Breakout pop star Chappell Roan on the ‘abusive’ side of fame: ‘If this ever gets dangerous, I might quit’
“Hot to Go!” singer Chappell Roan is on fire as one of the breakout pop stars of 2024.
But the “Midwest Princess” — who was just crowned Best New Artist at the MTV VMAs last week — is already burning out on what she calls the “abusive” side of fame.
“I feel like fame is just abusive,” Roan, 26, told The Face in a new cover story. “The vibe of this — stalking, talking s–t online, [people who] won’t leave you alone, yelling at you in public — is the vibe of an abusive ex-husband.
“That’s what it feels like. I didn’t know it would feel this bad.”
She’s already drawn some clear boundaries for herself with invasive, aggressive fan behavior.
“I told myself, if this ever gets dangerous, I might quit,” Roan said. “It’s dangerous now, and I’m still going. But that part is not what I signed up for.”
Roan detailed an incident at the airport that she said was especially disturbing.
?“I get out of the car, it’s 5:30 in the morning, and there’s two guys waiting with a bunch of posters and s–t for me to sign,” she told The Face. ?“I know they’re not fans. I said no. I was like, ?‘I don’t sign anything at the airport, I’m sorry.’”
But the harassment didn’t end there.
“[One of them] follows me to the TSA line, starts yelling at me and everyone just turns and looks,” she explained. “He’s like, ?‘You should really humble yourself. Do you know where you are right now? Don’t forget where you came from.'”
The “Good Luck, Babe!” singer was taken aback by the encounter: “I’m just like: ?‘What the f–k is going on?’”
Shaken by the events, Roan ended up crying in the airport bathroom and texting “Royals” songstress Lorde, asking for advice.
“She sent me a list of things I should do [in that situation],” said Roan. ?“Literally wrote down eight things she wished someone would have told her when she was going through it. And she went through f–king hell. She was a baby!”
Roan has also bonded with Sabrina Carpenter, another rising pop star adjusting to new levels of fame after a sizzling summer.
“No one understands that it truly falls all on you,” she said of commiserating with the “Espresso” singer. “No one understands except other artists … Sabrina [Carpenter] even texted me: ‘Hey, I feel crazy. I know you feel crazy.’ So it’s, like, girlies leaning on each other.”
Roan — who will release deluxe vinyl editions of her debut album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” on Friday to celebrate its first anniversary — has also received support from everyone, including Lady Gaga and Charli XCX to Lizzo and Katy Perry.
“They were immediately, immediately supportive,” Roan said of her fellow pop divas. ?“It’s been so amazing, because I’m very scared and confused.”
