{"id":722359,"date":"2026-08-01T07:11:20","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T07:11:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/722359\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T07:11:20","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T07:11:20","slug":"every-fashion-reference-in-charli-xcxs-music-fashion-film","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/722359\/","title":{"rendered":"Every Fashion Reference in Charli XCX\u2019s \u2018Music, Fashion, Film\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tFresh from working it out on the \u201cGirl, so confusing\u201d remix with Lorde<\/a> during a surprise appearance in the singer\u2019s Lollapalooza<\/a> set Thursday night, Charli XCX<\/a> heads into her own Friday headlining slot with a new album that quite literally puts fashion at its center: \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film.\u201d<\/a> The title reflects three industries the singer has moved between with seemingly increasing ease, while its cover brings designer Marc Jacobs together with musician John Cale and filmmaker Martin Scorsese. Fashion is right there in the billing.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"The<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tThe album cover for Charli XCX<\/a>\u2019s \u201cMusic<\/a>, Fashion, Film\u201d photographed by Aidan Zamiri. Aidan Zamiri\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAidan Zamiri\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records<\/p>\n

\n\tIn the lyrics, however, it is much harder to find. Only four of the album\u2019s 11 songs contain concrete fashion references, split between runway language, a luxury shopping spree, an attempted wardrobe reform and what may be Charli\u2019s own wedding jewelry.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe lyrics may be sparse with fashion references, but Charli saves plenty of room for clothes in the 42-minute companion film released alongside the album. Directed by Charli and presented almost entirely in black and white, it moves between new visuals, studio footage, clothing fittings and behind-the-scenes material from the album\u2019s music<\/a> videos.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe relatively short list makes more sense in the context of the record Charli said she wanted to make. In 2024, she told Billboard, \u201cI kind of want to make a Lou Reed record, to be honest.\u201d \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film\u201d is not a Lou Reed<\/a> imitation, but its guitars and pared-back vocals mark a clear departure from the club-driven sound of \u201cBrat.\u201d<\/a> The 30-minute album is more concerned with creative work, public image and what happens when an artist becomes an industry unto herself than naming designers or describing outfits. Not that Charli cannot multitask.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"NASHVILLE,<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tCharli xcx performs onstage during Spotify Presents: Music, Fashion, Film \u2014 Live in Nashville at The Basement East on July 29 in Nashville.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty Images for Spotify<\/p>\n

\n\tAhead, we break down the songs on \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film\u201d that reference more than just style.<\/p>\n

\t\t\u2018SS26\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cSS26\u201d provides the obvious starting point. Its title abbreviates the spring\/summer 2026 season, dropping the album directly into the fashion calendar. Charli sings about a runway, clothes and fashion itself, although none offers much protection from the end of the world: \u201cSpring, Summer \u201926 \/ When the world is gonna end, no hope for any of it \/ Yeah, we\u2019re walkin\u2019 on a runway that goes straight to hell \/ Nothing\u2019s gonna save us, not music, fashion or\u205ffilm.\u201d <\/p>\n

\n\tThe Torso-directed video pushes the idea into an actual Paris fashion show. Carine Roitfeld, Saint Laurent<\/a> creative director Anthony Vaccarello<\/a>, model Debra Shaw and soundtrack designer Michel Gaubert are among the industry figures seated around the runway. <\/p>\n

\n\tWith styling by Chris Horan and the music video stylist credited as Juan Corrales, Charli appears in multiple looks from Saint Laurent<\/a>, custom and runway looks from Ann Demeulemeester, a black and white Balmain by Christophe Decarnin pointy pagoda shoulder suit jacket courtesy of the Archive X Yana, a cowl neck minidress from 7 For All Mankind, a two-piece suit crafted from vintage lingerie pieces from Lou de B\u00e8toly and pieces by Chrome Hearts.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Still<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tStill from the \u201cSS26\u201d music video shot by Henry Redcliffe. Henry Redcliffe\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHenry Redcliffe\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records<\/p>\n

