Pride
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Chappell Roan says she’s been diagnosed with severe depression, but she hasn’t been feeling sad.
The “Good Luck, Babe!” singer-songwriter, just named best new artist at the MTV VMAs, tells The Guardian she’s “in therapy twice a week” while on the road for her Midwest Princess Tour. The trek currently has her in London (Sept. 21), with a stop in Berlin next (Sept. 23) before she returns to the U.S. for a handful of concerts, beginning with the All Things Go Festival in New York City on Sept. 28.
“I went to a psychiatrist last week because I was like, I don’t know what’s going on,” Roan shared with the publication for a profile released on Saturday.
“She diagnosed me with severe depression — which I didn’t think I had because I’m not actually sad,” she said. “But I have every symptom of someone who’s severely depressed.”
Roan’s symptoms have included brain frog, forgetfulness, poor focus and “a very lackluster viewpoint.”
“I think it’s because my whole life has changed,” she said of her current symptoms. “Everything that I really love to do now comes with baggage. If I want to go thrifting, I have to book security and prepare myself that this is not going to be normal. Going to the park, pilates, yoga — how do I do this in a safe way where I’m not going to be stalked or harassed?”
Later in the article, she said that “every time I walk through my front door, it just comes out of me … I can’t even help it, I just start sobbing and either being so angry at myself for choosing this path, or grieving how the curiosity and pure wonder I had about the world is somewhat taken away from me.”
The upside of fame: the opportunity it brings. “I get to feel the energy of other people. It’s so cool to have shows so packed and have so much joy in the room,” she said.
Roan — whose debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200, and who has seen seven songs chart on the Hot 100 in just the past five months — isn’t alone in experiencing complex feelings about fame (“I was warned that it’s going to feel like going through puberty again,” she told The Guardian. “My body does feel different. It’s holding tension in a very different way: I have all these new emotions and I’m really confused”). She’s bonded with peers in the industry over the pressure that comes with such a sudden rise, meeting up with Sabrina Carpenter and texting Lorde for advice.
“We’re both going through something so f—ing hard,” said Roan of Carpenter in a recent Rolling Stone cover story, sharing that the “Espresso” hitmaker “feels like everything is flying, and she’s just barely hanging on.”
Roan has been open about how she’s feeling with fans, too. In August, she penned a statement on Instagram about setting boundaries with those engaging in “predatory behavior (disguised as ‘superfan’ behavior) that has become normalized because of the way women who are well-known have been treated in the past.”
“I embrace the success of the project, the love I feel, and the gratitude I have. What I do not accept are creepy people, being touched, and being followed,” she wrote.
The singer-songwriter, now 26, has also been candid about pre-fame mental health struggles. Roan was diagnosed with bipolar II disorder at age 22.
She described her childhood experience in an interview last year with the University of Southern California’s Daily Trojan: “Being bipolar, I was so depressed as a little kid and so angry. You just think you’re such a bad person, and don’t realize that you’re really sick and need help, and our parents don’t know how to deal with it. I think it’s like rewiring my brain to be like, ‘Actually, you’re a good person, and you’re creating a safe space and music for people to dance to.’”
In 2022, she posted on Instagram about her bipolar II disorder, telling fans “it’s pretty hard to keep it together” and balance work and fan commitments with her therapy schedule. She noted, “I don’t really talk about it much, but it affects me daily and is a pretty big part of my music.” In 2023, she wrote about it again on Instagram: “i am very fortunate and grateful to have my dream job,” she said, but added, “This job is very difficult for me to process and maintain a healthy life & mindset. I already have difficulty regulating my emotions because I have bipolar 2 disorder.”
Read Roan’s latest conversation with The Guardian here. Roan’s upcoming tour dates can be found on her official website.
In a year fraught with festival cancelations due to increasing costs of production and severe weather events, All Things Go festival has taken the opposite approach and doubled down. After 10 years in Washington, D.C., All Things Go organizers announced they were adding a New York edition on the same weekend of Sept. 28-29 at Forest Hills Stadium. With more than 40,000 fans on a waitlist annually, according to ATG partner Stephen Vallimarescu, the additional location seemed less like a gamble and more about meeting demand.
