Charli XCX showcased her comedic chops while hosting and performing on "Saturday Night Live" (SNL), bringing a mix of biting wit and musical energy to the show. During her opening monologue, she referenced her "Brat Summer" persona, an attitude she described as "a vibe," while giving a nod to the recent media spat between Martha Stewart and New York Post columnist Andrea Peyser.
"I have to say, 'Brat Summer' has been a crazy experience. So many people have asked me, 'What is brat?' And honestly, it's just like, an attitude. It's a vibe," Charli said. She then touched on Stewart's comments in a new Netflix documentary, where the lifestyle icon expressed lingering anger over Peyser's reporting during her insider trading trial in 2004. Stewart, recalling the columnist's presence during her verdict, said, "She had written horrible things during the entire trial. But she is dead now, thank goodness." However, Peyser, very much alive, fired back in a New York Post article, defiantly stating, "I'm alive, bitch!"
Charli added, "When that exact journalist responded and said, 'Hey, I'm alive, bitch!' That is extremely brat." The quip landed with the SNL audience, cementing the ongoing Stewart-Peyser feud in pop culture.
The tension between Stewart and Peyser dates back to Peyser's coverage of Stewart's legal troubles. Stewart's sharp words in the documentary, where she sarcastically dismissed Peyser, led to Peyser responding with an equally scathing column, in which she accused Stewart of harboring a petty grudge and called her "obsessive-compulsive" and "so mean." Stewart acknowledged Peyser's column during a speaking engagement, sarcastically referring to the Post as her "favorite newspaper" and predicting that the spat might drive more viewership for her documentary.
In addition to her monologue, Charli XCX appeared in various sketches throughout the SNL episode, proving her comedic range. She starred in a new iteration of the "Domingo" sketch, a fan favorite originally featuring Ariana Grande. This time, Charli and cast members performed a humorous song about a pregnant bride's babymoon, riffing on Chappell Roan's track "Hot To Go." Julia Fox made a cameo, introducing Charli's performance of her track "360."
Charli XCX also revisited her past musical guest appearances, having first performed on SNL in 2014 and returning in 2022. Her music set included the track "Sympathy is a Knife," a remix collaboration featuring Ariana Grande. Throughout the evening, Charli demonstrated her versatility, playing characters such as Adele in a "Wicked Auditions" sketch and Victoria Beckham in a Thanksgiving parody.
