Addison Rae Is Making You Take Her Music Seriously—Like It or Not
Graphics by Ailani Wong
Addison Rae is no longer just recognized as a teen who rose to notoriety for dancing on TikTok and being a member of the Hype House. With a feature on the hottest album of the summer,Charli XCX’s Brat, to top it all off with an overall solid debut, everyone's favorite bad bitch is forcing the music industry (and us) to pay attention.
The masses,who got hundreds of thousands of likes for dissing her in 15-second videos, are now putting her on their playlists. From Viral Joke to Cult Favorite, Addison Rae's rebrand needs to be studied—so I did it for you.
In 2021, ‘Obsessed’ was supposed to be her grand debut to the music scene. Instead it became the laughingstock of the internet. The overtly auto-tuned song, which is about self-love/hate, was met with overwhelming mockery while the choreography in the music video was naturally turned into a meme. Twitter and TikTok users alike clowned Rae for her stiff arm movements, TikTok was flooded with duets making fun of the song, and music critics dismissed her as just another influencer with industry plants backing her.
For most, that kind of public embarrassment would have been a career ender. Addison could have easily faded back into the world of sponsored posts and acting gigs. Instead of doubling down on mainstream pop or chasing a viral hit, she did something unexpected: she pivoted—hard.
The Addison Rae Rebrand: Niche, Hyperpop, and Knowing Her Audience
Instead of fighting to win over the general public, Addison found her own lane. She didn’t cater to the masses but to a very specific, chronically online, and influential subset of pop music fans. The people who love hyperpop, PC Music, early 2000s electro-pop, and the art of campy, nostalgic pop stars.
Her leaked tracks, ‘Nothing On (But the Radio)’, ‘I Got It Bad’ and ‘2 Die 4’, gained a cult following online, to the point where fans were begging her to officially release them. These weren’t influencer fluff tracks; they sounded like lost gems from the Blackout-era Britney or Paris Hilton’s self-titled album. They were deliberately fun, hyper-feminine, and free of the pressure to be serious music.
Then came Brat. Charli XCX, the queen of experimental pop, put Addison on her album, which is a major stamp of approval in the niche pop world. In “2 Die 4,” Addison’s breathy, ultra-feminine vocals melted effortlessly into Charli’s sleek, synth-driven production.In no time, the conversation shifted. The same people who mocked “Obsessed” were now adding Addison’s songs to their playlists and calling her music “actually kind of good.” The backtracking was loud.
“I’d say Addison Rae’s rebrand was largely successful due to a shift in general media demographics and her team’s use of timing and media flooding” a PR student said. “Rae rebranded to be more like the current trends like Charli XCX and Tate McRae because that’s what her old demographics’ interests have switched to.”
Selective Stardom: Not for Everyone, But Perfect for Some
Unlike other TikTok artists, who chase mainstream media’s approval, Addison isn’t trying to be the next Ariana Grande or Billie Eilish. She’s leaning into a very specific audience, one that thrives on nostalgia, hyperpop, and pop stars who don’t take themselves too seriously. She’s found a home among fans who love everything from Charli XCX and Rina Sawayama to the early 2000s pop stars she so clearly idolizes (cough Britney cough).
The numbers reflect that shift. Instead of flexing her over 100 million fans on both Tiktok and instagram, Addison’s real music credibility is hiding in plain sight. For the 60 thousand on her private Spotify account, it is a space where she curated playlists full of deep-cut electro-pop, hyperpop gems, and Y2K classics. It proves she’s not just making music for the sake of it but she genuinely gets the sound and aesthetic of the niche she’s entering.
Perhaps the most shocking part of Addison’s rebrand isn’t the music itself. It’s the way the internet has completely flipped on her. The same people who turned “Obsessed” into a meme are now hyping up AR, and the former hate-watchers have become actual fans.
And let’s not forget—she’s already charted on the Billboard Hot 100. In August 2023, “Nothing On (But The Radio)” debuted on the chart, making her one of the few influencer-turned-artists to actually pull it off. That’s not just a viral fluke. That’s proof that she’s found an audience willing to support her beyond TikTok.
So our question to you- Is Addison Rae the future of Pop? Not in the traditional sense. She’s not trying to be the next global megastar, and she doesn’t need to be.
What Addison Rae has done is far more interesting. She’s built a pop career on her terms in a space that wants her there. She has found a niche, leaned into it, and watched as the internet slowly came crawling back to her.
Hate it or love it, Addison Rae isn’t just rebranding—she’s thriving.