Daniel Kreps
Contact Daniel Kreps on X Contact Daniel Kreps by Email View all posts by Daniel Kreps August 9, 2026
The Strokes and Charli XCX @ Outside Lands YouTube The Strokes brought out surprise guest Charli XCX to perform “Take It or Leave It” during the band’s headlining set Saturday at the Outside Lands festival.
“We got a special little guest. A big guest. A superstar,” Julian Casablancas told the crowd before alluding to the fact that both artists released new albums — the Strokes’ Reality Awaits, Charli’s Music, Fashion, Film — on the same day in July.
“We had a great battle. Congratulations, you defeated us in the album sales. You’re new queen of everything, Charli XCX.” The group and the singer — who headlined the previous night at the San Francisco fest — then launched into the Is This It? closer:
“Charli motherfucking XCX,” Casablancas said after the surprise performance, circling back to their sales battle. “Yep, she won. She won by a lot.”
