As Troye Sivan and Charli XCX gear up for their ‘Sweat’ tour across North America, they’ve been reflecting on the future of pop music—and they’re feeling pretty good it, thanks to artists like Chappell Roan.
In a recent cover story with i-D, Charli explained how pop music is evolving and why it’s an exciting time for queer icons like herself, Troye, and Chappell.
“I think it’s a really interesting time in pop music, where [being] niche is being rewarded in a way that we haven’t seen for a while,” she said. “It feels like there’s this new wave of artists with different ambitions and cultural touchpoints who are really thriving in mainstream culture. And I think that’s myself, that’s Troye, that’s Chappell [Roan].”
Charli went on to emphasise how queer culture is at the heart of this new wave in pop music. “When I think about the three of us, that’s a lot of music that either is inherently a part of queer culture or is very much inspired by it, and that’s super cool,” she said.
“You have so many artists being outwardly gay and talking about drag culture. It’s cool that this is not an anomaly anymore.”
Troye was quick to back her up, saying that part of what makes Chappell Roan’s rise so exciting is how authentic it feels.
“It’s not like you guys have changed your approach. It doesn’t feel like you’re actively striving to get the masses or anything like that,” he said. “To me, it comes across as the most authentic, real vulnerable version of you, and that’s the one that’s connected.”
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As for their upcoming Sweat tour, Charli gave fans a sneak peek of what to expect: “The staging is fucking crazy. I mean, not to hype it up too much, but it’s great.”
The Sweat tour kicks off in Detroit on September 14th.
Meanwhile, Troye Sivan is preparing to kick off his Australia and New Zealand tour, as well as performances at Spilt Milk’s House Parties in Perth, Newcastle and Gold Coast in November.
The pop superstar will be touring in Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Sydney this November, performing at some of the country’s most iconic venues like the Sydney Opera House Forecourt. He’ll also cross the water to perform at Auckland’s Spark Arena on December 2nd.
