Charli XCX responds to viral success of ‘Party 4 U’ with new video – five years after original release

Charli XCX has released a music video for ‘Party 4 U’ five years after the track was released on her album ‘How I’m Feeling Now’ – check it out here.

• READ MORE: Charli XCX – ‘How I’m Feeling Now’ review: lockdown album is an anxiety-fuelled trip

The singer, real name Charlotte Aitchison, had been teasing fifth-anniversary celebrations around the album, and hinted yesterday (May 14) on Instagram that a video for ‘Party 4 U’, which has seen a resurgence online, would be on its way.

Mitch Ryan (Olivia Rodrigo, Addison Rae, Omar Apollo) directed the video, which came from Aitchison’s original idea.

The video shows her heading on an eventful day out in the aftermath of a house party and ends with her setting one of her own billboards on fire.

In another Instagram post, she shared a handwritten note reading: “I felt like I rediscovered myself, my sanity + my sense of connection with the world, at a time where we were all so alone. To create with all of you helped me feel OK.”

She added: “It was all of us at our most raw, our most stripped, our most vulnerable. I will never forget it, and I really can’t believe that 5 years later one of the Angel favorites is having its own special moment.”

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A post shared by Charli (@charli_xcx)

‘Party 4 U’ was first written during the sessions for Aitchison’s 2017 mixtape ‘Pop 2’ but didn’t make the cut. It then appeared as an album track on ‘How I’m Feeling Now’ three years later, and became something of a fan favourite and a frequent inclusion in live shows.

After it featured in a new TikTok trend in which fans lip-sync to it, replicating a moment on RuPaul’s Drag Race, it arrived on the US Viral Spotify 100 chart in February. The track entered at Number 80, becoming the highest new entry.

The same day, Aitchison responded on X (Twitter), writing: “It’s p crazy that this song is suddenly getting love in this kinda way. I know this song means so much to so many angels. she’s a cutie <3.”

it’s p crazy that this song is suddenly getting love in this kinda way. i know this song means so much to so many angels. she’s a cutie <3 https://t.co/8YRx2pAQ95

— Charli (@charli_xcx) February 19, 2025

@charlixcx

exactly!

♬ party 4 u – ㅤ

At Coachella this year, Aitchison’s longtime collaborator A. G. Cook – who co-wrote ‘Party 4 U’ – brought out rapper Danny Brown to remix the track.

To further celebrate the anniversary of ‘How I’m Feeling Now’, she has released a limited-edition clear glitter vinyl record with an exclusive new poster. It’s available for purchase on Aitchison’s online store until May 18.

At the time of the album’s original release, NME gave it four stars. Hannah Mylrea said that the album was “a continuation of the futuristic pop she has made her own in recent years.”

She added: “‘How I’m Feeling Now’ is something of a musical time capsule, evoking the confusion that so many of us are feeling at the moment. Brimming with the prickling anxiety and stress that’s become commonplace during the pandemic, as well as the comfort Charli XCX has found in a strengthened relationship, it’s a glorious, experimental collection – and a reminder that within all of the current heartache and destruction, we’re never truly on our own.”

Meanwhile, Fleetwood Mac legend Lindsey Buckingham shared a video of himself reacting to watching Aitchison’s ‘Von Dutch’ music video for the first time earlier today. He called the video for the track, from last year’s Grammy Award-winning album ‘Brat’, “kinda saucy”.

The post Charli XCX responds to viral success of ‘Party 4 U’ with new video – five years after original release appeared first on NME.