This article was originally published on Noisey UK

Picture this: October 2014. The smoky, narrow, dimly lit, 650-person capacity room at London’s Hoxton bar is over-packed with teenagers and grown-men alike. Charli XCX, after a considerably successful year, is performing an encore at her Toronto concert of the smash hit, “Fancy.” What gets the crowd going—more than the irresistible hook of the chorus, more than the thought of a Clueless-themed music video—is a chant led by Charli. “Let’s try something right now, you ready? It goes ‘pussy, pussy, power, power!’” Everyone in the crowd recites the chant right back, screaming in perfect unison, dripping in sweat, and excited by the prospect of this blunt cheer. A couple months later, on the cusp of 2015, Charli releases her second album, Sucker. Skip to track eight and you will hear “Body of my Own”—a sleek, slippery song playing out as an ode to masturbation. Charli sings with a snarl and a wink about getting high alone in the dark, admitting that “I can make it feel just like I’m hanging on / yeah I can do it better when I’m all alone.” Pussy power, indeed.

Fast forward to almost exactly a year since Sucker, and there has been an extreme influx of self-love pop anthems released this year. Don’t get it wrong, though; self-love by women is not by any means a new concept. There have been plenty of songs about self-pleasure and confidence over past years. The 1984 release of Cyndi Lauper’s “She Bop” polarized between controversy and celebratory dancing, “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera expressed a new kind of powerful vulnerability and prompted a memorable Mean Girls scene, while two releases by Britney Spears walked both paths: “Touch of my Hand” and “Stronger,” the former being a sly self-pleasure tune, the latter a self-empowering anthem (featuring an astonishing music video, in which Britney does some tricks with a chair). Not to mention girl groups such as Destiny’s Child, TLC, and the Spice Girls, whose hits of independence and girl power have inspired many.

However, 2015 is clearly the year of self-love for women. This year there have probably been enough think pieces deconstructing the true psychological meaning of selfies, and whether or not self-love is narcissistic to fill a futile self-help book. But the reality is, women are dominating the music scene with anthems of self-love and respect—and audiences are now receptive to it.

“Feeling Myself” – Beyoncé and Nicki Minaj

The Pinkprint

“You Don’t Know” – Junglepussy

Satisfaction Guaranteed Pregnant with Success (Read out interview with JP here.)

“Happy” – Marina and the Diamonds

an interview Froot (Read our interview with Marina here.)

“Bo$$” – Fifth Harmony

X-Factor Reflection Give it to me I’m worth it’

“Yoga” – Janelle Monae

Q.U.E.E.N. Electric Lady

“Love Myself” – Hailee Steinfeld

In an interview

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It’s clear that self-love isn’t necessarily a trend but a common feeling that is being exposed—and accepted—now more than ever. As 2015 comes to a close, while we are left with an incredible amount of self-empowering content made by women, Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself” is climbing the charts. Bieber says, “You should go and love yourself” as if it’s a command or a snarky suggestion. The ladies are one step ahead of you, Justin.

Hannah Ziegler is a writer based in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter.