Pop 2 | ||||
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Mixtape by | ||||
Released | 15 December 2017 | |||
Recorded | 13 May 2017 • June 2017; September–November 2017 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 40:26 | |||
Language |
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Label | Asylum | |||
Producer |
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Charli XCX chronology | ||||
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Alternative cover | ||||
![]() In anticipation of the release of Charli XCX's sixth studio album Brat , the cover art of her discography has been updated on streaming platforms. | ||||
Singles from Pop 2 | ||||
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Pop 2 is the fourth mixtape by English singer Charli XCX,released on 15 December 2017 by Asylum Records. [8] Executively produced by A. G. Cook of PC Music,sessions for the mixtape began several months before its release and featured a wide variety of guest contributions. [9] The mixtape was backed by its only single "Out of My Head" featuring Alma and Tove Lo,released exactly one week before its release.
Pop 2 was acclaimed by critics upon its release;some reviewers went on to call it her best body of work yet. Its innovative blend of electronic music influences was generally praised by reviewers. In 2019, Pitchfork ranked the album 40th in its list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s". [10]
In December 2014,before the release of her sophomore album Sucker,Charli XCX revealed she was already planning her third studio album. She stated that it would be inspired by Japanese pop music and sound like "another planet up in the clouds" and "intensely weird and childlike". [11] In July 2015,she shared in an interview that she had begun working on her third album with Scottish producer Sophie in Los Angeles and described it as "the most pop thing,and the most electronic thing" she had ever done. [12] BloodPop and Stargate were also confirmed to be involved in the album's production. [13] In July and August 2015,Charli XCX co-headlined a US tour with Jack Antonoff,but on 21 August she announced that,for "personal reasons",a planned second leg of the tour would not go ahead. [14] [15]
"At the time I felt scared to talk about it. It felt like an invasion of my life, my personal space, my personal property. It was just really sad, and I was really hurt."
—Charli XCX talking about the leaking of her third album.
In October 2015, Charli XCX released the song "Vroom Vroom", on the Beats 1 Radio Show, then claiming it would be the first song released from her third studio album. [16] On 26 February 2016, the Vroom Vroom EP was released, under Charli XCX's own imprint record label, Vroom Vroom Recordings. [17] All songs on the EP were produced by Sophie. That July, it was announced that British producer A. G. Cook, founder of record label PC Music, had signed on as Charli's creative director, and the following month, she announced in an interview with The Fader that her album was finished and would be released in 2017. [18] [19] [20] When describing the project, Charli stated the album would be split into two sides, half being "straight-up pop" and the other half being "club orientated". In October 2016, the album was confirmed for a May 2017 release, and the lead single "After the Afterparty" was released. [21] [22] [23] [24]
Several new tracks were premiered live over the following months, including "Roll with Me", "No Angel", and "Bounce", however in February 2017, it was announced that the album was delayed and expected to be released that September instead. [25] [26] [27] In lieu of the delayed album, she announced a new mixtape titled Number 1 Angel would be released in February, recorded within two weeks with Cook without permission from her record label, Atlantic, meanwhile unreleased Charli XCX tracks began to leak on the internet. The mixtape was delayed until March due to label conflicts. [28] [29] In May 2017, the album was delayed again with an expected release date for spring 2018, and a second single, "Boys", was released along with a music video directed by Charli XCX herself, with additional direction from Sarah McColgan. [30] [31] [32] The video, which featured cameos from a wide variety of male celebrities including Joe Jonas and Wiz Khalifa, went viral, racking up almost 3 million views within a day. [33] During August, more leaks from the album sessions appeared online, and the project was scrapped. [34] [28]
Recording for Pop 2 began in September 2017, just two months before the mixtape was to be completed, with Charli reaching out to producer and PC Music founder A. G. Cook to suggest they work on a new project following their previous mixtape Number 1 Angel (2017) appointing him as executive producer. [2] Cook stated that "we wanted it to feel like a complete restart in terms of the image and style of it" in comparison to their previous project. [2] The majority of recording took place in Alicia Keys' old New York studio, with other sessions occurring in London. [2] Charli extensively utilized Auto-Tune, which Cook experimented with and manipulated on particular tracks. She stated that "the mixtape is in this very free, fast, and experimental world. But it's also still intended to be pop. It's what I naturally gravitate towards." [2]
