Has Charli XCX Escaped Brat Summer?

27 July 2026

In episode 274: How do you follow up a monster hit like Charli XCX’s BRAT? Will a corporate buyout ruin Letterboxd? Are we all just content creators now?

With everyone from your dentist to your neighbour posting content, and massive companies eschewing traditional advertising to pay micro-influencers, are we all just influencers now? Richard and Marina explore the booming content creation industry… do dentists make better content creators than Premier League footballers?

Charli xcx has released her new album, Music, Fashion, Film, two years after the inescapable success of BRAT summer. How is the pressure to follow up a huge cultural hit different for modern pop stars?

Cult film app Letterboxd is up for sale for a reported $250 million. Why do the likes of A24 and Sony see it as such a valuable asset, and can its highly engaged community survive a corporate takeover?

Lloyds. 250 years on and still backing the nation’s aspirations.

Lending is subject to status. You could lose your home if you don’t keep up your mortgage repayments. Conditions apply. 1996 average first-time buyer deposit based on Office National Statistics House Price Index data.

Summer sale is here: get an annual membership for a third off with code SUMMER26. That’s ad-free listening, every bonus episode, and full access to our exclusive members’ series. Sale ends August 31st, so grab it before summer’s over.

Video Editor: Adam Thornton

Assistant Producer: Imee Marriott

Senior Producer: Joey McCarthy

Social Producer: Emma Jackson

Exec Producer: Ami Bennett

Filmed at www.westdigitalstudios.com

Download ‘Has Charli XCX Escaped Brat Summer?’ as an MP3

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