“By hosting both festivals on the same weekend, we’re able to serve more of our community and deliver a lineup that we feel is best-in-class,” Vallimarescu tells Billboard.
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For several years, ATG has made a concerted effort to create lineups that reflect its growing community. Since 2018, the highest billed artists on their lineups have been women or non-binary musicians including Lorde, HAIM, Mitski, Maggie Rogers, Chvrches, Lana Del Rey, Boygenius, Carly Rae Jepsen, Charli XCX and more. And the equity isn’t only represented in gender. With performers including MUNA, Girl in Red, King Princess, Arlo Parks, Fletcher, MICHELLE, St. Vincent, Tegan and Sara and Ethel Cain, over the past five years ATG has landed some of the most LGBTQ+ filled lineups outside of LGBTQ+ events (and even many specifically LGBTQ+ events) and earning the nicknames “gaychella” and “lesbopalooza.”
This year ATG have landed some of the buzziest names in touring including Laufey, Remi Wolf, Hozier, Janelle Monáe, Reneé Rapp and Chappell Roan, who has been drawing record-breaking crowds across festivals.
“We’ve got Hozier, Conan Gray and Bleachers featured on our D.C.-area lineup alongside Laufey, Reneé Rapp, Janelle Monáe and Chappell Roan at the top of the bill,” says ATG partner Will Suter. “We’ve been able to see each of these artists perform live – either in a club or festival setting – and we’re expecting big sets from each of them.”
Billboard caught up with Vallimarescu, Suter and ATG manager of partnerships and experiential Carlie Webbert to discuss the festival’s growth, their embrace of the “lesbopalooza” nickname and how they managed to book the right acts at just the right time.
Why did you decide to add an additional All Things Go on the same weekend as the Washington, D.C. one?
Vallimarescu: After growing the festival for the past decade in Washington, D.C., and with over 40,000 fans on the waitlist annually, the decision to introduce an additional festival in New York City felt like a natural step. We were inspired by the success of festivals like Reading and Leeds and recognized that coordinating artists between both markets on the same weekend would allow us to curate the most compelling lineup possible. This approach is especially helpful for international artists, who constitute a growing portion of our lineup and often find it challenging to travel to the U.S. for a single show.
How did you land on New York for that second location?
Vallimarescu: New York City has always been on our radar, despite its reputation as a challenging market for festivals. The turning point for us was reconnecting with Mike Luba, the visionary behind Forest Hills Stadium. The unparalleled atmosphere he and his team have cultivated at the venue made it clear that this was the perfect location to bring the magic of All Things Go. There is clearly a void in New York City for a new festival experience centered around music above all else, and we’re thrilled to see the excitement around our inaugural year.
How has the reception been to the lineups for both editions?
Vallimarescu: The reception to the lineups for both editions has been phenomenal. Both festivals sold out instantly, with hundreds of thousands of fans joining the queue for tickets — a reaction we don’t take for granted, especially at a time when many established festivals are facing challenges.
Our approach to booking the festival, often more than a year in advance, focuses on building a lineup that peaks at the right moment and showcases the next generation of artists. This year, artists like Reneé Rapp, Chappell Roan, and Laufey are at the forefront of this new era, and we’re beyond grateful to be collaborating with them.
Why is it important for ATG to have a lineup with a heavy presence of women and non-binary artists?
Suter: So much of our artist booking is based on our audience feedback – and it’s become a clear direction that supports female and non/binary artist dominated lineups, especially as we’ve moved to multiple stages and homed in our genre-focus. The website Book More Women has a methodology that has our DC-area festival at about 58% female/non-binary and New York at 93%.
Was it your mission at ATG to become “gaychella” or “lesbopalooza”?
