had many theories on who this woman was, but it would soon be revealed that the song was about Lorde.
Throughout Charli’s career, she had constantly been confused with Lorde, with whom she shared a few similarities as an artist. For instance, both Charli and Lorde first rose to stardom around the same period around 2014. Additionally, many drew comparisons to their physical appearance, specifically their hair. Charli referenced this in “Girl, So Confusing” with the lyric: “They say we’ve got the same hair”. In an infamous interview, Charli was mistaken for Lorde, and she was seen simply going along with it instead of correcting the interviewer. This highlights how Charli felt overshadowed and perhaps even envious of Lorde’s success at the time, and Charli also admitted this on the track with lyrics such as “You're all about writing poems, but I'm about throwing parties” and “Think you should come to my party, and put your hands up”. In hindsight, this may have been a direct reference to Lorde’s hit song “Team” where she sang “I’m kind of over gettin' told to throw my hands up in the air”. Overall, these lyrics reflected Charli’s mixed feelings about Lorde and her insecurities.
Although the “BRAT” album was applauded as a whole, “Girl, So Confusing” received lots of praise for Charli’s vulnerability and how she uniquely addressed the constant comparisons between women without sugarcoating it. The song resonated with many women who shared these same sentiments. On June 21st, the internet blew up when Charli released a remix of the song with none other than Lorde herself. In the remix, Lorde admitted to her insecurities that came in between their friendship. Charli apparently had already told Lorde about the song before its release, and the “Royals” singer surprisingly offered to collaborate on the remix.
“I had to go through the process of telling her that this song is about her and her being okay with that first," Charli told Entertainment Weekly. Charli left Lorde a voice note, and "[Lorde] replied straight away and was like, 'Oh, my God, I had no idea you felt this way. I'm so sorry.' And then was like, 'You know, maybe I should be on a version of the song.' I didn't even ask her. She brought it up," Charli said.
This remix resolved many of the misunderstandings these artists had with one another, and their friendship seems to be in a much better place now. The way Charli and Lorde were so vulnerable was inspiring to many, and it is heartwarming to see female artists in support of one another instead of being pitted against each other.