Chappell Roan began her music career when she was sixteen, posting covers on youtube in her hometown Willard, Missouri. At age seventeen, she signed with Atlantic Records after gaining popularity. In 2017, Roan released her first debut EP (extended play) titled “School Nights”. Roan then moved from Missouri to Los Angeles.
“Chappell Roan” is only this iconic pop star’s stage name. Her real name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz. She chose ‘Chappell’ in honor of her Grandfather, Dennis K. Chappell, who passed away from brain cancer. ‘Roan’ comes from her grandfather’s favorite song, The Strawberry Roan by Curley Fletcher.
Roan is a huge advocate of women’s and LGBTQ+ rights. She makes them feel safe and welcome, and she helps them accept themselves and their sexuality. Her songs ‘Femininomenon’ and ‘Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl’ from her 2023 album ‘The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess’, express her femininity and her sexuality in her lyrics. The songs help other women and LGBTQ+ feel confident within their identity.
Roan was an opener for Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Sour Tour’ back in 2022 which helped her gain some popularity. Despite only having an EP out at that time, she had a couple singles. She performed songs like, ‘Pink Pony Club’, ‘California’, ‘After Midnight’ and many more. Her first studio album ‘The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess’ came out on Sep. 22, 2023.
Roan also opened up for Rodrigo’s ‘Guts Word Tour’ from Feb.-Apr. 2024 performing new hits.
Roan also performed at 2024 Coachella, which made her even more popular. She performs a song called ‘HOT TO GO!’ with a super fun dance for fans to do as she sings it. Senior AlLana Padilla says “I don’t listen to Chappell Roan’s music, but I really love her song ‘HOT TO GO’, it
is very catchy”. She also performed at Gov Ball in June 2024, dressed in Statue of Liberty drag, and she broke the record for biggest crowd with over one hundred forty thousand people in attendance.
Roan has performed on late night shows such as, “The Late Night Show with Stephen Colbert” and “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” and she will be hosting SNL on Nov. 2nd with comedian and actor John Mulaney.
Roan had a new single come out in Apr. 2024, called ‘Good Luck, Babe!’ which was on the Billboard Hot 100 for 24 weeks at number 4. Other songs that were on the charts at minimum five weeks and maximum sixteen weeks were ‘Red Wine Supernova’, ‘Pink Pony Club’, ‘Femininomenon’, ‘Casual’, ‘My Kink is Karma’, and ‘HOT TO GO!’.
Roan’s stage makeup is not like other artists, her’s is unique. Roan dresses in drag. She honors the beauty and history of drag in her performances even though drag is demonized in the media. Roan honored Sasha Colby, who is a drag queen by saying “I’m your favorite artist’s favorite artist” inspired from when Colby said “I’m your drag queen’s favorite drag queen”. Senior Vincent Montero says “I love Chappell Roan’s music because I love her lyrics and how witty they are”. Montero also adds, “I love her voice, she really is talented and that is what I love most about her”.
There is no doubt that Chappell Roan’s popularity is only going up and she will have a very successful career in the music industry.
