The spotlight on Chappell Roan grew more intense last year after she posted multiple TikToks attempting to clarify her position on the presidential election when an interview quote was misinterpreted. Each new video gave critics more material to analyze. Some wondered why she wouldn’t just let it go and allow people to believe what they wanted, even if incorrect. In a recent conversation on TS Madison‘s Outlaws, the 26-year-old artist explained that defending herself and setting boundaries is crucial for her survival in the music industry.
“I cannot bear people saying I’m something I’m not. That’s what’s really hard online. People just assume you’re the villain,” Roan said. She first faced major backlash last August when she established boundaries between her private and public life. After sharing that while experiencing career highs, she also felt increasingly unsafe dealing with stalking and harassment, she was criticized for being entitled and ungrateful.
On Outlaws, she compared the treatment to how Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, and Paris Hilton were treated. “That behavior is still, they’re still doing it,” she said. “Do you want me to just get to the point where I become agoraphobic? Or so stressed out, or so anxious to perform? You want me to get to that point? Because if I don’t say anything, I will. If I do not stand up for myself, I will quit because I cannot bear this. I cannot bear people touching me who I don’t know. I cannot bear people following me.”
During a game of “Ban it, Bitch!” on Outlaws, Roan mentioned Pop Crave, a popular X account that shares entertainment news and often posts interview quotes from established media outlets. Many of her online controversies started with Pop Crave posts. The issue isn’t necessarily the account’s portrayal of her, but rather how its posts can be misinterpreted without context, leading to heated debates in the comments section like a digital colosseum for pop stars.
This treatment has impacted her real-world experiences too. She’s called out aggressive photographers at red carpet events multiple times, only to be labeled difficult and villainous online. “I’ve been treated better at my doughnut shop job than I have on a fucking carpet,” Roan said. “People on the news treat me worse than how customers did. And I think when I started to say, ‘Don’t talk to me like that’ … That doesn’t mean that I’m a villain or ungrateful for what I have. It’s like, ‘Why is this customary?'”
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