In the realm of pop music, 2024 has been a very active year, with many successful albums by female artists defining the year. Some of those female artists are veterans to the industry, though many have gained new mainstream prominence this year. And perhaps the biggest story of a relatively obscure artist being catapulted into the mainstream is Chappell Roan.

Chappell Roan’s rise to becoming one of the biggest pop stars of the current era was extremely quick and potent. Much like many other stars who rose to bigger stardom this year, Chappell Roan had been involved in music for a while, being a relatively underground artist until recently.

When Olivia Rodrigo’s concert tour for her second studio album, “Guts”, was announced, Roan was revealed as an opening act for the tour. This provided a platform for exposure at a much greater level, and this exposure ended up being well received. Roan’s debut studio album, “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” which had released in 2023 and attained a small cult following, had a mainstream breakthrough following Roan’s performances on the Guts Tour, Coachella and other events. By the summer of 2024, the album climbed the charts, reaching the top five of the US Billboard 200 as well as going No. 1 in several other countries.

Roan was thus catapulted into the limelight extremely quickly, going from being a smaller artist at the start of the year to one of the biggest pop stars by the summer. With this rise to fame, however, would come a massive change in life and public image. As a celebrity, Roan now faced many more interviews, meetings with the press and other things that contributed to the brand she had built for herself.

In addition to 2024 being an active year for pop music, it also happens to be an active year for a different reason: the US election. With the election taking place this year, many celebrities have been asked to comment on political issues, endorse candidates and take sides. And in an interview with the Guardian in September, Chappell Roan was asked to endorse a candidate, an action that she opted not to do. She stated that she did not “feel pressured” to endorse a candidate and that “there’s problems on both sides.”

A TikTok video posted by Roan provided some reasoning behind her decision. In it, she stated: “Obviously, f–k the policies of the right — but also, f–k some of the policies on the left! That’s why I can’t endorse.” Roan also stated, “There is no way I can stand behind some of the left’s completely transphobic and completely genocidal views.” 

She did indicate she would vote for Harris, but clarified it was not an endorsement, due to her aforementioned views. Other statements by her indicate that these “transphobic and completely genocidal views” are referring to the wave of anti-trans legislation which has sweeped the nation in the last couple of years, as well as the left’s stance on Israel war crimes against Gaza. Roan has indicated on multiple occasions she is pro-Palestine in the conflict, a position that disagrees with both major political candidate’s platforms.

Regardless of her reasoning, Chappell Roan faced backlash for her lack of an endorsement, with many fans and commentators believing it to be reckless to do in such a close election. She has also faced backlash from pro-Israel celebrities of both parties due to her stance in that conflict. In light of this backlash, Roan canceled two performances in late September just days before the show dates, citing mental health as her reason for doing so. Though the backlash seems to have partially subsided in the weeks since then, the involvement of celebrities in the political system and their endorsement of candidates and openness with their views remains a contentious subject.

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