Collaborations which appear on the record include Canadian singer Carly Rae Jepsen, Brazilian singer and drag queen Pabllo Vittar, Estonian rapper Tommy Cash, German pop singer Kim Petras and Korean-American hip hop artist Jay Park among others. [2] Charli stated that "this mixtape isn't necessarily about me – it's really about giving everybody their moment to own the song." [2] The mixtape was to feature a contribution from rapper Lil Peep, which was shelved following his death in November. [2] Charli cited being signed to a major label and potential pressure from the public as reasons for Pop 2 being a mixtape. [35]
A reworked version of "Track 10", titled "Blame It on Your Love" and featuring American singer and rapper Lizzo, was later released in May 2019 as the second single from her third studio album Charli . [36]
The first single from Pop 2, "Out of My Head" featuring Tove Lo and Alma was released on 8 December 2017 along the pre-order of the mixtape on digital platforms. [37] The song "Unlock It" featuring Kim Petras and Jay Park was premiered on 11 December 2017 on radio program Beats 1, being named its release day's World Record. [38] Another track called "I Got It" featuring Brooke Candy, Cupcakke and Pabllo Vittar was released on 13 December 2017 as the final promotional single before the mixtape's official release. [39]
Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AnyDecentMusic? | 7.7/10 [40] |
Metacritic | 84/100 [41] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Consequence of Sound | B+ [42] |
Crack Magazine | 8/10 [43] |
Exclaim! | 7/10 [44] |
Financial Times | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Guardian | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
NME | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Pitchfork | 8.4/10 [47] |
Q | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Spectrum Culture | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Tiny Mix Tapes | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
At review aggregate site Metacritic, Pop 2 has an average score of 84 out of 100, based on eight reviews, indicating "universal acclaim". [41] Meaghan Garvey of Pitchfork, who gave the album an 8.4/10, called it "the best full-length work of both Charli and PC Music's respective careers," opining that "though Pop 2 sounds like the future, even more delightful is the way it hybridizes sounds from the past two decades of weirdo electronics." [47] Ludovic Hunter-Tilney of the Financial Times wrote that Charli XCX "stands out as a paragon of progressiveness," opining that "on the majority of the tracks Charli and her producer Cook deploy their meta-pop tactics with a skilful sense of dramatic engagement." [45] The Guardian 's Alexis Petridis remarked that the mixtape did "an impressive job of convincing you that Charli XCX is infinitely better when freed from record company interference" and found Cook's production to be "adventurous" and infused with "wilful modernity". [46]
In 2019, Pitchfork ranked the album 40th in its list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s". In the album's entry, Hazel Cills considered it Charli XCX's "best full-length to date" and felt that throughout it, she "solidifies her mastery of the strange, wonderful new pop world she continues to build." [10]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Backseat" (featuring Carly Rae Jepsen) |
| 3:58 | |
2. | "Out of My Head" (featuring Tove Lo and Alma) |
|
| 3:55 |
3. | "Lucky" |
|
| 3:35 |
4. | "Tears" (featuring Caroline Polachek) |
| Cook | 4:13 |
5. | "I Got It" (featuring Brooke Candy, Cupcakke and Pabllo Vittar) |
|
| 3:51 |
6. | "Femmebot" (featuring Dorian Electra and Mykki Blanco) |
|
| 3:38 |
7. | "Delicious" (featuring Tommy Cash) |
| Cook | 4:32 |
8. | "Unlock It (Lock It)" (featuring Kim Petras and Jay Park) |
|
| 3:52 |
9. | "Porsche" (featuring MØ) |
|
| 3:26 |
10. | "Track 10" |
|
| 5:26 |
Total length: | 40:26 |
Notes
Date | City | Country | Venue |
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15 March 2018 | Los Angeles | United States | El Rey Theatre |
18 March 2018 | New York City | Elsewhere | |
19 June 2018 | London | United Kingdom | Village Underground |
20 June 2018 | Paris | France | La Maroquinerie |
23 October 2018 | Sydney | Australia | The Metro |
In addition to the Pop 2 performances, Charli additionally hosted and performed at numerous afterparties during the Reputation Stadium Tour during this period, further promoting the mixtape and singles. [56] [57]
Musicians
Production
Chart (2023) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Vinyl Albums (ARIA) [58] | 8 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [59] | 169 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [60] | 78 |
Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ) [61] | 14 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [62] | 6 |
Charlotte Emma Aitchison, known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery by a promoter who invited her to perform at warehouse raves. In 2010, she signed a recording contract with Asylum Records, releasing a series of singles and mixtapes throughout 2011 and 2012.
