Charli XCX has revealed that she’s “often in a lot of pain” when performing onstage due to “nerve damage” in her neck.
- Read More: Charli XCX – ‘Brat’ review: pop pioneer fully embraces the dancefloor
The ‘Brat’ superstar spoke to Variety in a video interview published Wednesday (December 4), after wrapping up a UK arena tour in support of her wildly-successful sixth studio album.
“I find touring really hard emotionally,” Charli admitted. “I find the stage — especially these days — to be a very angry place for me.”
“I’ve done a lot of physical damage to my body from performing, and I’m often in a lot of pain when I perform. Physically, I have nerve damage in my neck from things I’ve done on the stage.”
She added that her ‘Sweat’ tour with Troye Sivan earlier this year made the endeavour “a lot easier and less of an emotional battle for me”.
“For me to give a performance I feel is good enough, I have to really physically throw myself around and that makes me very upset when I do it,” she explained. “It’s kind of this hellhole, but being with Troye softens that a lot.” Watch the full Variety interview below.
In another Variety interview, Charli admitted that she has mixed feelings – mostly negative – about her debut album ’14’, released in 2008 when she was 14 years old.
“God, I hate that album so much. I haven’t listened to it for a decade, at least,” she told Variety.
“It was sort of transitional – there are guitar[-based] songs on that record, but also elements of me exploring dance music. Some of those songs are terrible, but I think there was a style there, a direction, that a few people caught on to.”
Not long after that, Charli discovered club music and she was soon set on the path we see now. “I did a few small acoustic gigs, but I never felt particularly myself, singing on a stage with a guitar,” she continued. “It wasn’t until I was 14 or 15 and started going to raves that I felt inspired, performing with my iPod and a mic.”
She went to the Slade School Of Fine Art at age 18 and released her full debut album ‘True Romance’ in 2013 via Asylum/Atlantic, having experienced her first taste of chart success with her feature on Icona Pop’s ‘I Love It’ in 2012, a UK Number One single that she co-wrote.
Elsewhere, Charli shared her 2024 Spotify Wrapped stats on Wednesday, with Bladee, Air, A.G. Cook, Clairo and Mk.gee her most-played artists of the year.
Two of Charli’s songs made their way into NME‘s 50 best of 2024 list, with ‘Brat’ track ‘365’ at Number 11 and her ‘Girl, So Confusing’ remix with Lorde coming in at Number Four.
And, ‘Brat’ summer looks set for round two in 2025. Last week, Charli was confirmed as the first headliner for next year’s Parklife. The ‘360’ artist has also curated a day at London’s LIDO Festival, where she’ll deliver a bill-topping performance.
Additionally, she will play two outdoor shows in Belfast and Dublin, perform at Coachella 2025 and top the bill at Primavera Sound in Barcelona and Porto. On top of that, she’s also announced a US arena tour for April and May.
