Chappell Roan is the internet's new favorite pop star
Perhaps your FYP is different than mine, but it appears Chappell Roan is everywhere right now. TikTok seems to be falling in love with Roan, and with good reason — she rules.
For those on a different side of TikTok or social media in general, Roan is a musician. She puts out smart, fun pop songs she called "slumber party pop" in a recent NYLON feature. Her 2023 debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, is fantastic — Pitchfork called it "a bold and uproarious introduction" — and has sparked a sharp rise in popularity for the campy singer-songwriter. Things like magazine features and an NPR Tiny Desk Concert have helped her gain traction online. And, most notably, she opened for Olivia Rodrigo on her Guts World Tour.
TikTok has a massive effect on the music industry, so it tracks that Roan would be all over our feeds because she's an artist of, and for, the moment. Google Trends is an imperfect measure of interest, but it still shows she's on the rise.
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Everyone seems to be posting about Roan. Concert videos. Fancams. Her kissing Rodrigo. Dancing along to her song "Hot To Go." Running on treadmills. Even the Empire State Building's account is doing it (lol).
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Roan's rise on TikTok adds up. It's a platform dominated — at least in what's considered "cool" — by young people. And Roan, 26, is a decidedly Gen Z artist. She gets how to be online. She's commits to an image and a bit, including her look, which often includes bold makeup, lipstick-stained teeth, wigs, and striking colors. Her lyrics are also confessional, explicit, and bubbly fun, like a Tumblr dashboard come to life. She clearly grew up on the internet.
In some ways it reminds me of Boygenius, who also saw their popularity skyrocket online last year.
If you didn't quite know Roan yet, you're about to — so long as you spend a decent amount of time on your phone. This week she teased a new song "Good Luck Babe," and it's bound to be all over everyone's FYP.
Tim Marcin is an Associate Editor on the culture team at Mashable, where he mostly digs into the weird parts of the internet. You'll also see some coverage of memes, tech, sports, trends, and the occasional hot take. You can find him on Bluesky (sometimes), Instagram (infrequently), or eating Buffalo wings (as often as possible).