Suter: “Lesbopalooza” is a term that Naomi McPherson of MUNA coined closing out our Chrysalis stage in 2023 – and has definitely stuck. “Gaychella” popped up around the 2023 lineup announcement in a few TikTok videos. Our mission has been to create a festival and a space that’s reflective of our community – it’s a mission that has evolved over time as our direct communication with our fans has via Discord, our Boomfy’s Besties Fan Club and other fan-forward initiatives in addition to closer dialogue with many of the artists on the lineup.
What do you make of the moment queer women are having in pop culture now? With the dominance of Chappell, Reneé Rapp, MUNA, etc.?
Webbert: Queer women have a long history in the spotlight, but it feels like there has been a noticeable shift in the positive reception of these artists. With the growing fandom of this generation of pop stars, there has been an even stronger surge in self-expression and pride in being queer. Look at Chappell Roan, for instance, she grew up under the belief system that being gay was a sin. Many of the artists on the All Things Go lineup, along with their communities, share a history of shame around their sexuality. It feels like we are collectively shedding that repressed part of ourselves and creating an environment of acceptance. It’s beautiful — there’s a lot of embracing who we are and being truly seen happening.
Besides the lineup, how does ATG create an inclusive environment at the festival?
Webbert: There is a big emphasis for representation at the festival and how we platform advocacy/mission-based organizations, such as Propeller, The Ally Coalition, Reverb, Calling All Crows, Headcount, Women in Music and Amplify Her Voice. Last year, we had an activism village on-site at the D.C.-area festival where fans could interact with different non-profits and engage in a meaningful way. Our community is intentional, and by including LGBTQ+, environmental, healthcare, voter registration and other organizations, we acknowledge a clear passion for creating change that our community wants. All that said, we are hopeful that over the years this side of our festival will grow and we’re able to have an increased number of diverse voices represented throughout our programming.
Over the course of the last week, one drag queen’s performance of Chappell Roan‘s “Red Wine Supernova” has ignited the Internet in a debate about misogyny and drag culture. Now, the artist behind the clip is speaking up.
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On Thursday (Sept. 19), Drag Race Philippines star Brigiding took to social media to speak up about her controversial performance to Roan’s song. “My recent performance of ‘Red Wine Supernova’ has stirred up a lot of differing opinions,” she wrote on X. “Some have accused me of being misogynistic and disrespectful, while others saw it as campy and true to the essence of drag.”
The clip in question saw Brigiding standing on a table during a drag brunch lip-syncing to the track off The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. As she reaches the song’s chorus, Brigiding lifts up her skirt and opens a spout attached to her undergarments, letting a stream of red wine flow out into a wine glass being held by a fan.
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The performance quickly went viral as fans and critics alike began debating whether the performance was appropriate. Some commenters claimed the performance was openly mocking the concept of menstruation, while others quickly came to Brigiding’s defense, saying the performance was not mocking women or periods, but was simply a fun drag performance of a hit pop song.
In her statement, Brigiding did not apologize for her performance, instead opting to celebrate the artist who made it possible in the first place. “As a drag artist, I look up to artists who fearlessly create spaces for us, the queer community, and right now, @chappellroan is one amazing champion,” she wrote. “[Chappell’s] music speaks to the freedom and creativity that I try my best to bring into my performances as an artist. I intended to celebrate her influence and impact, not to offend anyone, especially women.”
She added in the closing line of her post that the point of drag is “breaking gender stereotypes” and giving people a place to celebrate “freedom to artistic self expression.” Nodding to the “Pink Pony Club” singer’s own lyrics, she captioned her post with a wink: “I’m gonna keep on dancing.”
Read Brigiding’s full statement below:
https://twitter.com/brigiding/status/1836644429836489087
After gaining momentum as a finalist on music competition show La Banda (where CNCO was born) and later earning his first Billboard entry with debut single “Pretty Girl (Tu Cancion)” in 2016, Johann Vera is entering a new era in his solo career — one that’s powered by authenticity and transparency.
