However, fans of the “Speed Drive” star were left displeased with the decision to include Smith on the record. In a TikTok that was posted a few days ago by XCX, which confirmed the duo’s collaboration, many expressed that the “Unholy” singer should not be featured in the song. One user wrote: “Charli I want the version just yours”, whilst another person commented: “In The City ft Charli XCX and Charli XCX only please.”

@charlixcx this one is really cute and fun and i’m so lucky to have @Sam Smith ♬ In The City – Charli XCX & Sam Smith

Despite the negativity, XCX has hit back against those who were unimpressed with the choice to include Smith. The 35-year-old musician has now defended Smith in a new TikTok post. She said: “I’m about to release a song with Sam Smith and the experience so far has been really interesting because never in my life have, I seen somebody receive so many hateful comments. It’s been really disheartening, but at the same time I’m so proud of Sam’s ability to withstand that – because I know I certainly couldn’t.”  

@charlixcx♬ original sound – Charli XCX

The star continued: “So I just want to say Sam, I love you. I love our song together and I’m in awe of your strength.”  

The sweet message to Smith, who featured in XCX’s “Speed Drive” video in the summer, led to an array of fans to also leave kind words. One person wrote: “I love Sam Smith more than I can express. Their existence and persistence in this world is a guiding light for my own”. Meanwhile another person said: “The hate is so unnecessary, so excited for this new track from you guys!” 

Listen to “Speed Drive.”

“In The City” will mark the first collaboration between the two artists. Smith, who released his fourth studio album Gloria earlier this year, has been at the centere of public scrutiny over the past year. This has come because of a change in Smith’s evolution as an artist and performer. At the 2023 Brit Awards, the star received backlash over his performance of his smash hit “Unholy”, which featured singer Kim Petras. The performance, which received over 100 Ofcom complaints, faced a similar reception when the duo performed at the Grammys a week prior. The Grammy performance has led to many conservative US politicians branding the two as “satanic” and “evil”.  

Watch the “Unholy” performance at the Grammys.

However, this outrage did not affect the song’s commercial success. The track has gone on to receive multiple Platinum certifications across the world and was certified Diamond in France.

Charli XCX said in the clip: “Hello, I’m in the studio and I wanted to play a song I’ve been working on if you want to hear it. It’s cute.” 

The song, which is styled as an upbeat dance-pop record that Charli XCX is famous for, included the lyrics “I never thought I would find it, but I found what I was looking for/I found it in the city, in the dark/In the city, in your heart.”

Fans of the star were buzzing over the preview. One person commented: “song of the year song of the decade song of the century”, whilst another person wrote: “DROP IT NOW!”

The “1999” singer also had celebrities gushing over the track. American starlet Addison Rae, who released a collaboration in the summer with Charli XCX titled “2 Die 4 U” on her debut EP, simply wrote: “Favs.” Meanwhile, DJ and record producer Tiesto said: “Sounds Massive!” alongside two flame emojis. Similarly, Charli XCX also had five-time Grammy winner Sam Smith seated for the anticipated track, with the “Unholy” singer leaving the eyes emoji on the teased post.

Last month, Charli XCX fuelled rumours that she was working on a new album. The star shared multiple photos and a video in a gallery captioned “album 6 I guess.” The album will follow after Charli XCX’s 2022 record CRASH which featured hit singles such as “Baby” and “Good Ones.” The project was named as one of the best albums of 2022 by multiple publications, including Rolling Stone who ranked it at number 23 on their 100 Best Albums of 2022 list. The LP was also a commercial success for Charli XCX, becoming the star’s first album to top the UK Albums Chart.

Listen to “Baby” below.

Earlier this year, Charli XCX was featured on the Barbie movie soundtrack with the single “Speed Drive.” The track, which has over 3 million views on YouTube, peaked at number nine on the UK Singles Chart and at number 73 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The electropop and dance-pop inspired track was the third single to be released from the movie soundtrack after “Barbie World” and the lead single “Dance The Night.”

Watch the video for “Speed Drive.”

In an episode of the BBC soap that aired on Monday September 4th, characters Lily Slater (Lillia Turner) and Ricky Mitchell (Frankie Day) welcome their first child, a girl they have decided to name Charli.

After the birth of baby Charli, maternal Grandmother Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) asks the name of the child, and immediately presumes the name Charli has been chosen in honour of her late Uncle Charlie. She is soon corrected as she is told she had in fact been named after Cambridge born pop star Charli XCX.

