Chrissy Chlapecka: Redefining pop and the rise of “bimbocore”
If you haven’t heard of Chrissy Chlapecka, it’s time this rising pop star infiltrated your favourite playlists.
Image: Chlapecka at a recent gig
CONTENT WARNINGS:
Mention of assault
If you haven’t heard of Chrissy Chlapecka, it’s time this rising pop star infiltrated your favourite playlists.
Gaining fame as a TikToker and empowering influencer with several viral sounds, Chrissy Chlapecka (she/they) started releasing outstanding singles in early 2023, in anticipation of more music and the album to be released later this year. She has been active in the gigging scene as a vocalist in the USA for quite some time before releasing her own music and grew up performing in musical theatre.
She teased her first single, I’m So Hot (2023) on TikTok in 2022, and the sound went viral.
She followed that with the single Alpha her only song so far with no accompanying music video, and then Head Bitch, a queer pride anthem released during pride month.
Rolling Stone were right to name her one of “The Brightest Pop Starts to Watch in 2023”, with all but her newest single surpassing one million listens on Spotify alone (at time of writing!).
However, it’s not just their music that I want to cover. Through TikTok Chlapecka has popularised “bimbocore” and cleverly released BRAT, their newest song, around the same time as the Barbie movie. Bimbocore may be the aesthetic, but bimboism is something of a movement (if you’ll allow me to indulge). Embracing hyper-femininity, Chlapecka encourages self-love and independence through their confident and catchy viral sounds and now, songs as well. The aesthetic is not all platinum blonde hair and bikinis, but suggests that if that’s what makes you happy, then that’s what you should wear, and that no one should judge you for being happy and uniquely yourself.
Chlapecka in her costume for the beginning of the BRAT
Image: Drag queens Sugar and Spice on the set of the BRAT music video
Back to her music, their newest release, BRAT is accompanied by a delectable music video where drag queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race, Sugar and Spice, transform Chrissy from doll-like to someone individual – a confident, bratty diva queen. However, the song isn’t all about makeovers and having fun (though I have no doubt Chrissy wants all her songs to be fun). Chlapecka told Rolling Stone the meaning behind some of BRAT’s lyrics are far more serious – “It was inspired by a not-so-wonderful experience I went through the night before and the things I wish I said when I was assaulted”. One of these lyrics includes the line ‘I wouldn’t touch that man with a 10-foot pole’, which Chlapecka stated was their favourite line of the song
So what should you expect if you’ve never listened to Chlapecka’s music before? Think a mix of Britney Spears and Kim Petras – surprisingly 2000s-esque dance beats, and overall pop-queendom fun. It’s worth a listen if you need a hype up song – something to listen to on the way to uni, before a party, or to dance to in the shower.
I hope this has inspired you to expand your music taste into the wonderful world of Chrissy Chlapecka, especially if her sound isn’t your usual go-to!
Happy listening and stay rad,
Sarah J
(All images sourced from Chrissy Chlapecka’s Instagram account)
