Charli XCX was born Charlotte Emma Aitchison on 2 August 1992 in Cambridge, England, to her parents, Shameera and Jon Aitchison.
Key Takeaways
- Charli’s mother, Shameera, was a nurse.
- She started writing songs at 14.
The ‘BRAT queen’ had a difficult start in her music career.
Charli XCX’s latest album, brat, has defined the summer of 2024 with the iconic green branding.
With the pop album claiming top places in music charts worldwide, Charli and her music have expanded her fanbase significantly, many of whom are curious about her background and ethnicity.
Her mother was born into a Muslim family of Gujarati-Indian descent in Uganda, while her father comes from Scottish descent.
Shameera was a nurse and flight attendant, while her father was an entrepreneur and show booker.
Charli was raised in Start Hill, Essex, and attended the Bishop’s Stortford College.
She had a knack for music from an early age and started writing her own songs at 14, inspired by pop icons such as the Spice Girls and Britney Spears.
Charli XCX blew up in 2014 when she released The Fault in Our Stars soundtrack, “Boom Clap.”
Since then, she has become a pop icon and a cultural figure for the hedonists, fun-lovers, and “365 Party Girls.”
But her early years were not easy.
In an interview with British GQ, Charlie spoke of her childhood and how she never felt like she belonged.
Charli’s interest in music began as an escape from this feeling of alienation.
I always felt like a loser, I had friends, but my school was full of blonde white girls and I was this half-Indian girl with frizzy hair and different interests. I thought if I made music, people would think I was interesting… Deep down, one of my biggest fears was being boring.
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Charli attributes her bubbly personality to her dad, who she describes as being ‘mental‘ and ‘eccentric.’
When she was 14, she began her music career by launching an album her parents paid for.
While her mom and dad were supportive of her music career, they were not fully onboard from the start, especially when she started getting offers to perform at illegal raves.
My mum, in particular, was terrified. She grew up in Uganda and never really drank, never smoked a cigarette. She came from a Muslim family where the idea of a 14-year-old going to a rave was completely alien.’
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Charli was signed to Asylum Records when she was 18 and immediately started taking her career seriously.
She worked around the clock to build her music career and was traveling so much for work that she could not even visit her dad when he was battling cancer.
Fortunately, during the two years when Charli was traveling extensively, Jon beat the cancer.
Coming from a diverse background has certainly influenced Charli’s music and her off-beat but eclectic style.
Despite facing challenges during her early years, the Indian-Scottish singer has forged a remarkable music career and has become a cultural pop icon.