The clip from the long running soap immediately went viral, even catching the attention of the 31 year-old singer herself. The day after the Eastenders episode aired, Charli XCX, who has a large following among the LGBTQIA+ community, re-shared the clip on Twitter with the caption “shout out my gays in the writers room!”.

shout out my gays in the writers room! https://t.co/ghOer7fI9K

— Charli (@charli_xcx) September 5, 2023

In response to the singer’s shout out, Eastenders story producer Kyri Zindilis replied to her tweet saying “It’s a pleasure Miss XCX”

It’s a pleasure Miss XCX… #EastEndershttps://t.co/MxXrC3j0uf

— Kyri Zindilis (@KyriZindilis) September 5, 2023

Since she came on the scene in 2010, Charli XCX has released 5 studio albums, featuring smash hit singles such as “Boys” and “Boom Clap”. More recently, the pop star has released the single “Speed Drive”, which featured on the soundtrack for Greta Gerwig’s 2023 blockbuster hit Barbie.

In addition to her successful music career, Charli XCX announced earlier this year that she will be embarking on an acting career as she is set to feature in a remake of the 1978 horror film Faces Of Death. She has previously done some voice work for the animated films The Angry Birds Movie and UglyDolls. 

Both Eastenders and Charli XCX fans were beyond excited by the writer’s decision for Lily Slater’s baby name, and filled the internet with comments and praise over the soap opera/music worlds uniting. One entertained fa commented “This is the most British crossover ever”

This is the most British crossover ever

— esra (@1989healy) September 5, 2023

Moreover, musician and Silver and Gold podcast host Ras Ali tweeted “This is so iconic!!!!!!”

this is so so iconic!!!!!!

— ras ali (@rasalistair) September 5, 2023

Eastenders airs every Monday-Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One.

Listen to “Speed Drive” here:

The Barbie movie has been taking the internet by storm ahead of its release, promising to be all things camp and iconic with its star-studded cast and effective promotional campaigns. Starring Margot Robbie in the titular role, accompanied by Ryan Gosling as everyone’s favourite airhead Ken, the movie has already spawned a major fanbase and multiple memes before it has even hit cinemas.

Accompanying the movie will be Barbie The Album, produced by Mark Ronson and featuring some of the biggest names in music, including Dua Lipa, HAIM, Nicki Minaj, Lizzo, Ice Spice and Khalid.

Dua Lipa recently released her track “Dance the Night” from the soundtrack, followed by Nicki Minaj and Ice’s Spice’s collaboration, “Barbie World.”

Sharing a snippet of “Speed Drive” on Twitter, Charli XCX wrote “this barbie likes to vroom,” referencing the Barbie promotional posters as well as her own beloved track, “Vroom Vroom.”

this #barbie likes to vroom speed drive out now https://t.co/3km77uq5nK pic.twitter.com/YkqU2mILkW

— Charli (@charli_xcx) June 29, 2023

Charli XCX also took the opportunity to share an exclusive clip of “Speed Drive” in the movie, in which we see Barbie running through the real world accompanied by the track.  

umm ok cute speed drive drops in 30 minutesssss pic.twitter.com/bMkrcDfv5j — Charli (@charli_xcx) June 29, 2023

“Speed Drive” samples Toni Basil’s classic 1981 track “Mickey,” with Charli XCX telling Rolling Stone that she flipped the track to “feel quite bratty” and to be “about just being hot.”

Charli XCX also revealed to Rolling Stone that she was one of the first artists that Mark Ronson approached when beginning work on the soundtrack and discussed her personal relationship to the Barbie franchise. She said that she’s “always loved the escapism my Barbies provided with me and it’s kind of a full circle moment to be a part of this soundtrack and movie.”

Speaking about the track itself, Charli XCX shared, “I’ve always really liked singing about cars. For me, there is this intrinsic link between driving and music and feeling like you’re a star when you’re in a car.” The star opted to have her track accompany a chase scene in the movie for this very reason.

Ahead of the official release of Barbie The Album, Mark Ronson has curated a Barbie inspired Spotify playlist, which can be found here:

Listen to music from and inspired by Barbie, curated by @MarkRonson Follow the official @barbiethemovie playlist on @Spotify https://t.co/vO3kOx2Wmq pic.twitter.com/xqhhZJDWxT

— Barbie The Album (@barbiethealbum) June 26, 2023

The album will also be available to purchase on vinyl, with Barbie and Ken themselves showing you the pink and blue formats that are available for pre-order now:  

Calling all Barbie’s & Ken’s Pre-order Barbie The Album on Vinyl in Exclusive Hot Pink, Sky Blue and more https://t.co/v7ZU1n4dG5 pic.twitter.com/Vox6snmVXX

— Barbie The Album (@barbiethealbum) June 16, 2023