Chappell Roan is truly — in nearly every way possible — taking the world by storm.
It's hard to miss the Missouri native, now queer pop icon. Her catchy hits "Pink Pony Club," "Hot To Go!" and "Good Luck, Babe" are continuously played on the radio — with the latter ranked No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
On Wednesday night, she made her music awards show performance debut at the MTV Video Music Awards, also sweeping up the VMA for "Best New Artist." And in October, her star-studded face will grace the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. The cover story, which is already accessible on the Rolling Stone website, provides a raw, in-depth look into Roan's quick claim to fame, much of which has been overwhelming for her.
Since gaining more widespread attention earlier this year following the release of her album, "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess," Roan has been outspoken on issues that are important to her — notably those involving the LGBTQ+ community.
The popstar consistently works with local drag queens who open for her concerts, publicly declined an invitation to perform at the White House for Pride Month and next month, she's donating a portion of the proceeds from her concert in Rogers, Arkansas to The GLO Center in Springfield, Missouri.
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But last month, Roan's name was thrown into the public spotlight for a different type of speaking out.
On Aug. 19, Roan posted two videos to TikTok — sporting a T-shirt and messy bun — addressing individuals who have exhibited "predatory behavior" toward her.
In the first of the two videos, Roan poses several questions:
"If you saw a random woman on the street, would you yell at her from the car window? Would you harass her in public? Would you go up to a random lady and say, 'Can I get a photo with you?' and she's like, 'No, what the f**k?' and then you get mad at this random lady? Would you be offended if she says no to your time because she has her own time? Would you stalk her family? Would you follow her around? Would you try to dissect her life and bully her online? This is a lady you don't know and she doesn't know you at all. Would you assume that she's a good person, assume she's a bad person? Would you assume everything you read about her online is true? I'm a random b***h. You're a random b***h. Just think about that for a second, okay?"
She goes on, in the second video, to explain that even though these exhibitions of predatory behavior may be seen as "normal" for celebrities, she won't tolerate them.
"I don't care that this crazy type of behavior comes along the job, the career field I've chosen," she says in the video. "That does not make it okay. It doesn't mean I want it, doesn't mean that I like it. It's weird how people think that you know a person just because you see them online and then listen to the art they make. I'm allowed to say no to creepy behavior, okay?"
As of Thursday, the two videos had more than 32 million views on TikTok, collectively. Within just a few hours, the videos began circulating on social media, with many fans concerned about just who Roan was talking about, with some suggesting the artist was ungrateful for her fan community's support.
A few days later, Roan posted a statement on Instagram addressing the videos.
"For the past 10 years, I've been going nonstop to build my project and it's come to the point that I need to draw lines and set boundaries," she opened the statement with. "I've been in too many nonconsensual physical and social interactions, and I just need to lay it out and remind you: women don't owe you sh**."
Roan goes on to explain that when she is on stage, in drag, performing — she is at work. But otherwise, she is not in "work mode" and doesn't owe people anything.
"I am specifically talking about predatory behavior (disguised as 'superfan' behavior) that has become normalized because of the way women who are well-known have been treated in the past," Roan explains in the statement, clarifying the direction of her TikTok videos.
Though Roan has spent more than a decade honing her craft, for many, she popped out of nowhere, rising to stardom "overnight."
Since Roan's various statements, several female musicians have stepped forward, showing their support for Roan, including Lady Gaga, Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams, Charli XCX and Billie Eilish. Elton John has also shown tremendous support to Roan, speaking with her in several interviews and playing her songs on his radio show, "Rocket Hour."
Rebekah Moore, assistant professor of music at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, said unfortunately, Roan's recent outcry is "very familiar territory."
"I can say without hesitation that every woman I have booked and had more than a causal conversation with has disclosed some form of harassment, abuse, sex assault, violence that she has experienced as a result of being on stage, as a result of being someone who is perceived as being more publicly accessible," Moore said. Throughout her career, Moore has worked in the live music production industry, often working directly with artists.
As a fan of Roan already, Moore said she really liked both the TikTok videos and following Instagram statement because of how direct Roan was.
"I thought she was framing what had happened to her in terms that would get the attention it deserved, so being very blunt about her outrage and wanting to reestablish boundaries," Moore said.
A notable and tragic story that has resurfaced following Roan's statements is that of pop-punk musician Christina Grimmie, who was assassinated at age 22 at a concert in 2016. Following her concert at The Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida, Grimmie met with fans for autographs and photos. As she prepared to go in for a hug with a man who she assumed was a fan, he shot her four times, before killing himself. She died later that evening.
One of the factors that has driven predatory "super fan" behavior in recent years is social media, Moore said.
"We are encouraged through the nature of social media, through the nature of fandom ... to perceive ourselves as being in some sort of relationship with artists whose music we love," Moore said. "Whether or not the songs are actually about them (artists), we interpret these songs as something that reflects their inner workings, their emotional realities, their relationship realities. We think we know them because of their art."
This type of one-sided relationship, between a fan and a public figure, is known as a parasocial relationship.
Holly Holladay, an associate professor of media, journalism and film at Missouri State University, has studied fan and celebrity parasocial relationships extensively. In 2013, she co-published a report dedicated to research on Lady Gaga's Little Monsters fan community.
Holladay said there are typically two categories into which fans fall in parasocial relationships. The first is the "obsessive loner," a fan with "86 Chappell Roan tattoos" who stalks the musician's every move online. The second is the "hysterical mob," who Roan was addressing in her public statements. These "fans" take direct action to more or less take advantage of a celebrity's lack of public boundaries.
Social media has added another layer to this dynamic, allowing fans to feel even closer to those they admire.
"Social media, and this is especially true for social media manned by the celebrity themselves, reduces that distance, reduces that barrier, so that intimacy and the feeling of knowingness is very much increased," Holladay said. "It used to be ... when you learn information about a star, you learn through these very carefully selected channels ... so like celebrity gossip magazines, interviews or press releases. Now, it's almost as if you have a much more direct contact with a celebrity."
In Roan's case, it appears she manages her own social media, especially when she posts videos like the two on TikTok featuring a more relaxed face and attire in comparison to her on-stage persona.
Feeling a sense of hometown protection over Roan, Holladay said she feels sympathy for her.
"I challenge any of us to imagine what it would be like to have everybody giving attention to you overnight," Holladay said.
Perhaps one of the reasons why folks feel so connected to Roan is because of her authenticity, on and off stage.
"She feels so non-manufactured and that's funny because her whole persona is drag, camp," Holladay said, adding that she believes Roan is "radically special" in the way she is representing the LGBTQ+ community.
Moore echoed Holladay.
"I think for rural queers, we didn't have a model quite like this," Moore said.
Reading from her diary as she accepted her "Best New Artist" VMA on Wednesday night, Roan remained authentic to her audience.
"For all the queer kids in the Midwest watching right now, I see you, I understand you because I'm one of you," Roan said during her acceptance speech.
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