Brat Summer: Connecting with My Younger Self

I saw the word "brat" for the first time last week when I read a news article about Kamala Harris, the presumptive nominee of the Democratic Party for the 2024 US Presidential Election.


It's about her new branding, "Kamala Is Brat," with which she raised $81 million on the first day of her presidential campaign, higher than that achieved by Biden or Trump in any single day.


I had no idea about it and had to research it online for a while. As it turned out, it's a buzzword among Gen-Zers popularized by Charli XCX, the British pop singer, with the release of her new album "Brat" back in June this year.


The word has many definitions; among them, "being authentic" or "living with imperfections" is the one that the album advocates. Its design includes the creative and bold use of green as the background that went viral online, with Brat Summer coined for 2024, in contrast to the Pink Summer of 2023 that showcased perfection.


While, as a Boomer, I'm generations away from the target audience of the album, the Brat Summer resonates with me in part because my son is a Gen-Zer, too, and in part because I just regained my full authenticity, having compromised it somewhat during my decades-long career that ended two and a half years ago.


To this end, I had an epiphany that people can keep their minds forever young, indeed, though bodily aging is inevitable.


I also recall that the word "authentic" was selected by Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, while the word "rizz" was selected by Oxford Dictionary, respectively, as their word of the year for 2023. Note that both words were popularized by young generations, if not by Gen-Zers alone.


As I'm reflecting, I feel connected with the younger generations—and my younger self in a sense. I look forward to experiencing more in my Brat Summer, too.😊

Comments

  1. Read, blog, travel, bikeAugust 6, 2024 at 8:52 PM

    As part of my research, I listened through the album. I don't remember when I listened to a pop music album last time but this "brat" sounded cool to me. I may as well start revisiting my long lost pop music from here.😊
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CmGw-DBcP98

    ReplyDelete
  2. Read, blog, travel, bikeAugust 23, 2024 at 12:04 AM

    From courst house to White house: the acceptance speech of Kamala Harris at DNC 2024. Very inspiring and I particularly love the lessons her mother taught her and her sister in their childhood.😊
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8P89uRNtU08&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR1-EU8RmoTtG9r3D4kN1mc26XC080dmUtsEymIu6fK_3HUrc6nt5pXrW1g_aem_wJLBghXupQRPLFdWLJptNw

    ReplyDelete
  3. Read, blog, travel, bikeAugust 23, 2024 at 12:38 AM

    Lessons from Kamala Harris' 5 foot tall, trailbrazer mother:
    "Roll up your sleeves and get to work".
    "Don't complain about injustice. Do something about it."
    "Don't let people tell you who you are. You show the world who you are."

    ReplyDelete
  4. Read, blog, travel, bikeAugust 23, 2024 at 4:14 PM

    "Never let anyone tell you who you are; you show them who you are.”

    “let us show each other and the world who we are and what we stand for: freedom, opportunity, compassion, dignity, fairness, and endless possibilities.”

    ReplyDelete
  5. Read, blog, travel, bikeSeptember 14, 2024 at 3:27 AM

    Chinese translation on FB
    https://www.facebook.com/share/p/EezGcraeUpERKoHv/?mibextid=qi2Omg

    ReplyDelete
  6. Read, blog, travel, bikeNovember 8, 2024 at 12:47 AM

    「More than a “brat summer” – it may even be a brat year.

    Collins Dictionary has named “brat” its word of the year for 2024, defining it as someone “characterized by a confident, independent, and hedonistic attitude.”」
    https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/01/style/brat-word-of-the-year-collins-dictionary-intl-scli/index.html

    ReplyDelete

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