Confidence has never been a costume for Lydia Habtemariam. Born in Toronto to Ethiopian roots and now based in Los Angeles, the Canadian singer-songwriter has spent the better part of the past decade building an alter ego in Chxrry — one that is sexy, self-assured and unapologetically larger than life.

Formerly known as Chxrry22, she made history in 2022 as the first female artist signed to The Weeknd’s XO label, introducing herself to the world through a blend of R&B, pop and braggadocious storytelling that felt both glamorous and emotionally raw. Her 2023 EP, Siren, hinted at an artist with undeniable star power, but three years later and one year removed from dropping the “22” from her name, Chxrry sounds more certain than ever about who she is and what she wants to say.

That certainty powers her debut album, U, Me & My Ego. After scrapping an earlier version of the project, Chxrry rebuilt the album from the ground up alongside rising producer Believve, relying on an unspoken creative chemistry that allowed her to lean fully into radical honesty, confidence and self-examination. Across records like “Main Character” and confidence anthem “Hall of Fame,” she challenges the way people perceive ego, questioning why self-assurance, particularly in women, is so often mistaken for arrogance.

“I don’t fit in anything,” she tells Billboard. “I feel like I’ve created my own lane.”

Throughout U, Me & My Ego, Chxrry is as transparent as she’s ever been, balancing vulnerability with unwavering self-belief. The result is a project that doesn’t just introduce another pop-R&B star; it presents an artist fully committed to becoming her own blueprint.

Ahead of her debut album, Billboard’s Hip-Hop Up and Comer for June 2026 opens up about embracing her “It-girl” status, making music on her own terms and why she believes everything she does is always 10 steps ahead.

You’ve been called an “It-girl” a lot lately. What does that label mean to you personally, and do you feel pressure that comes with it?

I think it’s fitting. I think based on my track record, it kind of makes sense that people would call me an “it girl.” And I feel like the girls who listen to me are typically “It-girls” too. I feel like it fits.

Your music feels confident and glamorous, but also emotionally raw. How do you balance vulnerability with maintaining that larger-than-life image?

I was just thinking about this today, actually. I think naturally I’m a more confident person, so I lead with confidence.

I definitely think it’s been a work in progress trying to be more vulnerable — or not even trying to because I am a very vulnerable person in real life — but letting that side of me come out more easily with time. I know it’ll get easier and become more natural.

I think the more connected I feel to my fans, the more vulnerable I want to be because I feel safer. I think before, I didn’t feel as safe.

 So how does that connection make you feel safe?

I feel like someone cares. Sharing on deaf ears can feel pointless. That’s kind of sad to say, but it does feel a little pointless, and you’d rather lead with happiness.

I also struggle with singing sad songs all the time. I think very much in the future, and I know my sadness or insecurities aren’t how I feel full-time. I don’t necessarily want to sing or manifest bad things all the time, so I’m careful with what I say.

I do feel there are different sides to everyone, and it’s important to showcase those sides. I think my fans wanting to hear me speak about other things and unravel more parts of myself makes me want to do it.

That connection makes me want to be more vulnerable because it feels like they want to hear those sides of me too, and they’re not going to judge me for it.

You’re the first woman signed to XO Records. Did that feel empowering, intimidating, or both when it first happened?

I think it felt like fate and it felt fitting. I’ve never gotten an opportunity that I thought was too big for my boots. I’ve never gotten anything that I didn’t think I worked for. That’s the beauty of my career and the pace that I’m moving at. It all feels like it’s happening at the right time, when I deserve it and when I’ve earned it. I’ve always just been prepared. I guess I’ve just never been shocked by anything.

What’s something people assume about you from the music or visuals that’s actually completely wrong?

Uh, we’d be here all day. We’d be here all day. I actually just saw them fighting about me again. They fight about something involving me every day. Maybe the biggest misconception is that I don’t know what I’m doing, when I always know what I’m doing. I’m always ahead — like 10 steps ahead of every trend and everything else. I think a lot of times I’m misunderstood and misjudged. But then everyone ends up liking what I do or doing some form of what I’m doing.

The title U, Me & My Ego feels deeply personal. What made “ego” the central theme of this project?

Naturally, I do have a very big ego. I’ve learned to manage it, and I’ve learned to, I wouldn’t say contain it, because I don’t think an ego should necessarily be contained if you look at it from a positive aspect. I carry a certain confidence that a lot of people are maybe intimidated by or look at negatively because we’re programmed to think it’s a bad thing when somebody thinks highly of themselves.

