Coconuts, ‘brat summer’ and that laugh: The memeing of Kamala Harris

It’s out with Dark Brandon and in with coconuts and “brat summer.” Scratching your head about what it all means? Adding to the viral vortex, pop star Charli XCX, referencing her hit summer album “Brat,” posted on X Sunday: “kamala IS brat.” @simonacruzer Its a u fell out of a coconut tree kamalanimom or whatever ♬ original sound - Simona The nascent Harris presidential campaign has embraced the social media maelstrom, blasting out memes and rebranding its official @KamalaHQ account on X with the same shade of lime green and out-of-focus Arial font as the “Brat” album cover. For young voters — who overwhelmingly voted for Biden in 2020 and turned out in high numbers for the 2022 midterm election — platforms like TikTok are highly influential because that is where they get their news, marking “a shift from previous generations who relied more upon traditional media,” Wilson said. The group’s founder, David Hogg, sent an email blast Tuesday with the subject line, “Kamala IS brat.” “Using memes and music, the Harris campaign has already opened the door to communicate with the younger generations about climate change, gun reform, abortion rights, and more,” wrote Hogg, a 24-year-old survivor of the 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. “For those who don’t know,” he added, “‘brat’ and ‘brat summer’ are about living your best life — which is EXACTLY what we’ll be doing if Democrats win big this year.” Earlier this summer, Charli XCX explained on TikTok that being brat means you’re “that girl who is a little messy and likes to party and, like, maybe says some, like, dumb things sometimes.” A brat girl, she continued, “feels herself, but then also, like, maybe has a breakdown, but kinda like parties through it. For Harris, “it’s one of the best things that could happen to her and her campaign, going viral right now,” especially since Biden struggled to connect with young voters online, said Ramesh Srinivasan, founder of the University of California Digital Cultures Lab.