Charli XCX’s “Wink Wink” Is a Deadpan Alt-Rock Wink at Post-Brat Expectations

Charli XCX has released “Wink Wink,” the third single from her forthcoming album Music, Fashion, Film. The song follows “Rock Music” and “SS26,” leaning further into the deadpan humour that has marked this project so far.

Over a breezy, guitar-led instrumental, Charli delivers lines like “I used to lick cream off strawberries in the summer / And maybe I fucked your Dad” with a shrug. The chorus claims she’s “not a bad girl anymore,” followed by a repeated, insincere “wink wink.” The tone is less earnest than the album’s previous single, restoring the ironic edge heard on “Rock Music.” A video by Aidan Zamiri accompanies the track.

Originally teased as her “rock album,” Music, Fashion, Film has been redefined by Charli in recent interviews. Speaking to Rolling Stone, she clarified that it’s not a literal rock record but a genre-blurring project shaped by the aftermath of Brat. The album, her seventh, arrives July 24.

This fall, Charli will headline Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, and Austin City Limits before launching a 12-date North American arena tour in September. “Wink Wink” suggests that the album will continue to play with persona and expectation, sidestepping easy categorization as casually as the song’s title implies.