The more I wrote about myself and that topic, the more I wanted to challenge the word. I think we throw words around very loosely, and we don’t really challenge why we think the way we think or why we categorize certain things as negative, and who we categorize as negative.

That was really important to me. I think my mission in my career and my legacy is to constantly challenge what we consider normal and the things we automatically deem negative. I just really love to challenge those ideas. So yeah, that’s kind of why I did it.

You described this album as leaning into “radical honesty.” Was there a song that was difficult to release because it revealed too much?

It was the easiest to write, though, which says something. Sometimes, I’m painted as this villain. There are times I relish in it, and then there are times I get annoyed by it because I feel like I’m demonized for a lot of the things I say and do, even though it’s genuinely how a lot of people feel.

When I made “Boring,” I knew it was special. I knew it was amazing, and I knew it was nothing I’d ever heard before. But I also know that when you do things that are different, challenging, or say things that maybe people think shouldn’t be said out loud, it comes with a lot of judgment.

Honestly, I feel like Madonna. I feel like I’m the new Madonna, and everything I do is seen as too much and too polarizing. But I think that’s what makes me iconic, and I think that’s why I am who I am and why I’ll be around for a really long time.

How do you feel like this album represents who you are right now versus the artist you were two years ago?

I don’t give a f—k even more now. Now I’ve leaned so far into who I am that I feel like there’s nothing anyone says or does that could affect me or get in my way or make me wanna be any less of who I am, and I really enjoy who I am even more.

I don’t know if it’s just working on this album and crafting my own lane and my own sound and even visually this whole year of seeing everything I’ve brought to life and seeing all the things that I’ve accomplished. I’m the s—t. Even the b—ches who don’t like me wanna be me, so I don’t give a f—k. That’s how I feel.

Is your ego something you feel protects you, challenges you, or both?

 Bro, that b—ch is annoying. She’s also my biggest protector because I think there’s a lot of things I would’ve — I guess for lack of a better word — gone for. There’s a lot of things I would’ve agreed to, a lot of contracts I maybe would’ve signed, [and] a lot of deals I would’ve been in.

There’s a lot of things I’ve passed up on or turned my back to because I just felt like I was too good for it. And there’s a lot of relationships, friendships, and situations that my ego has protected me from because I always had this feeling — like, no, I’m better than this. I’m too good for this man, I’m too good for this deal, I’m too good for this whatever.

And sure, it’s rubbed some people the wrong way, but it’s also gotten me here. That unwavering confidence and unwavering ego, she’s both my protector and my pain in the ass. Because sometimes I do take it too far and I’m like, “All right girl, come down to earth.” But I’ve learned to balance it.

“Hall of Fame” feels like a full confidence anthem. What mindset were you in when you created that record?

I knew I wanted a pop song, and I knew I wanted one reminiscent of the way I grew up; people like Nicki Minaj and Rihanna and just the way pop songs used to make you feel. There was an era where pop really dominated and it was so fun, so I knew I wanted something like that sonically on the project.

And I knew I wanted to talk about being out at night. Originally the concept was “the city is my stage,” but my friends were like, “Girl, you cannot say that out loud, that is so wack.” And I was like, “Oh, okay.”

So I went back in, and the concept of a hall of fame and the city knowing my name just kind of came naturally. It took us a minute to make that song, honestly, because I was like, “How can I make this not corny?” It has to be the perfect balance of me, cool, and fun.

A lot of your records move effortlessly between R&B and pop. Do you consciously think about genre when making music, or do you just follow the feeling?

The first line on the album is, “F—k a pop star, baby, I’m a cinema.” I think I don’t fit in anything, like truly and not even just sonically. I just think as a person, I don’t fit the mold of what a pin-up poster girl is. I have a potty mouth, I’m very sexually liberated, and I’m just all the things that you probably shouldn’t let your kids want to be.

So I just don’t really subscribe to all the boxes. I won’t say genres, because truly I love pop, I love R&B. I feel like I’ve created my own lane, and I’m just pop and B. And if you want to box me into something, sure, you can box me in that.

But if you really want to know how I genuinely feel, I just feel like I’m an icon, and I don’t fit in anything. And everything I do, down to my style, the way I dress, the way I talk, the way I look, the way I act, is different from everybody. And I really don’t want to be like anybody or be put in any box. So I just let them put me in whatever they want.

