Chappell Roan has had a meteoric rise to stardom in the past year. Whether you are a fan of pop music or not, it is likely that you will have heard some of her songs or seen stories about her online. However, these news stories and think pieces that have sprouted up, perhaps need to be brought under questioning. Just how much of a diva is Chappell Roan? And is being a so-called ‘diva’ necessarily a bad thing?
The popstar has recently come under fire for the supposed mistreatment of her fans. Roan cancelled her appearance at the ‘All Things Go’ music festival in New York and Washington just days before she was meant to perform, with the reason being that she had to focus on her health. While this did leave fans disappointed, Chappell Roan has been very vocal about her mental health struggles in the past. Her rapid rise to fame led to her being diagnosed with severe depression and bipolar II, and her previous performances, like her show in Raleigh where she started crying on stage, demonstrates that she has found it difficult to “keep up” with her new life in the public eye. Therefore, it is significant that Roan is not afraid to take the time she needs away from the spotlight in order to keep being the creative artist she is.
Chappell Roan has also been criticised for telling paparazzi at the VMAs to “shut the f**k up.” This type of behaviour was shocking to many because it is not particularly common for celebrities to be so outspoken in a public setting like an awards show, and especially not a woman who has only just broken into the industry. I think the public expectation for Roan at this moment in her career would be for her to smile and wave through everything, and just be thankful that she has finally been recognised for her talents. By acting any differently, even rudely, can turn public opinion against from her. When this clip of Chappell began to circulate online, the story got misconstrued, as it often does on social media, failing to highlight clarifies Roan is actually retaliating against a rude photographer who had verbally assaulted her. In this new light, Roan stands out as a new popstar who is yet to be beaten down by the industry into the perfectly media-trained mould; she is someone who is not afraid to speak their mind and stand up for what is right. Chappell has demonstrated these traits throughout her career by using her fame to uplift the LGBTQ+ community and platform local drag artists on her tour. I think it is so refreshing to have a lesbian mainstream pop artist be so unapologetically themselves, particularly in the current US political climate.
I sympathise with Chappell Roan for some of the harsh criticism she has received. It is important to draw comparisons to how the media has torn down women in the spotlight before, a famous example being Britney Spears. Britney also suffers from bipolar disorder, and she was trying to cope with postpartum depression while under the public’s intense gaze. From a 2024 perspective, it is widely regarded that the way Britney was treated during these battles with her mental health was cruel and only exacerbated her situation. However, Roan does not seem to be given the same grace that we might have come to expect from a modern viewpoint on the importance of maintaining your mental wellbeing. Roan has spoken openly about issues with stalkers and her feeling unsafe or scared for her family. She has also had to deal with another layer of scrutiny from social media that was not as prevalent in the early 2000s, and yet despite all this, she has seemingly been attacked from all angles for prioritising her mental health. There have been too many tragedies in Hollywood because celebrities could not handle the scrutiny of the public eye, that it is perhaps time to mend these problems before history repeats itself.
Chappell Roan does not owe anyone anything, nor does any celebrity. I think that people can often forget that celebrities are humans and just because they provide a service for your entertainment that does not equal to your entitlement of anything more. Chappell is still very early on in her career, but she is clearly a talented individual with a bright future. It is my hope that she maintains her strength and love for her art so she can continue her vital work within the queer community and keep releasing great music.