As the month of June approaches, pride events and campaigns are beginning to unfold. This year, queer pop star Chappell Roan made her way into the spotlight, adding a new layer of excitement to Pride 2024.
Roan has been in the music industry for several years as a singer and songwriter and has spent the last few months in the public eye after opening for Olivia Rodrigo on her Guts tour. Roan’s live performances of songs from her 2023 album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” carries a mix of confident feminine energy, as well as unwavering assurance in her sexuality, that seems to inspire the world around her. Recent years show that this generation’s acceptance of queer culture surpasses its predecessors in several ways and more younger people are increasingly accepting their own sexualities and of those around them. With music like Chappell Roan’s, this is amplified greatly.
The expression of her queerness and femininity through her lyrics, sound, and appearance opens a gateway for people, especially women, to see themselves in this “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” and find the confidence within themselves to be just as secure in their own identity. This impact can be seen in the audience of Chappell Roan’s shows, with girls showing up in their fabulous maximalist outfits and screaming the words to songs about accepting their attraction towards other women.
While queerness and female centered relationships have become increasingly normalized with the rise of queer acceptance, it can still be difficult for queer women to deal with their sexualities in a world that is centered around heteronormative relationships and stereotypes. There is pressure for queer women to conform to societal expectations, to suppress their attraction to the same gender and to write it off as an insignificant part of their identity. Chappell Roan combats this, however, by creating a safe space for these women to feel comfortable with themselves and accept their sexuality in a way that’s profound. In a video of a live performance, Chappell Roan speaks to her audience, describing the kind of the environment she intends to create for her followers: “It’s so important to create a space for people to dress up like their favorite pop stars,” she says, “Because you’re allowed to! You should be allowed to be crazy and be fun and be queer and kiss girls and boys … you’re allowed to do that here.”
