Charli XCX surprised fans on Monday afternoon when she announced an upcoming single, "360," across her social media platforms.
From the parking garage of her dentist's office, XCX played a snippet of the song while live streaming on her 2nd Instagram account, @360_brat. The account is private, despite boasting 100,000 followers. @360_brat, which currently has 56 posts, features miscellaneous photos, like a glowing green toilet or a giant smiley face in one of London's underground subway stations.
Though posts from @360_brat have leaked on X, Reddit and Instagram, Charli posted on the account's story one year ago, asking that followers keep what they see hidden from the public.
"Anything I post on this account is just for the angels who manage to gain entry to 360_brat-i'm not being shady, it just is what it is," she wrote to her fans, best known as Angels. "For now I'd really appreciate it if you could keep everything that's posted on here a secret, just for us," she continued.
In the quick clip of "360," shared to X by one of Charli's angels, XCX sings: "360, when you're in the mirror, do you like what you see?/When you're in the mirror, you're just looking at me/I'm everywhere, I'm so Julia/When you're in the party b-b-bumping that beat/666 with a princess streak/I'm everywhere, I'm so Julia," on the song's apparent chorus.
The Julia in question is most likely Julia Fox, a friend of XCX's who performed at her February Boiler Room set. Fox premiered her debut single, "Down the Drain" at the event. She is officially releasing her song this Friday, May 3.
The production on "360" is bouncy and fun, calling to mind some of XCX's work on her 2017 mixtape, Pop 2.
"360" is the fourth single off of XCX's forthcoming album, brat. Previous releases for the album include: "Von dutch," "Club classics" and "B2B." She also linked up with TikTok darling Addison Rae and producer a.g. cook for a remix of "Von dutch." Cook is a long-time collaborator of XCX's and already boasts several production credits on brat. Other artists with a creative hand in brat include XCX's fiance, George Daniel of the Matty Healy band The 1975, and French DJ Gesaffelstein.
Brat is a follow-up to XCX's critically acclaimed Crash, which was released in 2022. Sonically, brat appears to be more forward-facing than the slightly more traditional-pop Crash. "The von dutch remix with addison rae and a.g. Cook," though not on the brat tracklist, is a stunning example of future-looking hyperpop blended with electro-dance elements that make it impossible to stay in your seat once the whirring melody kicks in. It's Charli XCX at her best.
The "Unlock It" singer has been having an exciting spring, beginning with her Boiler Room set two months ago. The pop star has since announced a worldwide, eight-date summer tour for brat. The singer's latest venture is another tour, this time with fellow musician Troye Sivan. The Sweat Tour will take the two across the United States throughout this upcoming autumn.
"360" arrives on May 10; Brat releases on June 7.
