Pop Break Live: Chappell Roan at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, NYC on Tuesday September 23.
Written by Gabrielle Sangataldo
“Guys, thank god the rapture didn’t happen today. The night’s not over; I guess it still could. Thank god I could sing my show,” popstar sensation Chappell Roan joked at Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, New York, at her first U.S. show in almost a year.
True to Roan’s words, the only rapture that happened on Tuesday, September 23, was that of the hearts of 13,000, dressed-to-the-nines fans crammed into the sold-out stadium bleachers. The third night of a sold-out, four-night residency at the stadium and the first destination of three pop-up gigs, Roan’s show solidified her as more than a viral TikTok song.
Now an artist with a budget, Roan’s set transformed the stage into her own medieval playground. Stairs, a bridge, drawbridge gates, and a tower completed the image and transported Roan to new, literal heights while she sang. The backdrop set the mood per song: sometimes showcasing lyrics, sometimes a mini-army of pink goblins or barracuda fish with wings. A badass group of women played her supporting instruments, and Roan herself belted out vocals that are surprisingly only two years post-formal-vocal-lessons. Already a performer with incredible stage presence, Roan made her show a theater production and elevated what she had already mastered so early in her era of supernova stardom.
“Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” kicked off the night as Roan appeared as a silhouette at the top of her staircase. The singer proceeded to sing (almost) every song from her discography, including her pre-fame, 2020 single “Love Me Anyway” and Heart’s “Barracuda.” The 90-minute set consisted of three outfit changes, lots of hair whipping, and shaking ass, as per the lyrics of “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl.”
If there’s one dance everybody in the audience trained for, it’s Roan’s YMCA-inspired “HOT TO GO!” choreography. The crowd became a sea of arm-defined Os and cramped Ts during the cheerleader-esque chorus, a sequence of movements that Roan once had to pull teeth to orchestrate in a crowd. This audience, however, made their stance on Roan clear from the start, if the DIY drag, cowboy, and showgirl outfits were anything to go by.
Though her recorded tracks all boast a synth-heavy, poppy flair (save for her queer “cunt”ry song, “The Giver”), Roan does not shy away from adding her own rocker remix on even her greatest hits. “My Kink Is Karma” specifically personified the anger and retribution that resonates in its lyrics, making for a headbanger of a live performance.
Roan’s production lives up to the streams and virility. She knows what makes a star, and she knows how to flawlessly execute every grown-up theater kid’s wet dream. Channeling the household names of decades prior and present—think Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Lady Gaga—Roan puts on a show bigger than the venue itself that is equal parts campy homage and modern revitalization. More than that, though, she proves time and time again that the pop stars of the past haven’t died away for good; they’ve just all reincarnated into a 27-year-old lesbian.