True Romance is the debut studio album by English singer Charli XCX. It was released on 12 April 2013 by Asylum and Atlantic Records. Originally scheduled for release in April 2012, the album's release was delayed for a full year and had been in the making since early 2010 when Charli met with producer Ariel Rechtshaid in Los Angeles. To promote the album's release, Charli embarked on a three-date UK promotional tour in April 2013.
English singer Charli XCX has released six studio albums, four mixtapes, three extended plays, one live album, one soundtrack album, two DJ mixes, 48 singles, and 13 promotional singles. In 2007, XCX began recording her debut album on a loan granted by her parents. Titled 14, after her age at the time, it received only a restricted public release. Two singles, "!Franchesckaar!" and double A-side "Emelline" / "Art Bitch", were released in late 2008 under Orgy Music. In June 2012, Charli XCX released her first mixtape, titled Heartbreaks and Earthquakes, a one-track file consisting of eight songs. A second mixtape, titled Super Ultra, was released in November of the same year. Charli XCX's major-label debut studio album, True Romance, was released in April 2013, and peaked at number 85 on the UK Albums Chart. While failing to appear on any main album charts internationally, the album reached number five on the Heatseekers Albums chart in the United States and number 11 on the ARIA Hitseekers chart in Australia. The album spawned five singles—"Stay Away", "Nuclear Seasons", "You're the One", "You " and "What I Like". In 2012, Charli XCX was featured on Icona Pop's song "I Love It", which peaked at number one in the UK and reached the top 10 in various countries including the US, Canada, Ireland and Germany.
Sophie Xeon, known mononymously as SOPHIE, was a British music producer, songwriter, and DJ from Scotland. Her work is known for its brash take on pop music and is distinguished by experimental sound design, "sugary" synthesized textures, and incorporation of influences from underground dance styles. It would help pioneer the 2010s hyperpop microgenre.
Alexander Guy Cook is an English music producer and the head of the UK record label PC Music. Cook released his first solo singles in 2014. He has also collaborated with PC Music artists such as Hannah Diamond, GFOTY, EASYFUN, Danny L Harle and felicita. He formed the one-off project QT with musician Sophie and performance artist Hayden Dunham, producing the 2014 single "Hey QT".
Hannah Amond, known professionally as Hannah Diamond, is an English singer, songwriter, photographer, and visual artist. She has recorded on A.G. Cook's PC Music label since 2013, beginning with her debut single "Pink and Blue". Her music and visual art employs an aesthetic of hyperreality and heavily produced cuteness in tension with sincerity. Diamond released her debut studio album, Reflections, in November 2019. Her second studio album, Perfect Picture, was released in October 2023.
Vroom Vroom is the second extended play (EP) by English singer Charli XCX, released on 26 February 2016 by Vroom Vroom Recordings. It features production work from Scottish producer Sophie.
Number 1 Angel is the third mixtape by English singer Charli XCX, released on 10 March 2017 by Asylum Records. The mixtape contains ten tracks and was created in Los Angeles as a collaboration with producer A. G. Cook, the founder of PC Music. Several other producers associated with the label also contributed to the mixtape, including Sophie who previously produced Charli XCX's extended play Vroom Vroom. Musically, it has been labeled as avant-pop and electropop.