“Groupie,” “Main Character” and “Hall of Fame” all made the album, but “Just Like Me” didn’t. What made you decide to leave that track off the final project?

Who sent you? Did my fans send you? I think when I originally started making an album, it started with the sonics of “Poppin Out,” “Just Like Me,” and then I needed a third single, but I didn’t feel like I had it. At the time I had a full album, but I felt like I didn’t have it.

I went back in and made “Main Character,” that was the first time in my life I felt like, “Oh my God, this is just me,” fully. There’s no separation. It matches my look, my aura, the way I feel, the things I like. It was everything all in one.

People didn’t really like “Main Character” in my life personally when I first played it. No one really understood it, but I had this unwavering confidence I don’t always have with my music. I’m confident in a lot of things, but when it comes to music, if even one friend is like “mm,” I’ll rethink everything.

But this is the one song I was like, “No. You can’t convince me this isn’t the best song ever.” This is the one, this is gonna f—k the city up. So I went against all odds, I teased it and it blew up. It took the internet by storm, but I knew it was gonna do that.

That moment kind of rewired my entire brain chemistry and made me want to make a new album that felt more aligned with that feeling, doing what I like and what feels most true to me. Because I noticed even with this whole rollout, leaning into myself fully has brought the right fans to me and made me grow in ways I couldn’t have planned.

But yeah, when it was all said and done, those songs just didn’t feel like they fit in my new world. But I love them too. 

What do you think makes a “Chxrry” record instantly recognizable?

I think urgency. I think whether my songs are slow or fast, there’s a sense of urgency in my voice and what I have to say. I think you can hear it the minute you press play. For sure.

You’ve toured with artists like Mariah the Scientist and FLO recently. What have those experiences taught you about commanding a stage?

I think they’re both incredible artists in different ways. The girls from FLO are so in sync, and even just watching them, they don’t miss a beat, a note, or a move. It’s just so cool how synchronized they are and that’s something I really admire about them.

And with Mariah the Scientist, there’s just a connection she has with her fans that I’ve never really seen in another artist. They’re literally on the tip of her tongue, and I think that’s something really inspiring to me.

I’ve been so lucky to go on tour with women who really push the needle, inspire me, and are just really cool people in real life.

Is there a difference between “studio Chxrry” and “performing Chxrry?”

No, they’re kind of the same. When I lock into like Chxrry mode, it’s even like when I walk into parties — I’ve had multiple people tell me like, “I see a certain energy.”

There’s no difference. When Chxrry’s on, it goes on and I’m just the greatest thing on God’s green earth.

What’s the most “main character” thing you’ve done recently?

 Asked for a Birkin from a guy.

What’s a lyric on the album that best describes who you are right now?

“You mad, uh, been bad, but I ain’t been bad enough. You mad. Well, you gonna be mad as f—k, ‘cause b—es are gonna be mad as f—k when I drop this album.”

If someone had never heard your music before, which song from U, Me & My Ego should they start with first and why?

“U, Me & My Ego” because I think it describes me as a person pretty well and what you’re getting yourself into. So it’s like a prophet. It’s like a warning.

What’s something you want people to understand about Chxrry beyond the aesthetic and confidence?

That I’m a genius, and I’m like a prophet almost. Literally, everything I do and say should not be taken lightly and should be appreciated and studied for years to come because I never miss. I literally never miss, and I’m always 10 steps ahead, and it’s fine. I don’t need my flowers or my pat on the back, but I just wish you guys had paid attention a little sooner — because you’ll be on game, way quicker than most.

Eventually, everything I do, say and am has manifested itself in other ways, and it becomes a thing. So the sooner you listen to me, the sooner you’ll be with the s—ts.

What does success actually look like for you beyond numbers and attention?

Success for me is people genuinely connecting to me and feeling seen and heard because of my music. I always say I wish I had a me growing up. I want people who listen to my music to feel like, “When no one was there for me, Chxrry’s music was…” Or, “If no one understands me, Chxrry understands me.”

Albums like Born to Die by Lana Del Rey or Loud by Rihanna have literally gotten me through so much heartache in my life. Even when I lost my mom, I remember certain albums genuinely getting me through it. And even Ye’s music really got me through a lot because I felt like no one understood me, no therapist, no counselor, no friend. I just felt like nobody understood me at all.

So I hope my music can make people feel like that too.