Charli XCX talks ‘The Velvet Underground & Nico’ – “the apex of fine art and DIY culture colliding”

Charli XCX received the Hitmaker of the Year Award at Variety‘s eighth annual Hitmakers Brunch last night (12/7), and during her acceptance speech, she chose to point out that the definition of a “hit” doesn’t have to be all about numbers. She brought up the initial sales numbers for 1967’s cult classic The Velvet Underground & Nico, which only cracked the Billboard 200 at #129, before saying, “In my humble opinion, this record is the definition of a hit. This record is arguably one of the most influential and groundbreaking records of our time. This album is the apex of fine art and DIY culture colliding. It’s high and low. It’s poetry means drugs. It’s earnest meets arrogance. And even if you have never heard a single song from this album, you will undoubtedly recognize its cover.” Watch video of her speech below.

Also at the Hitmakers Brunch, Lana Del Rey presented the Producer of the Decade Award to Jack Antonoff, and Olivia Rodrigo (who was last year’s Hitmakers’ Storyteller of the Year) spoke about the impact of her and Chappell Roan’s producer (and As Tall As Lions singer) Dan Nigro. From Variety:

Charli xcx delivered a heartfelt salute to “The Velvet Underground & Nico.” Jack Antonoff cheekily told a roomful of music industry insiders that “some of you care more about Pop Crave than Pitchfork.” Lana Del Rey confessed she didn’t submit her music for Grammy nominations early on because she didn’t know how. Olivia Rodrigo outed producer Dan Nigro as “the man who finally taught me how to parallel park.” And Lainey Wilson spoke from the heart about her journey that began in a tiny Louisiana town “writing about tequila and cigarettes at 10 years old” on Saturday during Variety’s eighth annual Hitmakers Brunch saluting the artists and industry insiders behind the year’s 25 top songs.

Read more here.

Charli XCX also had Nico’s “These Days” on her top 5 most-streamed songs of the year on Spotify Wrapped. She’ll be on an arena tour next year.

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