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Last month, the bilingual pop artist of Ecuadorian descent released “Closet,” a melancholy, powerful ballad — where, for the first time, he tells his truth: “Why am I going to hate and fight with myself only because I love differently?/ How can a parent decide to lose a child only because they love differently?” he chants in the heartfelt lyrics. “I’m not going to change for anyone else.”
“It took me two years, but it pushed me to be honest and open with myself,” Vera tells Billboard of his coming out as queer. “[My previously-released single] ‘Cielo’ is talking about that first encounter and discovering this new side of liberty and happiness, and being more real about my sexuality. ‘Closet’ is about acceptance. I want to be as honest as I can be.”
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“Cielo” and “Closet” form part of Vera’s upcoming six-part EP dubbed Nada Importa En Verdad (Nothing Really Matters). “It’s about the struggles and ups-and-downs. Yes, I’m in love but also still have all these issues.”
In an interview with Billboard, the indie Latin artist talks about his coming out process, dealing with family rejection, and finding his purpose, thanks to his new single.
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How was your coming out process, and why was the moment now for you?
It was scary. I realized now that all my life I had this idea that sexuality shouldn’t be touched in my music or my art. I wanted to be a private artist, and not talk about my personal life. It’s not that I wasn’t honest — but there was always a filter, even on my social media, that was very edited and posed.
When I started therapy, almost three years ago, I began to realize a lot of things on how I’ve been handling life. Growing up with my family, I would get along with everyone and never had an issue, but I would hold back a lot of things. I wrote this song before talking to my parents. With family, it was a hard part — because coming from Ecuador, I would see their perspective on the LGBTQ community — so I always had that fear.
You mention living with fear and a filter, but can you take us back to how you felt the day “Closet” was born?
A few years ago, I wrote a letter to little Johann, and that night I had a writing session. Some words I began writing triggered me. I’ve been with girls and loved them, but at that point in my life, I was already with a man for a year. I continued writing the song, but I was struggling. So, I paused, talked to my songwriter and producer about how I was feeling, and “Closet” was born in 30 minutes. I didn’t want to continue living life that way. I had a big realization moment.
It’s a beautiful song, but also ultra-personal and very vulnerable.
I wrote the song for everyone to understand the struggle. All throughout your life, you feel like you have this flaw, deep down it felt like there was an issue. It’s very tough to break that barrier. Now it’s changing, but it’s still, even more on the Latin side, not going to be very accepting. The song happened and it was therapy for me. I didn’t have plans of releasing it, but after I started seeing how my close friends and colleagues began to react to it, I felt that I had to.
You wrote this song before telling your parents you were queer. How’s your relationship with them today?
Still not good. I actually told them two years ago, on Christmas Day, I had no expectations, but I invited them to therapy. However, there were no conversations afterward and it disconnected them even more. Now it’s not even a “How are you?” Before, I was the pride of the family — Viña del Mar, all the awards — and now, they feel like they lost a son. It’s tough.
They’ve also been clear and vocal about not supporting my new single “Closet.” Their side of the story is that I’m influencing people to do something wrong. I couldn’t fight any more. But now I know that it happened this way for some reason, and [my story] is helping people feel that they are not alone. It’s 2024 but apparently, we still need to have these conversations.
Your friends and colleagues have been very supportive.
Mau & Ricky came to my defense and called me when the song came out to tell me that God loves me. I cried so much. Lele Pons and Guaynaa came over too. I’ve been super blessed. After the song was released, I was locked in my childhood room… I just stayed there. The amount of messages and love that started coming in through DMs really helped me. The first couple of nights, I couldn’t sleep — but it was such a beautiful thing to go into my DMs and see how strangers were connecting with the song. The effect is crazy. Even if all of this is happening, I feel very happy. I’m proud.
What do you expect your music be like moving forward?
I just want to do music with purpose. I want to be more honest on that side. If I fall in love with a guy, I’ll sing about that, but it’s more about purpose. I feel that I can make an impact when talking about different topics. From all of this process, I want to be transparent and real. You realize in music how important authenticity is. It’s really about connecting.
