The Many Sides of Charli XCX

For the reason that June launch of her critically acclaimed album Brat, Charli XCX has been making appearances exuding its titular ethos. Although the idea of “brat” has at all times been a bit of indefinable, all you’ve wanted to do to know it has been to have a look at XCX—her messy, stylish black hair; pursed lips; and large sun shades all embody the je ne sais quoi of somebody who has been out all night time partying. So I used to be curious within the lead-up to her internet hosting gig on this week’s Saturday Night time Dwell: Would she let her brat masks slip in any respect?

She did. Though the British pop star began with a reasonably stilted, brat-focused monologue—“it’s an perspective; it’s a vibe,” she defined—she proved herself greater than sport to shed the aesthetic in sketches. Her performances demonstrated a variety that those that are largely accustomed to her Brat period may not but know: She could be awkwardly goofy, and he or she could be a expert impressionist.

Learn: The legend of Charli XCX grows

In “Babymoon”—a follow-up to the viral skit “Bridesmaid Speech” throughout Ariana Grande’s episode earlier this yr—XCX match proper in with a refrain of feminine solid members as they sang a parody of Chappell Roan’s synth-pop track “Sizzling to Go!” As soon as once more, the overarching gag was that these BFFs had written a jokey track about how their pal Kelsey (Chloe Fineman) had cheated on her partner with a person named Domingo (Marcello Hernandez)—solely now she was pregnant and so they had been singing at her child bathe. The appeal of the recurring sketch lies in its wildly inappropriate reveals, however the true pleasure of final night time’s model was watching XCX participate within the dorky dance strikes, her limbs stiffly spelling out the phrases of the tune.

Later, XCX was a formidable mimic in “Depraved Auditions,” a parade of impressions of celebrities ostensibly doing display screen exams for the upcoming Depraved film. Performing as Adele, XCX nailed the man Brit’s particular London accent but additionally her penchant for cackling at her personal jokes. After that, XCX trotted out a tackle her buddy and tourmate Troye Sivan, imitating his Australian accent and affecting his laid again posture. In a twist, she appeared with Bowen Yang, who was in costume as XCX herself.

In the meantime, in “Right here I Go,” a musical digital quick with Andy Samberg, XCX performed a creepily completely happy, pearl-wearing housewife who, alongside together with her husband, liked to name the cops on fellow white individuals. XCX cheerily leaned right into a Karen archetype, portraying her character’s surveillant tendencies with sinister glee. And for “Banger Boyz,” a sketch that includes a Joe Rogan–impressed podcast, XCX turned up her vocal fry to play the present’s producer—studying absurdist advert copy for pretend merchandise like Zyn Junior, a nicotine pouch for teenagers. She precisely captured the performatively laid-back tone of those sorts of exhibits whereas additionally differentiating herself from the room of bros; her voice implied that she was alongside for the journey, however her eyes advised that she knew they had been ridiculous.

XCX’s versatility shouldn’t actually come as a shock. As she talked about in her monologue, she began performing when she was a youngster and has been pursuing her profession ever since, navigating the challenges of the music trade and the containers it tried (typically unsuccessfully) to fit her into. One in every of her first early hits was “Growth Clap” off The Fault in Our Stars soundtrack, which now appears un-brat with its teeny-bopper model of romance.

Brat exploded partly as a result of it felt just like the fullest expression of XCX’s ethos: a workhorse method to songwriting alongside her 365-party-girl perspective towards life. Her SNL episode advised that she’s prepared to use that industriousness to her subsequent act—within the movie world. She’s lined up for numerous motion pictures, together with I Need Your Intercourse, the most recent from the queer provocateur Gregg Araki, and Sacrifice, from the French director Romain Gavras, which co-stars Chris Evans and Anya Taylor-Pleasure.

However in fact, when XCX took the mic for the musical performances of her songs “360” and “Sympathy Is a Knife,” she as soon as once more placed on her sun shades. Stomping across the stage, she had the untouchable vibes of somebody who really embodies the cooler-than-thou vitality that she’s created.