From Brat Summer to Chappell Roan: Welcome to the Female Pop Revolution

Are you celebrating a Brat Summer (even though it’s winter down under)? Or maybe you’re sipping that Espresso with Sabrina Carpenter.

A new breed of female pop stars – intense and complex – is storming up the streaming charts. 

Breakout star Chappell Roan has earned 68.36 million streams at the end of June – more than 20 times greater than the start of the year. 

Sacha Barbour-Gatt is joined by Nic Kelly, host of The Hot Hits on the Hit Network and LiSTNR, to unpack what is happening in pop right now.

Meanwhile Katy Perry, who was once considered pop royalty, is struggling to make an impact with her latest single Women’s World considered a certified flop. 

Nic says it’s a sign that audiences are looking for more authentic story-telling—a flow-on effect of the different ways we learned to tell stories during the pandemic.

“I think what you’re seeing now is a flow-on effect… because we allow a lot more authenticity, and we allow things to be done without that kind of shine.”

“The $1,000,000 budgets for music videos are not as critical. It’s more story-led than it has been before. I think Charlie XCX is an example of that.”

As for Katy, Nic says it’s unlikely older pop stars will be able to resonate in the same way. 

“I don’t think anyone from that era can come back at the moment and make the sort of cultural connection that these artists are making,” 

“We’re looking at feminism through a different lens and looking at girlhood, as you mentioned, through a different lens, whereas it feels like Katie stuck back in the 2008 understanding of that.”

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