Same Old Thing, in Brand New Drag: My Initial Impression of Chappell Roan
OK, OK, the title of this post is more than a little unfair. I’m actually making fun of myself—the middle-aged fuddy-duddy who prefers music of the past over what’s hot today. That said, 2025 Best New Artist Grammy winner Chappell Roan, who I was barely aware of a few weeks ago, clearly borrows from Bowie, and that’s OK by me. I listened to the entirety of her hit album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwestern Princess, while folding laundry—so I was listening to it on YouTube and got to see the videos for the songs that have videos. Yep, her unnatural red hair, aquamarine clothes, and makeup scheme on the album cover are bows to Bowie. And there’s more…
I recently interviewed Austin College professor Mindy Landeck, who teaches a class on Bowie (stay tuned for that interview), who drew my attention to the name of Roan’s album, which is more than a nod to The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Some of the themes she addresses in her songs are similar to Bowie themes. I have subsequently read Roan described as “queer” and “camp,” and several of her songs clearly are from a bisexual perspective. For instance, she has a song called “After Midnight” in which she alternately sings, “I kinda wanna kiss your girlfriend” and “I kinda wanna kiss your boyfriend.” The song also has a “Rebel Rebel”-like meditation on her mother fretting over what she looks like when she goes out. Roan doesn’t quote Bowie, but she paints a similar picture.
From “After Midnight”:
“My mama said, ‘Nothing good happens
When it’s late and you’re dancing alone’
She’s in my head saying, ‘It’s not attractive
Wearing that dress and red lipstick'”
From “Rebel Rebel”:
“You’ve got your mother in a whirl
She’s not sure if you’re a boy or a girl
Hey babe, your hair’s alright
Hey babe, let’s go out tonight
You like me, and I like it all
We like dancing and we look divine”
Not exactly the same, but I’m guessing the similarities are not coincidental. Roan’s mother makes a return in “Pink Pony Club,” where once again, her head is in a whirl because of the narrator’s lifestyle (though in this case, it’s because the narrator is a stripper).
Aside from bisexuality and camp, Roan presents herself as the new vanguard of weirdo-chic. The embedded video, “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl,” features a Ziggy-esque Roan roaming around taking in sideways glances. The video is set up as a vlog titled “Alien Girl Diaries.” In another video, for a song called “Casual,” Roan’s character struggles with an open relationship with a sea monster, resonant not only with Bowie’s theme of nontraditional romantic relationships but also his interest in not-quite-human characters.
Having just listened to the album once, I didn’t pick up on any direct Bowie quotes, either lyrically or musically. The biggest difference between Chappell Roan and David Bowie is that the music itself isn’t very similar. If there’s a connecting thread, that would be Lady Gaga. To my ears, Roan’s music sounds closer to Lady Gaga’s, and Lady Gaga is even more overtly Bowie-esque (she actually has a Bowie tattoo). In watching some of these videos, I also thought about Cyndi Lauper—much as Roan’s themes are similar to Bowie’s without her songs sounding like Bowie’s, “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl” was evocative of Lauper’s album She’s So Unusual.
This isn’t my kind of music, but it wasn’t hard to get through the album. There’s certainly nothing here offensive or objectionable. And it’s good to see that Bowie’s legacy is alive and well. Next up? At some point, I’m going to take a look at Dua Lipa…