“Charli XCX was actually mentioned in the first brand strategy presentation I did at Nothing as this embodiment of rebellious creativity,” admits Nothing’s chief brand officer, Charlie Smith, over Zoom a couple of weeks ago. Negotiating a story about two people called Charli(e) and a company called Nothing takes a lot of back and forth, but today, Vogue can reveal that Charli XCX has joined the tech hardware brand as its first global ambassador and investor.
“When I’m creating, I’m always thinking about how my work will be experienced out in the world, and I love how Nothing headphones sound and are designed. Its ethos of prioritizing creatives is really something I look for when working with a partner,” says Charli XCX of the partnership.
Her song “Rock Music”, which dropped just last Friday, is the first single from the anticipated follow-up album to 2024’s Brat. Brat, which generated over $22.5 million in media impact value (MIV) within the first month of its release, became synonymous with a less-than-perfect aesthetic at odds with the scourge of quiet luxury. It also named an entire season. As expected, the expectations surrounding her subsequent piece of work are high, the reviewers are already confused about the meaning of the lyrics, and the hype machine is in full motion.
All this makes the Nothing news a well-timed coup for the company; the global campaign starring Charli XCX also launches today. In the images and accompanying video, which were shot by her longtime collaborator, photographer Aidan Zamiri, the singer wears Nothing headphones (a), which boast 135 hours of playtime without a need to recharge.
“We wanted it to feel intimate, like the world is moving around me while I just stay locked into my music, listening for ages and ages. It’s a very “in my own world” kind of vibe, which is exactly how I feel when I make things,” says Charli XCX of the concept behind the shoot. “It was fun doing this shoot because I was doing it with all my friends. Aidan Zamiri shot everything, Chris Horan styled, Imogene [Strauss, creative director] was there… those are all my creative besties.”
This isn’t the first time a celebrity ambassador has signed up as an investor in a brand. Just last month, Timothée Chalamet joined watchmaker Urban Jürgensen as a partner with a minority equity stake, after first approaching the company as a collector. But the choice to do more than spend a day on a photo shoot signals a need for deeper engagement on all fronts.
“Charli wanted a real stake in what we’re building, and we wanted a partner with genuine commitment as well. Anyone with a vested interest in a company is going to work collaboratively on increasing the performance of the company,” explains Smith. “Nothing wanted to be super collaborative with me and let me present how I engage with music in my own way,” adds Charli XCX.
