Charli XCX’s ‘Brat’ Tops U.K. Album Charts Following Star-Studded Remixes

Charli XCXxc’s Brat has finally topped the U.K.’s Official Albums Charts, four months after its original release. The release of remix album Brat and It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat, which had star turns from Ariana Grande, The 1975, The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas and more, gave a well-timed boost to the original record to help it land at the summit. She faced stiff competition back in June when the original was beaten to No. 1 by Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department.

This is Charli’s second No. 1 album in the U.K. following 2022’s Crash. The record also is named the bestselling album on vinyl, and the LP was the most purchased in independent record shops this week. She already had a No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart in the summer with the remix of “Guess,” which features Billie Eilish.

The former Housemartins singer Paul Heaton lands at No. 2 with The Mighty Several. Heaton had a string of No. 1 albums in the 1990s with his band The Beautiful South, and two further chart-toppers with fellow Beautiful South vocalist Jacqui Abbott in 2020 and 2022.

Sabrina Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet still has a hold on the British public as her album lands at No. 3, while Coldplay’s Moon Music and Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess round out the top five.

Elsewhere in the top 10, there are appearances from James Blunt following the reissue of his 2004 album, Back to Bedlam, which landed at No. 7.

Following a fan vote, the singer had promised to legally change his name to Blunty McBluntface if his album went to No. 1. Back to Bedlam originally spent 10 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 and is one of the bestselling albums in British music history. 

Lady Gaga’s Harlequin, which is a companion album and featured songs from Joker: Folie à Deux, also had a boost following the shipment of physical LPs and finished at No. 11.