Kayleigh Amstutz began her career as Chappell Roan in September of 2017 with her EP “School Nights.” Over the course of the next six years, she would release a slow trickle of singles leading up to her debut album “The Rise and Fall of A Midwest Princess.” With the first single “California” being released in 2020, Roan began on the track that would lead to her skyrocketing in popularity.

In the next three years, Roan released eight more singles off of her album “The Rise and Fall of A Midwest Princess.” She finally released the album and gained a notable fan base.

Aubrey Pettit, a junior art major says, “I started truly listening to her music in September in preparation for her concert in October. It’s been great seeing her get popular recently.”

Roan’s music follows the trappings of synth-laden 80s pop to 2000s-style jams. Her song “Pink Pony Club ” lays out one of Roan’s main philosophies in her art, making space for LGBTQ+ people in our world. The track describes a mythical club where “boys and girls can all be queens every single day.” Her presence as a queer artist is written into every aspect of her music, with songs about messy breakups, unclear and budding relationships and downright just liking women throughout the album.

“I believe Chappell Roan is a revolutionary artist reinventing our generation of pop, a lot like Lady Gaga with her “Born This Way” album, and her openly queer identity is spreading a word of love and acceptance of all kinds of relationships, queer or otherwise. As a queer woman who grew up in a southern church system, I see a lot of myself in her as a fellow artist and lover of humanity.” – Maddie Blanchard, a sophomore art major

Recently, things have been on the up and up for the self proclaimed Midwest Princess. As the opening act for Olivia Rodrigo’s “GUTS” tour, Roan has been rising in popularity. Along with the tour Roan released a new single titled “Good Luck, Babe!” further pushing her popularity, rocketing her Spotify listenership up to 5.5 million monthly listeners.

Rylee West, a sophomore biology major says, “I love that she’s getting more popular on this tour, but I fear that Olivia Rodrigo’s younger fan base won’t stick around long.”