Kansas City hosted the popular singer and songwriter Chappell Roan for her “Visions of Damsels and Other Dangerous Things” tour. Performing at the National WWI Museum and Memorial on Oct. 3 and 4, the pop star delivered two performances for a total of approximately 60,000 people. In July of 2025, Chappell Roan announced the eight show pop-up tour with four shows in New York, two shows in Kansas City and two shows in California.
“There just were a lot of people. Everybody was so kind and it just felt like a big family coming together for a reunion,” said Hayden Etter, a UCM graduate student who attended the concert.
For the few weeks leading up to Roan’s appearance, Kansas City showed its support for the star by wrapping the streetcar in a Chappell Roan-themed design, lighting up city landmarks with pink lights, and even having local artists Jared Horman and Christine Riutzel paint a mural of Roan near Hamburger Mary’s.
“Everyone was in pink. There was a section at Union Station of complete pink gardens where there were giant pink pony clubs, flags hanging up everywhere, lots of Chappell Roan cosplayers,” said Lexi Winterbower, a UCM graduate student who attended the concert.
Being from a small town in Missouri, Roan discussed why these two shows in Kansas City were important to her. During the concert, Roan talked about how coming back to Missouri was very special because she got to revisit the city and people that raised her. She also talked about how Kansas City has always been special to her because it is a city full of people who constantly affirm to her that she is doing exactly what he is meant to do.
“Coming from Missouri, it’s just so special to see somebody who made it, who literally is out there living all the dreams that she had when she was a kid. And it’s like, you can do anything, anything’s possible,” said Etter.
Roan had two acts open for her on this tour. To start off the concert, three local Kansas City drag queens each performed two songs. After the drag queens performed, the musical openers performed for the crowd. On night one, it was Japanese Breakfast and on night two, it was Baby Tate and Kill Sing.
“She is constantly using her platform to uplift the voices of other queer entertainers, specifically those who are typically overlooked by mainstream popular culture,” said Iris Vermillion, a UCM graduate student who attended the show. “At every single show that she does, she has local drag queens opening for her, not just the ones who have been on the television shows. It’s actual, real life queer people who are working and performing in our communities. And I just think that is so beautiful and so powerful.”
When Roan stepped onto the stage, the entire crowd erupted into cheers and praise for the pop-star. According to UCM students who attended the performance, Roan commanded the crowd with confidence and her energy filled the venue. As soon as she started playing the first song, it became clear that this wasn’t just another tour stop but rather an experience that fans would be talking about long after the concert ended.
“Being in a crowd of 35,000 people, all doing ‘Hot to Go’ together, is just quite literally an unparalleled experience. Talk about a sense of community and purpose and togetherness,” said Vermillion.
With every show, Roan strives to create a safe space for everyone that attends. According to Roan, Roan is an advocate for queer representation and her main goal is to create spaces for queer people to be seen and heard. For many fans, this concert wasn’t just about entertainment, but instead a way for them to see their identities reflected on stage and in the crowd.
“I identify as a lesbian. I also grew up in a very rural, small conservative town, so it was not okay to be gay or queer or anything that wasn’t straight or Republican. So being able to find her [Roan] and identifying with that perspective, and just the work that she’s done for trans organizations and also the LGBTQ community, is really impactful,” said Winterbower.
