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Thousands of fans crowd around the stage as Chappell Roan’s voluminous red hair bounces around. Energetic dancing, hot pink flashing lights, screaming fans: this is the standard that fans can expect at any Chappell Roan performance.
Roan has taken the world by storm within the past five months. The up-and-coming pop artist has produced music since 2017; however, she is only now being discovered and appreciated worldwide.
In September of 2023, Roan released her newest album titled The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. “This album is for the 10-year-old girl from the Midwest who never thought she could be herself … I hope you feel freedom and joy when you listen,” Roan said on her Instagram post dedicated to the album.
This album led her to open for Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts tour from February to April. This is often seen as her “big break” since it increased her media exposure. Her music became more popular on social media as her song “Casual” began to trend on TikTok, leading to more viral videos of her image and music.
This past April, Roan released her most recent single, “Good Luck, Babe!” which received over one million streams in one day and has continued growing since. Just two weeks later, she performed at Coachella on April 12 and 19, where tens of thousands of fans watched her set and participated in her popular “HOT TO GO” dance.
“I think after she went on tour with Olivia Rodrigo [Roan] became really big, and then also when ‘Good Luck, Babe!’ came out she became even bigger,” junior and fan Noah Thaler said.
For many fans, Roan’s unique outfits, 80’s drag aesthetic, and “campy” vibe have attracted them to Roan and her music.
“I honestly had no idea who she was, but she opened for the [Olivia Rodrigo] show and had fun songs and wore a cool pink outfit,” senior and fan Sophia Kan said.
Roan’s performances are often a highlight, as Roan puts a lot of effort into making entertaining and engaging shows for her fans.
“I loved creating songs for the audience, specifically for audience participation,” Roan said during an interview with Crucial Rhythm.
Throughout the summer, Roan performed live at numerous festivals, including Hangout Music Festival, The Governer’s Ball, Lollapalooza, and more. On August 11, Roan performed at San Francisco’s Outside Lands Music Festival where many students had the opportunity to see her perform live.
Roan is able to get the crowd excited about her, whether or not they know her music. She ensures that everyone is having a good time and participating. “Seeing Chappell Roan live at Outside Lands was so fun, especially because such a huge crowd was watching,” Kan said.
Although Roan has only been in the spotlight for a few months, she has received a fair share of inappropriate behavior from fans. These experiences signify the downsides that may arise with fame.
In a recent TikTok from Roan, she expresses the anger that she feels from uncomfortable fan behavior. “I don’t give a f*** if you think it’s selfish of me to say no to a photo or for your time or for a hug. That’s not normal — it’s weird. It’s weird how people think that you know a person just cause you see them online and you listen to the art they make … I’m allowed to say no to creepy behavior,” Roan said.
Roan is redefining celebrity boundaries, making it clear to fans that she is also just a regular person going about her day.
“I think [Roan’s anger at the fan behavior] is fair. Her family was getting stalked …Just because you become famous doesn’t mean you sign up to be stalked your entire life. And honestly, I agree. If I was famous, and I was out in public, I wouldn’t want to give signatures and smiles every day,” Thaler said.
Despite these challenges, Roan still thrives as a new artist in the spotlight. Currently, she has over 44 million monthly listeners and is on tour in Europe. She plans to perform at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in October, where fans will get to see the world’s new ‘femininomenon’ in person.
