Chappell Roan

Roan is a lesbian and was raised in a conservative Christian environment. She has said that moving to Los Angeles in 2018 allowed her to live openly as a queer woman and to write music as her authentic self. She no longer identifies with the church and has described her relationship with religion as evolving.

Roan was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder at age 22 and entered outpatient care in 2022 while trying to find effective medication. She has also discussed severe depression and attends therapy, describing both therapy and medication as important parts of managing her mental health.

Before coming out as gay, Roan dated an unnamed man for more than four years. The relationship ended shortly after Atlantic Records dropped her in 2020. In 2023, she discussed being in a relationship with a woman, and in 2024 she said she had met a woman outside the music industry but was reluctant to commit because of the effect of fame on her life.

Roan was born Kayleigh Rose Amstutz and grew up in Willard, Missouri, as the oldest of four children. She began playing piano at about age 10 or 11 and started formal lessons at 12. At 13, she performed “The Christmas Song” at her school talent show and won. She later uploaded cover songs and original music to YouTube after an unsuccessful audition for America’s Got Talent.

In November 2014, she uploaded “Die Young” under the name Kayleigh Rose. The song, written during a summer at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, attracted the attention of record executives and led to her signing with Atlantic Records at age 17. She released “Good Hurt” in 2017 and followed it with the EP School Nights.

Roan adopted her stage name in honor of her grandfather Dennis K. Chappell, who died of brain cancer in 2016. The name combines his surname with “Roan,” drawn from his favorite song, “The Strawberry Roan.”

Roan moved to Los Angeles in 2018 and began working with songwriter and producer Dan Nigro later that year. Their collaboration produced “Pink Pony Club,” a brighter and more theatrical departure from the moodier music on School Nights. The song was inspired by Roan’s first visit to The Abbey, a gay bar in West Hollywood, and expressed her fantasy of becoming a go-go dancer in Los Angeles.

Atlantic Records dropped Roan in 2020 after her releases failed to generate sufficient profit. She supported herself with jobs including production assistant, barista, nanny, drive-through worker and donut-shop employee while continuing to write music. “Pink Pony Club” later gained renewed attention and was named one of the best songs of 2020 by USA Today.

Roan reunited with Nigro in 2022, secured a publishing deal with Sony, and released “Naked in Manhattan” as her first independent single. She followed it with “My Kink Is Karma,” “Femininomenon” and “Casual,” then signed with Amusement Records, Nigro’s imprint distributed through Island Records.

Roan released her debut studio album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, in September 2023. Its synth-pop hooks, relationship-centered writing and open treatment of lesbian identity earned strong critical attention. She supported the album with the Naked in North America Tour and the Midwest Princess Tour, whose themed shows featured drag performers as opening acts and encouraged audiences to dress up.

Her breakthrough accelerated in 2024. She opened for Olivia Rodrigo on the Guts World Tour, appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and NPR’s Tiny Desk, and performed at Coachella, Governors Ball and Lollapalooza. “Good Luck, Babe!” became her first top-five Billboard Hot 100 hit, reaching number four, while The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess climbed to number two on the Billboard 200.

Roan won Best New Artist at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards and the 2025 Grammy Awards. She also appeared as a musical guest on Saturday Night Live and released “The Giver,” her first country-influenced single, in 2025. The song became her first number-one entry on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.

Roan’s music draws from pop, dance-pop, synth-pop, alternative pop and pop rock. Her stage persona combines camp, drag makeup, theatrical costumes and an exaggerated version of her personality. She has compared Chappell Roan to a drag persona and to Hannah Montana, describing the character as more open and confident than her private self.

Her visual influences include drag queen Sasha Colby, Boy George, 1980s punk fashion, Vivienne Westwood and the Club Kids scene. Roan has called herself a drag queen and has booked drag performers for her tours. She met Sasha Colby in 2024, when Colby invited her to join the House of Colby as her daughter.

Roan’s songs frequently address queer desire, compulsory heterosexuality, casual relationships and the search for self-acceptance. Her performances and lyrics have been associated with a wider lesbian pop revival, while her advocacy has included donating a portion of ticket proceeds to For the Gworls and launching the Midwest Princess Project to support trans youth and LGBTQ+ communities.