"3AM (Pull Up)" is a song recorded by English singer Charli XCX, written for her mixtape Number 1 Angel (2017). The song features Danish singer and songwriter MØ. The song received positive reviews from critics, with some considering it a highlight of the mixtape.
"5 in the Morning" is a single by English singer Charli XCX. It was released on 31 May 2018 by Asylum Records and Atlantic Records UK as the first installment from a series of monthly single releases.
"Blame It on Your Love" is a song by English singer Charli XCX featuring American singer and rapper Lizzo. It was released on 15 May 2019 as the second single from Charli XCX's third studio album, Charli, and soon after debuted on BBC Radio 1 as Annie Mac's "Hottest Record in the World". It is Charli XCX's first single since her 2018 collaboration with Troye Sivan, "1999". The single is a reworked version of "Track 10", the final track from Charli XCX's mixtape Pop 2 (2017). The music video was released on 13 June 2019.
Charli is the third studio album by English singer Charli XCX. It was released through Asylum and Atlantic Records UK on 13 September 2019. Charli was preceded by the singles "1999" with Troye Sivan, "Blame It on Your Love" featuring Lizzo, and "Gone" with Christine and the Queens. Charli was also promoted by the promotional singles "Cross You Out" featuring Sky Ferreira, "Warm" featuring Haim, "February 2017" featuring Clairo and Yaeji, and "2099" also featuring Sivan. Musically, it has been described as avant-pop, electropop, futurepop, and hyperpop.
"Out of My Head" is a song by English singer Charli XCX, featuring Swedish singer Tove Lo and Finnish singer Alma. It was released as the lead single from her fourth mixtape Pop 2 on 8 December 2017 by Asylum Records and Atlantic Records UK.
Finn Keane, known professionally as Easyfun, is a British songwriter and record producer. He is known for his work with Charli XCX; he has songwriting and production credits on her mixtapes Number 1 Angel and Pop 2 and her albums Charli and Brat. Other work has included releases on experimental pop label PC Music, and writing for pop musicians.
"Ringtone (remix)" is a song by American experimental musical duo 100 gecs, composed of Dylan Brady and Laura Les, from their remix album 1000 Gecs and the Tree of Clues (2020). The song features vocals from British singer Charli XCX, American rapper Rico Nasty, and British singer Sarah Bonito of the indie pop band Kero Kero Bonito. The song is a remix of "Ringtone" from 100 Gecs' debut studio album 1000 Gecs (2019). The song's production is glitchy with "80's video game-inspired blips" and uses heavy bass and Auto-Tune.
How I'm Feeling Now is the fourth studio album by English singer Charli XCX, released on 15 May 2020. Released eight months after her previous LP, Charli (2019), the album was conceived in the span of six weeks during the COVID-19 lockdown in a "do it yourself" collaborative process with her fans. Charli XCX, A. G. Cook and BJ Burton served as the album's executive producers.
"Good Ones" is a song by English singer Charli XCX, released as the lead single from her fifth studio album, Crash (2022). The song was released on 2 September 2021. It is a synthwave, electropop, dance, and synth-pop song that discusses the singer's incapacity to maintain healthy relationships, instead being drawn inexorably back to the dysfunctional and destructive. It received critical acclaim from critics who praised its production and Charli's vocal performance, while also lamenting its short run-time.
Crash is the fifth studio album by English singer Charli XCX, released on 18 March 2022. It was her last album to be released under her record contract with Asylum Records. Charli announced the album title, release date, and artwork on 4 November 2021. Her website was also updated with information about the album's 2022 tour. The album was preceded by the four singles "Good Ones", "New Shapes" featuring Christine and the Queens and Caroline Polachek, "Beg for You" featuring Rina Sawayama, "Baby" and two promotional singles, "Every Rule" and "Used to Know Me", the latter released as the fifth single in April 2022.