The Rise And Rise Of Chappell Roan

Oh, Chappell Roan. From relative obscurity to being the buzziest name in pop, this Midwest Princess is on a rollercoaster career ride. She’s lighting up festivals across the world, with fans belting earworm tracks from ‘Pink Pony Club’ to ‘Casual’, ‘Hot to Go!’ to ‘Red Wine Supernova’. But who is Chappell Roan? If you’re unfamiliar with the pop star – who has just won BBC Radio 1’s Sound of 2025 – here’s what you need to know.

Who Is Chappell Roan?

Chappell Roan is a pop musician who draws inspiration from queer performance art and drag shows to write songs and sing about love, heartbreak, partying and her queer identity. Her debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, was released in September 2023 and, while the initial reception was very positive, she has only gained fans since then. As of July 2024, the singer has more than 30 million monthly Spotify listeners; in September 2023, she had around 1 million. Her exponential rise in popularity kicked off in spring 2024 thanks to her NPR Tiny Desk, performing at New York’s Governors Ball, opening for Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour, the release of ‘Good Luck, Babe!’, and her two blow-out Coachella performances (where she famously introduced herself, ‘I’m Chappell Roan, and I’m your favourite artist’s favourite artist’, referencing drag queen Sasha Colby). By June, her monthly listeners had skyrocketed to 20 million.

Born in 1998, Chappell Roan (whose real name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz) signed a record deal with Atlantic Records as early as 2017, but she never achieved commercial success. By 2018, she had moved to Los Angeles, citing this as the first time she felt able to live openly as a queer woman. She supported Declan McKenna on his US tour in 2018, too.

In 2020, Roan started working with songwriter and producer Dan Nigro, which led to ‘Pink Pony Club’ being released in April of that year. She followed the track up with ‘Love Me Anyway’ and ‘California’, but a lack of success prompted Atlantic to drop her from the label in August 2020. Meanwhile, her boyfriend of four years broke up with her, and she worked as a production assistant, barista and nanny to make ends meet. By early 2021, Nigro had found success with Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Driver’s License’, turning his attention to the Disney star, while Roan struggled to find a collaborator she liked as much. As a result, she returned home to Missouri to work on her music while working at a drive-through.

‘I gave it a year, but I didn’t actually start making money where I could afford my rent until, like, the past maybe year,’ she recently reflected in an interview with Jimmy Fallon.

By March 2022, the songwriters reunited: Roan was signed to Sony, and the duo created ‘Naked in Manhattan’. She was selected to support Olivia Rodrigo on her Sour Tour, and also released ‘Femininomenon’ in August 2022 and ‘Casual’ in October 2022. After touring North America in February 2023, Roan released her debut full length album in September 2023, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, and went on another tour. She rejoined Rodrigo on tour in April 2024, and that’s when her fame really spiralled.

In fact, the pace with which Roan’s fame skyrocketed has scared the artist; she has described so-called fans with ‘stalker vibes’, sharing that some have followed her, found out where her parents live, and where her sister works. She told Drew Afualo on The Comment Section podcast that she has ‘pumped the brakes on, honestly, anything to make me more known. It’s kind of a forest fire right now.’

BBC Radio 1: Sound of 2025

While Roan has been popular in the UK across these wild 12 months – on the radio, in the charts and on streaming platforms – the pop star is about to get even more relevant for British listeners. Roan has been crowned the Sound of 2025 by BBC Radio 1, the station’s annual poll used to identify music’s biggest rising stars. Voters are a panel of more than 180 musicians and experts, including the likes of Sir Elton John, Dua Lipa and Sam Smith (who won the award in 2014). The news follows Roan being named ‘Future Artist of the Month’ by Radio 1 in May 2024.

‘No one deserves this accolade more than Chappell Roan,’ Radio 1 DJ Jack Saunders said on the news. ‘She was the most exciting artist of the last 12 months and is now set to be THE artist of the next 12 months. The success is all her own doing: standing tall in the face of the doubters and keeping her community close to fuel the energy of her shows and musical movements. Congratulations Chappell, 2025 is your year!’

The top five acts for Sound of 2025 are:

1. Chappell Roan
2. Ezra Collective
3. Barry Can’t Swim
4. Myles Smith
5. English Teacher

Roan joins a long list of winners, with the award dating back to 2003. Previous winners include 50 Cent, Adele, HAIM, Stormzy, Adele, Lady Gaga, RAYE, The Weeknd, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, Lewis Capaldi and, most recently, The Last Dinner Party.

LISTEN

The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess is streaming now.