\n\tThen the show falls apart. Charli loses her balance in towering platform heels, recalling Naomi Campbell\u2019s 1993 tumble<\/a> in Vivienne Westwood\u2019s Elevated Ghillies. What follows looks more like Carrie Bradshaw\u2019s \u201cfashion roadkill\u201d moment on \u201cSex and the City\u201d: Charli remains on the floor while the other versions of herself continue around her. <\/p>\n

\n\tThe film pulls the process further into view, showing Charli trying on clothing and shoes, rehearsing her runway choreography and reviewing Polaroids as she and her team construct the video. Ann Demeulemeester and Balmain labels receive close-ups, briefly turning the runway fantasy back into fittings, image selection and work.<\/p>\n

\t\t\u2018Card Declined\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cCard Declined\u201d contains the album\u2019s most concentrated shopping list. Charli proposes a spree encompassing a handbag, shoes, jewelry and eventually a Jaeger-LeCoultre. The Swiss watchmaker appears among purchases that grow progressively less attainable, from perfume and a Roche Bobois Mah Jong sofa to an apartment, a personality and an entirely new life.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe film makes the song\u2019s subtext explicit. Cigarette in hand, Charli says, \u201cI like to shop in London, I like to shop in Paris, I like to shop in New York. It\u2019s not really about shopping. I suppose it was more about shopping for, I don\u2019t know, like a new identity.\u201d She then tries on Agent Provocateur lingerie inside the label\u2019s store, moving between looks and poses as if each could produce a different persona.<\/p>\n

\t\t\u2018I\u2019m Afraid\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Charli<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\tCharli XCX \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film.\u201d Aidan Zimari\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAidan Zimari\/Courtesy of Atlantic Records.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI\u2019m Afraid\u201d gets less straightforward. In the album\u2019s sixth track, Charli calls herself a wife, worries she will destroy the relationship and repeats, \u201ctake the ring.\u201d She never says which one. Since marrying The 1975 drummer George Daniel<\/a> in July 2025, Charli has worn a vintage, round-diamond solitaire engagement ring, reportedly sourced from Claude Morady Estate Jewelry, with a chunky, sculptural platinum wedding band. The lyric is primarily about the marriage, not the jewelry appraisal. Still, either ring is possible.<\/p>\n

\t\t\u2018Wink Wink\u2019\t<\/p>\n

\n\tThen there is \u201cWink Wink,\u201d which contains the clearest fashion-brand reference on the record. After Charli says that her friend and collaborator Rostam criticized the way she dressed, her supposed solution is A.P.C. The joke depends on the French label\u2019s restrained, minimalist reputation: A.P.C. becomes the corrective for a woman attempting to convince listeners that she has changed, even while repeatedly signaling that she very much has not.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Aidan Zamiri-directed video carries that joke into her wardrobe without actually dressing her in A.P.C. Instead, Charli cycles through custom Chrome Hearts, Natasha Zinko and Knwls while her performance of newly respectable domesticity rapidly unravels. In one particularly self-referential scene, she hangs pieces from earlier eras on a clothesline, including a 2018 \u201cPop 2\u201d performance look, a dress from the \u201cparty 4 u\u201d video and Brat merchandise. The supposedly reformed Charli is largely another costume.<\/p>\n

\n\tThe rest of the song keeps that makeover at garment level. Charli contrasts going without underwear in the past with now largely wearing trousers. Together, the trousers and A.P.C. are offered as evidence that she has changed. The repeated winks say otherwise.<\/p>\n

\n\tYou can watch Charli XCX\u2019s \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film\u201d on her YouTube channel. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fresh from working it out on the \u201cGirl, so confusing\u201d remix with Lorde during a surprise appearance in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":722360,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[238726,6491,5357,96,128,78579,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-722359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-anthony-vaccarello","tag-celebrities","tag-charli-xcx","tag-entertainment","tag-music","tag-saint-laurent","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/722359","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=722359"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/722359\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/722360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=722359"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=722359"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=722359"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}