For the first in our new three-part series on Charli XCX, i-D’s Owen Myers returns to Pop Pantheon to chart the start of Charli’s iconoclastic and unlikely trail through pop. Owen and Louie trace Charli’s roots in England, starting when she was a teenage songwriter posting demos to MySpace and performing at raves in London. Then they discuss her charmingly DIY unreleased debut album, 14, her first brush with success with the surprise hit “I Love It,” her 2012 mixtapes, Heartbreaks and Earthquakes and Super Ultra, and her 2013 major label debut True Romance. Next they unpack “Fancy,” her first solo success with “Boom Clap” and the snappy pop punk 2014’s Sucker.

Join us next week for Part 2, in which w'ell be talking about Charli’s reinvention as an avant pop futurist beginning with 2016’s Vroom Vroom EP and through her self-titled 2019 record, Charli.

Check out Pop Pantheon's Charli XCX Essentials Spotify Playlist

Join Pop Pantheon: All Access, Our Patreon Channel, for Exclusive Content and More

Shop Merch in Pop Pantheon's Store

Buy Tickets to Pop Pantheon Presents Main Pop Girls Dance Party on 10/4 at Parkside Lounge in NYC

Come to Gorgeous Gorgeous Halloween in both Los Angeles (10/25) and NYC (11/1)

Follow DJ Louie XIV on Instagram

Follow DJ Louie XIV on Twitter

Follow Pop Pantheon on Instagram