Chappell Roan: ‘I’d be more successful if I wore a muzzle’

Chappell Roan can’t be stopped.
Over the last 12 months, the 26-year-old has become the buzziest star in pop. A flamboyant, flame-haired sensation, whose songs are as colourful as they are raw.
Her debut album, released to little fanfare in 2023, has just topped the UK charts for a second time. Next week, she’s up for six Grammy awards, including best new artist. And BBC Radio 1 have named her their Sound Of 2025.
Success has been all the sweeter because her former record label refused to release many of the songs that exploded onto the charts last year.
“They were like, ‘This is not gonna work. We don’t get it’,” Roan tells Radio 1’s Jack Saunders.
Watch Radio 1’s full interview with Sound Of 2025 winner Chappell Roan.
Reaching pop’s A-list isn’t just a vindication but a revolution.
The 26-year-old is the first female pop star to achieve mainstream success as an openly queer person, rather than coming out as part of their post-fame narrative.
On a more personal level, she’s finally got the financial security to move into a house of her own, and acquire a rescue cat, named Cherub Lou.
“She’s super tiny, her breath smells so bad, and she doesn’t have a meow,” the singer dotes.
If kitten ownership is a benefit of fame, Roan has bristled at the downsides.