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After the release of the commercially successful 2024 album, \u201cBRAT,\u201d Charli xcx was ready to move on from the 2000s-coded party girl era. At the end of her 2025 Coachella performance, the artist played a message<\/a> over the screens, shouting out other artists and filmmakers, signaling the end of her party-girl era.<\/p>\n On Oct. 14, Charli xcx returned to Viejas Arena after approximately two years; she was last at Viejas Arena on Oct. 18, 2024 for the \u201cSWEAT\u201d tour, co-headlined by Troye Sivan.<\/p>\n The ending of the \u201cBRAT\u201d era was ultimately a way of her promoting her 2026 mockumentary, \u201cThe Moment,\u201d a documentation of the stardom aftermath.\u00a0<\/p>\n With the release of the single \u201cRock Music\u201d on May 8 from her new alternative pop album \u201cMusic, Fashion, Film,\u201d fans heard a sound that differed from\u201cBRAT.\u201d Instead of continuing her electronic pop sound, Charli xcx experiments with a rock sound reminiscent of Fiona Apple and PJ Harvey.<\/p>\n While some fans met the song with support, the single was also met with its fair share of criticism. However, Charli xcx seemed unfazed. In a 2025 interview with Billboard<\/a> \u2013 before the release of her recent album \u2013 she said she doesn\u2019t feel any pressure to follow the sound or success of \u201cBRAT.\u201d<\/p>\n Charli xcx also received a fair share of criticism after her tour announcement.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c[I] know there\u2019s a lot of frustration in the comments about the fact that [I] am not doing lots of dates,\u201d she wrote in the comments of an Instagram<\/a> post. \u201c[I] am really sorry if you feel disappointed but [I] have to honor my truth as an artist: touring is really emotionally and physically hard for me.\u201d<\/p>\n Electronic pop artist underscores, the supporting act for this year\u2019s tour, commenced her set at 7:50 p.m. with \u201cUnlimited Love.\u201d The arena went dark and the screens displayed \u201cunderscores\u201d before transitioning to a camera point-of-view of her from backstage walking to the main stage.<\/p>\n For years, Charli xcx has been an outspoken advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, most notably working with transgender hyperpop pioneer SOPHIE, and said<\/a> she owes her success to the community.<\/p>\n The set design, consisting of flashy pixelated heart designs and soundwaves, backed underscores as she performed.\u00a0 The performance resembled the upbeat \u201cJust Dance\u201d game, where players can earn points without following along to the choreography.<\/p>\n Underscores continued her set with songs like \u201cHollywood Forever,\u201d \u201cInnuendo (I Get U),\u201d a solo performance of \u201cDo It\u201d before ending with \u201cMusic.\u201d<\/p>\n After underscores\u2019 set ended at 8:30 p.m., there was a 30-minute intermission before the lights went off again for Charli xcx. For almost an entire minute, it was silent \u2013 before drums played and transitioned into the intro of \u201cRock Music.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cOblivion is freedom,\u201d a phrase from her song, \u201cNo One Lasts Forever featuring David Cronenberg,\u201d repeated multiple times before Charli xcx came out headbanging onstage. Flames went up in the air, stage lights came on and the show had officially started.<\/p>\n When \u201cRock Music\u201d was released, the lyric \u201cI think the dance floor is dead,\u201d was met with initial backlash. Artists and fans took offense to the line, thinking that Charli xcx was dismissing the work of her peers. However, the artist clarified in an interview with Rolling Stone<\/a> that she wasn\u2019t referring to other artists \u2013 she was referring to the end of her \u201cBRAT\u201d era.<\/p>\n Wearing a black lace mini dress and pumps, she powered through her set. Before throwing it back to \u201cBRAT,\u201d she sang \u201cYeah\u201d from her new album. For fans who couldn\u2019t attend during the \u201cSWEAT\u201d tour, Charli xcx sang \u201cApple\u201d next.\u00a0<\/p>\n She continued her performance with songs from her new album and \u201cBRAT,\u201d making her setlist around an hour and a half, including songs from \u201cDying for You\u201d and \u201cHouse featuring John Cale,\u201d from the 2026 \u201cWuthering Heights\u201d soundtrack.\u00a0<\/p>\n Long-time fans were met with throwback performances of songs such as \u201cTrack 10,\u201d \u201cVroom Vroom\u201d and \u201cparty 4 u.\u201d Unlike last tour, Charli xcx had a surprise song for each stop.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI read online people were saying they heard me soundcheck \u2018Boom Clap,\u2019\u201d she said shortly before singing the actual surprise song \u201cSilver Cross.\u201d<\/p>\n Charli xcx\u2019s set went swiftly; she did not acknowledge the crowd once. Two years ago, Charli xcx and Troye Sivan kept pausing throughout the night to hype up the crowd.<\/p>\n Shreena Dayal, a University of California San Diego student, said she enjoyed the night.<\/p>\n \u201cI like that it was an arena tour and not a stadium tour, because it feels like you can get close to the actual performance,\u201d Dayal said. \u201cI think she really brought good energy and I loved seeing everybody dancing.\u201d<\/p>\n Still, Charli xcx appeared to show more appreciation for her fans during the \u201cSWEAT\u201d tour compared to now.\u00a0<\/p>\n Hannah Potts, a San Diego local, attended both shows.<\/p>\n \u201cThe \u2018BRAT\u2019 tour was my first time seeing Charli live,\u201d Potts said. \u201cI really liked this album, it was awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n