

At the time it came out she included a short bio about herself, saying that the songs she writes were about her mates and experiences, and that she played all the instruments and did all the singing, including the backing vocals, but her drumming was a bit shit so she got her producer Darren to drum on 'Lucy'. In late 2008 promo copies of her album were released, along with two singles, '!Franchesckaar!' and the double A-side 'Emelline'/'Art Bitch', all on her own Orgy Music label. She was billed on flyers under the stage name Charli XCX, which was her MSN Messenger display name when she was younger, and despite the illicit nature of the gigs, her parents were supportive of her career and attended several raves with her. This caught the attention of a promoter running numerous illegal warehouse raves and parties in east London, who invited her to perform. She managed to convince her parents to apply for a loan for her to record her first album '14', and in early 2008, she began posting songs from the album, as well as numerous other demos, on her official Myspace page. While her parents were not very musical, she demonstrated an affinity for music from an early age, being interested in pop acts such as the Spice Girls and Britney Spears, and she began writing songs at the age of 14, writing a song called 'Fish and Chips Shop'. Charlotte Emma Aitchison was born on 2 August 1992 in Cambridge, and raised in Start Hill, Essex.