Just a few days after Donald Trump shared his contempt for pop superstar Taylor Swift, internet comedian Randy Rainbow is taking his opportunity to kill two birds with one stone — mock the former president and promote his new projects. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news In a […]
With fall just around the corner, there’s no better time to update your autumn playlists with new music from your favorite queer artists. Billboard Pride is proud to present the latest edition of Queer Jams of the Week, our roundup of some of the best new music releases from LGBTQ artists.
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From Charli XCX & Troye Sivan’s amped-up new remix to Demi Lovato’s touching new ballad, check out just a few of our favorite releases from this week below.
Charli XCX feat. Troye Sivan, “Talk Talk (Remix)”
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The best remixes are the ones that take the concept behind an original song and completely transform it into something new. Charli XCX and Troye Sivan accomplish exactly that on their thrilling rendition of “Talk Talk,” keeping a handful of memorable melodies from the original song while completely recontextualizing the track into a sweaty, bouncing club banger. Their vocals pair perfectly together as they talk their way into their respective lovers’ beds, making the hype around this remix much more than just talk (talk).
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Demi Lovato, “You’ll Be OK, Kid”
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In many ways, Demi Lovato’s new documentary Child Star is an opportunity for them to speak to their younger self. With the documentary’s accompanying song “You’ll Be OK, Kid,” Lovato takes that idea to its literal conclusion, singing a lullaby-esque melody to a younger, less-experienced Demi. She warns her former self to be wary of “sharks in the water” and “thorns on the roses,” but concludes with assurance that ultimately, things will work out.
Joy Oladokun, “I’d Miss the Birds”
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Joy Oladokun is ready to move on. On her stunning new single “I’d Miss the Birds,” the pop-folk singer-songwriter pens a bittersweet farewell to the city of Nashville, a place that has simultaneously helped her become the person she is, while also being the place that she has entirely outgrown. Throughout her brutally-honest track, Oladokun makes clear all the things she won’t miss, before admitting that leaving somewhere you’ve called home for so long is never easy. “But it doesn’t mean I should hang ’round and suffer,” she determines.
Arca & Tokischa, “Chama”
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What happens when you take two of the most fascinating experimental pop artists in the game and put them together on one song? You get something like “Chama,” the entrancing new single out courtesy of Arca and Tokischa. Throughout this pulsating anthem, the duo trade sexed-up verses in their native Spanish, which the shifting, percolating beat constantly switches, morphs, speed, slows and intensifies, making “Chama” yet another slice of thrilling music courtesy of two artists intent on changing things up.
Soccer Mommy, “Driver”
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If Taylor Swift was admitting she might be the problem with “Anti-Hero,” then Sophie Allison (a.k.a. Soccer Mommy) is thanking her lover for sticking around anyways on “Driver.” This classic, guitar-and-drum indie-rock track sees Allison embracing her role as the indecisive, spaced-out girlfriend, waiting for her partner to bring her back to Earth. It’s simple, effective, and a testament to Soccer Mommy’s staying power as a rock artist that she keeps you listening throughout this easy-to-enjoy single.
Pale Waves, “Thinking About You”
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Speaking of effective rock vibes, Pale Waves is here to once again prove just how good their new era sounds. “Thinking About You” follows previous singles like “Perfume” and “Gravity” in its ’90s goth-rock-meets-pop inspiration, as frontwoman Heather Baron-Gracie finds herself stuck on a past relationship no matter how hard she tries to move on. The soft guitars and Baron-Gracie’s top-tier vocal sends “Thinking About You” to new heights for the band.
Check out all of our picks on Billboard’s Queer Jams of the Week playlist below:
Grab that Freddy Krueger sweater, queue up the Halloween music and wipe the cobwebs off your Jason hockey mask. Spooky Season is approaching, and to help get those spines tingling, the Boulet Brothers are gearing up to release a new musical project.
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On Oct. 4, the Boulet Brothers will release The Boulet Brothers Halloween House Party via PEG Records. The seasonal six-track EP finds Dracmorda and Swanthula Boulet combining their love of Halloween and horror with the retro musical sounds of ‘60s pop, surf music and psychobilly – with a modern twist, naturally. The first taste of the project, “All Hallows’ Eve,” is out now.
