Charli XCX: I like sweating, being gross and partying

Role model? Charlie XCX admits that she's not here to be perfect
Miranda Bryant9 September 2015
The Weekender

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Singer Charli XCX today told how she is a new kind of role model saying: “I’m definitely not here to be perfect”.

The 23-year-old British star said she is part of a new wave of women infiltrating the music industry and said instead of conforming to old-fashioned ideals, she likes “sweating, being gross, partying”.

XCX - who is known for not being afraid to speak her mind and posting intimate pictures of herself in her bra or on the lavatory - said she is pleased to see the music industry is becoming “a bit more open-minded and way less 1950s” in its attitude to female role models.

She told the Standard: “I think things have really changed a lot recently and I guess I’m a part of that wave for sure. But a lot of women in the public eye are part of that wave and I think it’s tipped now that women can do what they feel without as much pressures as before and that’s great.

New wave: Charli XCX thinks that the music industry is changing

“And the idea of role models is changing. In the classic sense of role model I maybe wasn’t very good but I think now it’s all become a bit more open-minded and way less 1950s, which is great. I also don’t really care, I’m just trying to be myself...

“I like sweating, being gross, partying, whatever. I’m definitely not here to be perfect.”

The singer-songwriter - whose full name is Charlotte Aitchison and stage name stands for “kiss Charli kiss”, her old MSN username - grew up in Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire and now lives between London and Los Angeles.

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She has had hit singles with stars including Iggy Azalea, Rita Ora and Icona Pop, made two albums and is working on her third.

Although she supports Ora, who featured on her single Doing It, appearing on X Factor, she said she is unlikely to be following in her footsteps as a television talent show judge.

She said: “I’m probably too much of a wildcard for them. I would probably say something awful in seconds. I haven’t watched it yet but knowing Rita Ora I think she’s going to be amazing.”

This comes as the star announces a one-off gig in Angel at Collins Music Hall as part of Red Bull Studios Future Underground, set to take place tomorrow.

She said the short notice - just 24 hours - appeals to her sense of spontaneity and it will be one of her final UK gigs of the year.

Also on the bill, curated by XCX, are New York based duo Lion Babe, solo artist CuckooLander, who XCX manages, and London-based RIVRS DJs.

Speaking about her songwriting, the star admitted that she likes writing songs at night while drinking champagne, but doens't judge singers who don't write there own songs.

She told us: “It’s all just a lie anyway. It’s what makes it fun, it’s more fun when you don’t know who it’s done.”

Tickets for Charli XCX at Red Bull Studios Future Underground tomorrow night will be released at 7pm today at @RedBullUK #FutureUnderground.

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