Kayleigh Rose Amstutz, who goes by the stage name “Chappell Roan,” has recently experienced an explosive gain in fame. Hailing from the town of Willard, Mo., she has stood out from other artists with her unique production style and unwavering support for queer communities. After putting out music for seven years, it was only a matter of time before she gained the acclaim she deserved. However, that acclaim came with some troubles. This past July, Roan was a guest on The Comment Section podcast, where she revealed she was going to “pump the brakes” on her career. Why would this rising star do that? The simple answer: stalker fans.
The conversation surrounding parasocial relationships has grown over the last few years. A parasocial relationship is defined as a one-sided relationship that a consumer of pop culture has with an artist, even though the artist does not know the fan. Even though parasocial relationships are not necessarily harmful, sometimes they lead fans to feel entitled to an interaction or relationship with a famous artist in a way that crosses the bounds of privacy.
While there have always been fans who are obsessed with their favorite musician or actor, the stunts some of them have pulled in recent years have made being famous dangerous. Artists like Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish have had stalkers who have tried and succeeded to break into their homes. The queen of Tejano music, Selena, was murdered by the president of her own fan club. Roan is no exception, as she has already revealed that a stalker showed up in her NYC hotel, her dad’s phone number was leaked, and she was grabbed and forcefully kissed at a bar. All of these experiences were no doubt playing in the back of Chappell Roan’s mind when she made the decision to slow down her career.
It is not just the stalkers that cause problems. Even fans who say they respect their favorite artists often feel entitled to a picture or an interaction with said artist. In a TikTok and Instagram post, Roan further explained that she is not comfortable with people walking up to her on the street and asking for a photo. She compared it to “coming up to a random lady” and demanding a picture with that lady. It is a very normal thing nowadays to ask a celebrity for a picture, but when they say no, it becomes a scandal. Plenty of artists have been labeled as rude or unappreciative just by simply saying no to a picture with a fan.
It is important to note that Roan has security now, like many celebrities. But Roan is doing more than passively walking through life surrounded by guards; she is actively defending herself. While she was attending the VMA’s earlier this month, she yelled back at a photographer who was shouting vulgar words at her. She also carried a folded fan with her and would cover her mouth whenever she was talking to a fellow artist so no one could go online, lip read the video and share her private conversations.
Another way Roan defends herself is by seeing her music as her job. Kayleigh Rose Amstutz is Chappell Roan, but Chappell Roan is not Kayleigh Rose Amstutz. By setting her own work-life balance, she is able to differentiate her public persona and her actual self. While these tactics have been used by other celebrities in the past, Roan speaking out and advocating for herself has recently made a big impact in the public’s conversation surrounding fan culture.
In a world where stalking and harassing celebrities is almost normal, it is important to look at what our favorite artists have to say. Trying to be “closer” to a celebrity or demand an interaction with them is not what fans should be doing. It is weird and it distracts from the artists’ accomplishments and bodies of work that they have put into the world. Someone who simply wants to create art and share it with people deserves to be treated like a normal person. Roan speaking out has already turned the internet upside down. More people are talking about parasocial relationships than ever before, which will hopefully change the toxic fan culture we see today and keep our favorite artists safe.
