Chappell Roan Reflects on Country-Boys
After the release of her latest country-pop single, Chappell Roan shared her mixed experiences with “country-boys” during a recent interview.
Debut Performance and Inspiration
Earlier today (March 14), the pop artist debuted her new track, referred to by fans as the “lesbian anthem,” during a performance on Saturday Night Live last November. She told the audience: “All of you boys think you know how to treat a woman. Well, only a woman knows how to relate to another woman.”
Many fans expressed delight that Roan has since elaborated on the experiences that inspired the anthem, including encounters with country boys and how she expresses her identity through music.
In an interview with Kelly Bannen from Apple Music Country, Roan explained that she was drawn to the country genre, citing campy and humorous tracks like “Chattahoochee” and “Save a Horse (Ride a Cowboy)” as key influences for the vibe she wanted to achieve in her performances.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5enuigfq5y
“I feel a special connection to my country roots,” she said. “To honor that part of myself, I embrace my identity: ‘Yes, I am gay, and yes, I’m ultra pop. I am the drag queen who can also create country songs.’”
Reflections on High School Experiences
Later in the discussion, Roan reflected on her experiences with small-town boys. “I’m going to say something controversial,” she warned. “But do you know who treated me both best and worst? Country boys.”
“They were the most kind and also the most hurtful. I grew up with them, and that’s where I learned to stand up for myself because you can’t just say, ‘Shhh.’”
She recounted how her interactions with them shaped her understanding of self-respect: “I learned from many boys around me influenced by their fathers, ingrained with toxic ideas like ‘I am a man, so you listen to me.’ I began to feel inferior to many boys around me.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dubtpdxjew
“So, when I pointed at a photographer on the red carpet at the VMA, I recalled the boys from my high school telling girls to shut up… At the MTV Video Music Awards last year, I was seen telling the photographer, ‘Not like that! Not me, bitch!’
It turns out the photographer had initially yelled, “Shut up!” prompting her to respond, “You shut up!”
Reflecting on femininity in everyday life, she shared with Apple Music that her message is universal, not limited to any specific culture. “I did not grow up just hearing applause from gay men, but rather I heard a lot of hateful comments towards women, and many comments made by women towards other women, but that reflects our environment.”
“I met a farm boy,” she said to Bannen. “I also met someone who wouldn’t touch dirt. I appreciate the rural lifestyle. But it’s funny how much I am mocked… Why do we keep having songs depicting unsatisfactory experiences for women?”
https://www.nme.com/news/music/chappell-roan-was-treated-the-best-and-worst-by-country-boys-at-school-thats-how-i-learned-to-stand-up-for-myself-3846340?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=chappell-roan-was-treated-the-best-and-worst-by-country-boys-at-school-thats-how-i-learned-to-stand-up-for-myself
