For years, Addison Rae was a name that I recognized, but refused to learn why she was famous. I knew it had something to do with TikTok, but I, a millennial without an Instagram account, was content making that None Of My Business. My ignorance extended to her debut single, “Obsessed,” released in 2021 to scathing reviews. But then it was announced she was working with Charli XCX, and suddenly, I was forced to learn who Addison Rae is. I’m glad I did.
The first sign that I underestimated Rae was her 2023 EP, AR. The cover has her blowing a bubble with gum, an appropriate choice for the deep appreciation of bubblegum pop — and shiny electropop — in “I Got It Bad.” (One of the song’s producers is Rami Yacoub, who worked on “…Baby One More Time.”) “2 Die 4” features Charli XCX and wouldn’t sound out of place on Brat, while “Nothing On (But The Radio)” — originally intended for Lady Gaga — would have been blasting out of every radio in the 2000s. Instead, AR did well on Spotify, and Rae was beginning to win over the doubters.
Earlier this year, Rae appeared on Charli XCX’s “Von Dutch” remix (it’s good to be friends with Charli; she’s like Adam Sandler in that respect). She also released “Diet Pepsi,” her first song since signing with major label Columbia Records. Once again, I was skeptical, although this time for a different reason: Diet Coke > Diet Pepsi. But “Diet Pepsi,” the song, is a promising turning point for Rae. She isn’t as expressive a vocalist as Lana Del Rey, but there are breathy Lana-like inflections to “Diet Pepsi” (no references to how a certain part of her body tastes, however). But whereas LDR is interested in exploring a curdled Americana, Rae is here for a good time, possibly a long time. It seems silly to call a song about having sex in the backseat of a car “mature,” but “Diet Pepsi” is an artist demanding to be taken seriously.
It’s always interesting when an artist is asked to define their sound. What is “Addisoncore” to Addison Rae? It’s “lots of laughs, a good time, and openness.” In other words, it’s “Aquamarine.” The ethereal follow-up single to “Diet Pepsi” is gloriously unsubtle — “The world is my oyster / Baby, come touch the pearl” — but subtly isn’t what we’re here for. “Aquamarine” is hot girl music (complimentary). It’s the sound of smoking two cigarettes at once or a dance routine in a grungy alley in a glamorous city, just because it looks cool.
Maybe the best word to describe Rae is unapologetic. I think back to an interview she did with Interview where she was asked when she feels the hottest. “I definitely feel the hottest after a workout or when I have a tan,” she said. “When I have a tan, I feel hot and sexy and with no makeup. But I love the post-gym moment, like looking at my body naked after a workout, taking off my clothes, my hair’s wet. I have super flushed cheeks and I can tell my body just worked so hard for me. I feel like that’s when I feel the sexiest.”
Most people would feign humility here or make up something about how they feel hot when they’re reading a book with a cup of tea, or whatever. But not Addison Rae. She’s answering truthfully, confidently, unapologetically. As Charli XCX told Vogue, “She was like no one I’d ever met really. Not jaded. Not faking. Not uncomfortable. Not trying to be anything other than herself.” First with the AR EP and now in “Diet Pepsi” and “Aquamarine,” you can hear Rae’s conviction in herself extending to her increasingly dynamic music.
Addison Rae has won me over, and if you give her a chance, she’ll make a believer (or “Sunrae”) out of you, too.
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