Is Chappell Roan a Lesbian? Exploring Her Queer Identity in Pop Music
Chappell Roan is an absolute icon in the queer community and as far as queer pop stars go, she’s pretty open about her sexuality.
We’ll be exploring how this young pop artist embraces her lesbian identity whilst continuing to be the midwest princess we all know and love!
Coming Out to the Queer Community in Ohio
As with any star making it big in mainstream pop music, the pink pony club singer was coming face to face with claims about her sexuality as soon as she hit the big time.
Roan’s songs describe tales of struggling with life as a queer performer and also embracing her queer identity so it’s no surprise to fans when the word lesbian was thrown around.
Queer culture has shown plenty of similarities between Chappell Roan and her make up and the sort of make up you see on a drag queen. Many a well known drag queen has even said that Chappell Roan is an honorary queen herself.
When talking with Rolling Stone in 2024, the red wine supernova singer described feeling as though “something was wrong with her” and felt lesbian was a bad word which is why the word lesbian deliberately gets used by Roan to describe her identity.
From Midwest Princess to Mainstream Pop Music
Chappell Roan had an upbringing reminiscent of many queer pop stars in the way that she actually had a pretty religious upbringing. Her lesbian identity was something she struggled with for a while because of her Christian roots.
This has been a pretty prominent theme even included in BBC’s sapphic reality dating show “I Kissed a Girl” where many ladies discussed their queer identity and how they struggled to use the word lesbian for a long time as it has been a fraught word and a playground insult for many years. But more recent definitions of the word lesbian include non binary identities and make it trans inclusive. Trans exclusionary radical feminists have tried to claim the term lesbian does not include these people but recently, they have been proven wrong.
Other lesbian musicians like Renee Rapp have also struggled with their queer identity. Rapp’s queer identity was no surprise to queer people as she had previously come out as bisexual with the word lesbian only being used when she officially came out to Saturday Night Live. In fact, it was a friend of Rapp who said it would be “really fucking sick” if you came out on SNL.
Queer Pop Stars Representing Lesbians Recently
It was pretty rare for a queer woman to openly share her dating experience in mainstream fame yet recently, there have been a few examples.
Of course, Chappell Roan gave up a glimpse of her romantic interests in good luck babe where her wide vocal range and foregrounded rhythm guitar showed her musical talent as well as writing capabilities. Roan’s music regularly comments on how many emotions as shared between herself and a former lover with her belting soprano soaring effortlessly through the tracks. Many say Chappell Roan has a sound reminiscent of Cyndi Lauper and Kate Bush.
Within the mainstream recently Renee Rapp rose to fame for her performance as Regina George in mean girls on broadway. Her broadway roots immediately gave her a little extra personality within the music industry making both Roan and Rapp popular within the queer community. She also performed the song Not My Fault with Megan Thee Stallion, another sapphic artist.
Rapp’s debut album, Snow Angel features the song Pretty Girls that describes an emotional conversation shared by many lesbians where a pretty girl downs a couple drinks and it makes them wanna kiss women. Sadly, these women would never use the word lesbian to describe themselves and just tend to get drunk and kiss women.
Snow Angel and the song Pretty Girls has been a pretty pivotal moment for many lesbians as it includes the lyrics:
“In the pm, all the pretty girls They have a couple drinks, all the pretty girls So now they wanna kiss all the pretty girls They got to have a taste of a pretty girl.”
These lyrics are very similar to some of the sad undertones we see in Good Luck Babe from Roan’s music on the album the rise and fall of a midwest princess.
Chappell Roan’s Success So Far
Chappell Roan whose birth name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz showcased her incredible vocal talent for many years before hitting the big time has given us music festivals with serious Cyndi Lauper vibes and fan favourite lyric lines that’ll be remembered forever.
Her breakout album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess touched on when Roan moved to Los Angeles in 2018, leaving her own childhood behind and taking on the world all by herself.
Roan’s sound is so refreshing as it is distinctly far away from the usual female pop star that caters solely to the male gaze. Instead, Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, stage name, Chappell Roan is a star for the trans people, the queer folks, and the girls!
How Chappell Roan’s Upbringing Shaped Her Music
You might wonder how a lesbian girl from the Midwest became so supportive of trans people. Well, this gender inclusive superstar started off working in a summer camp long before she signed to Atlantic Records. It was also before she signed to Atlantic Records that she worked alongside drag stars which is touched on in rise and fall.
The stage name Chappell Roan comes from a combination of her grandfather’s last name and his favourite song “The Strawberry Roan.” Whilst rise and fall mentions her happiness to move to LA, it does feature her slight tones of homesickness and how she still hears her mama’s “Southern drawl” which definitely shows how she has remained grounded.
With a few notable exceptions, most popstars quickly go wild when they hit the big time yet Roan still manages to keep it real. Her recent outbursts at onlookers treating her like a performing animal was another glimpse into the realness of Roan, making her one of the most loved stars of the century.
At the 2025 Grammy’s she even made a point to ask labels to give up and coming stars access to a minimum wage and healthcare showing her kind heart and how much she wants to change the way artists are treated now she has a platform to do so.
References:
https://taimi.com/blog/chappell-roan-a-queer-icon-and-midwest-princess/
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