Charli XCX Says “Girl, so confusing” Remix Was Lorde’s Idea, “Apple” Nearly Left Off Brat
![](https://static.stereogum.com/uploads/2024/06/charli-xcx-1718921834-1000x1000.jpeg)
Brat is powerful. Charli XCX’s new album made TikTok dances fashionable again, inspired a dive bar in my neighborhood to serve a neon green shot special, and put to rest any animosity between her and Lorde. In a new interview with Billboard, Charli revealed it was actually Lorde’s idea to work it out on the remix of “Girl, so confusing.”
In the interview, Charli said that before the world heard “Girl, so confusing,” she wanted to notify the song’s subject first. Naturally, whenever she and Lorde tried making plans, they always fell through. Charli continued:
I had to go through the process of telling her that this song is about her and her being OK with that first… I was trying to meet up with her for almost a year, and we kept having this weird, like, we were [going to], then we wouldn’t. It spoke to the narrative of the song itself. In the end, it didn’t work out. Then the day before the record came out, I left her a voice note. [Lorde] replied straight away and was like, ‘Oh, my God, I had no idea you felt this way. I’m so sorry.’ And then was like, ‘You know, maybe I should be on a version of the song.’ I didn’t even ask her. She brought it up.
So much of this rollout was planned, but sometimes it was not. Lorde’s remix of “Girl, so confusing” is a perfect example. That wasn’t planned. It took three days total.
Lorde added:
When I was writing this verse, I was saying these things to her for the first time… There was such a rawness and an immediacy to what I was saying. I love that we truly did work it out on the remix. There’s something very brat about that, something very meta and modern. Only Charli could make that happen. She had opened up a channel between us, and it made me say things that I had never said. I was articulating things I’d never said or maybe even things I’ve never even heard said. This whole thing has been such a huge honor.
On a slightly less serious note, Charli also recently revealed on Instagram that Brat highlight “Apple” almost didn’t make the tracklist. Real ones always knew the song was a winner, but a dance by a TikToker named Kelley Heyer made it absolutely blow up. Hollywood A-listers, Amish, and kittens everyone are doing the “Apple” dance now. (Glen Powell is trying his best.)
View this post on Instagram
@kissfmuk He’s so Julia !!! @Charli XCX Twisters is out in cinemas from the 17th July! 🌪️ #glenpowell #daisyedgarjones #twisters #brat #bratsummer ♬ original sound – KISS
@anthonyramosofficial Viral 🌪️ @twistersmovie #GlenPowell #DaisyEdgarJones ♬ original sound – Anthony Ramos
@mtv So glad we’re all on the same page here, #GlenPowell & #DaisyEdgarJones. It is, indeed, a #bratsummer 💚 #TwistersMovie #CharliXCX #brat ♬ original sound – MTV