ratbag (musician)

Sophie Brown (born 2003),^[1] known mononymously as ratbag, is a New Zealand musician and multimedia artist. Active since 2021, her music draws influence from grunge, shoegaze, punk, and pop,^[2][3] and often features surreal horror-inspired visuals centered on a fictional cartoon band of monsters, which she depicts in various artistic mediums. After building a following on TikTok, Brown released her debut EP, why aren't you laughing?, in December 2023.

Originally from Auckland, New Zealand, Brown drew art from a young age, and was a fan of horror films growing up.^[2] She received her first guitar at age 7 as a Christmas present,^[4] but did not pursue music until age 15, when she began writing songs in her bedroom on her father's ukulele.^[2][1]

Brown began making art and music as ratbag in 2021.^[2] In Australia and New Zealand, ratbag is a common slang term for a mischievous child, which Brown has said she was often labeled growing up.^[2] After building an audience on TikTok with a series of surreal multimedia art, she released her first single as ratbag, "rats in my walls", in July 2023.^[5][3] A second single, "exit girl", was released the following September with an accompanying music video.^[3] Both singles were included on ratbag's debut EP, why aren't you laughing?, released 8 December 2023.^[6][1]

Brown's music incorporates elements of punk, shoegaze, grunge, pop, art pop, and alternative rock.^[3][4][2][7] Her musical influences include Pixies, Broken Social Scene, David Bowie, Declan McKenna, and Billie Eilish.^[3][2] Brown has said she enjoys experimenting with sounds in her music: "I like to take normal sounds and make them really weird – I’m really into reversing. I like mucking around with the little pieces of vocals and cutting it up. It’s almost like I’m dissecting things in my computer."^[2]

The music of ratbag is often accompanied by surrealist drawings and animations created by Brown. These typically feature her fictional band of animated monsters: Deemo, a devil-like bassist; Fritz, a crocodile-clown hybrid keyboardist; Slug, a guitarist in a mohawked bird mask; and Eugene, a purple octopus-headed drummer.^[4][2] According to Brown, each of the four monsters represents a different part of her personality.^[2] These visual elements have been compared to those of Gorillaz, Dethklok, the children's book Where the Wild Things Are, and the art of comic book writer Neil Gaiman.^[3][2] Brown herself has cited Jack Stauber, the shows Don't Hug Me I'm Scared and Adventure Time, and A24-produced horror films like Midsommar and Hereditary as inspiring the visual and narrative aspects of her work.^[4][2]

Brown has a substantial following on TikTok, where she posts digital art and stop motion animations of her "band" and the story surrounding them,^[2] as well as showcasing her love of sculpture, claymation, photography, fashion, and other artistic mediums.^[3][1][5]

• Official website