“We are both obsessed with classic vintage Halloween decorations, sets, costumes, parties, music, etc., and this EP is our love letter to all that gory goodness,” says the duo.
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A couple years ago, the Boulet Brothers broke down their 10 favorite horror movie soundtracks of all time for Billboard – and naturally, John Carpenter’s Halloween score was one of them.
“Growing up, it was the first horror soundtrack that invaded my brain. It was instantly recognizable, but it was bone-chilling. There was something about those high-pitched piano notes: It was so simple and so easy to get stuck in your brain and terrifying at the same time,” said Drac Boulet.
“It has one of those magical qualities,” Swan Boulet told us. “When I hear that classic theme from Halloween, it transports me back to trick or treating, the season of the fall, everything about Halloween that I love.”
The Boulet Brothers Halloween House Party EP arrives just a few days after the season six premiere (Oct. 1) of The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula on AMC+/Shudder. Check out the tracklist below.
Boulet Brothers
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Requiem for Halloween
All Hallows’ Eve
Ghost Train
Nosferatu Beach Party
Trick or Treat
The Vampire Song
Former president Donald Trump said a lot of outlandish (and demonstrably untrue) things during his Tuesday night (Sept. 10) presidential debate against Vice President Kamala Harris, from claiming people were aborting babies after they’re born to saying immigrants were eating people’s pets in Springfield, Ohio. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, […]
On Sept. 11, 1999, Chely Wright’s “Single White Female” hit No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart. Carolyn Dawn Johnson and Shaye Smith wrote the song, the lead single and title track from Wright’s set that Tony Brown, Buddy Cannon and Norro Wilson produced. Wright was born on Oct. 25, 1970, in Kansas City, Mo. She followed her […]
As Chappell Roan dealt with backlash to her comments on toxic fan behavior over the last month, the singer says a huge number of fellow female artists have offered her their support.
In a new cover story for Rolling Stone, Roan said that a number of her fellow pop girls reached out to her and offered their words of encouragement. The list of singers included Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, Hayley Williams, Katy Perry, Lorde, Muna, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Lucy Dacus, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers and Mitski. “I’m not trying to name-drop,” she explained. “I’m trying to tell you there are girls who are good people, who are helping other girls out. I’m name-dropping them because people just need to know that people are good people.”
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Roan specifically thanked Sabrina Carpenter during the conversation, saying that the pair had a long heart-to-heart about their similarly huge years and the implications that has on their mental health. “We’re both going through something so f–king hard … she just feels like everything is flying, and she’s just barely hanging on,” Roan said. “It was just good to know someone else feels that way.”
The “Pink Pony Club” singer did point out that she’s noticed a worrying trend among the artists reaching out to her. “Not a lot of boys have been like, ‘Let me know if you ever want to talk about it,’” she said, before revealing that a few — including Orville Peck, Troye Sivan and Noah Kahan — have offered her their support.
One living legend who has supported Roan throughout her career also reached out — Sir Elton John. The “Rocket Man” singer told Rolling Stone that he felt “protective” over Roan. “She is kind, innocent and wonderful. She is not ‘Chappell Roan’ off stage – a bit like me,” he said. “She is one of those people who I felt like I have known for a long time.”
Roan added that as much as audiences like to pin the toxic fan discussion on her, she is far from the only artist feeling this way. “I don’t want to be agoraphobic. That’s [how] most of my peers [feel]. Every f–king artist is on this page,” she said. “Everyone is uncomfortable with fans. Some people just have more patience. I f–king don’t.”
Elsewhere in her interview, Roan revealed a number of specific instances of fans being inappropriate with her, including a fan kissing her without consent and a stalker showing up to her parents’ home in Missouri. “[Fans] need to see me as a random b—h on the street,” she said. “You can’t yell at a random b—h who’s on the sidewalk that you don’t know. It’s considered catcalling or harassment.”