Chappell Roan Shares How She Feels About Personal Criticism

Contrary to popular belief, Chappell Roan isn’t as unbothered as she seems. She remains unapologetically herself, but it turns out she isn’t immune to all the criticism she faces when she speaks her mind. The “Good Luck, Babe!” singer opened up to fellow artist SZA during a conversation for Interview magazine and admitted she cries over “hateful” comments about her.

Giving A F*ck

SZA (real name: Solána Rowe) chose Roan (real name: Kayleigh Amstutz) to conduct her Summer 2025 cover interview, and then she flipped the script. Posing a question of her own, she wondered if Roan “gave a f*ck about the backlash.” Roan responded that she didn’t — until it got personal.

“I didn’t, until people started hating me for me and not for my art,” she said. “When it’s not about my art anymore, it’s like, ‘They hate me because I’m Kayleigh, not because they hate the songs that I make.’ That’s when it changed.”

It was a surprise for Roan to realize she was affected by the criticism. “I didn’t realize I’d care so much,” she said. “When it comes to my art, I’m like, ‘B*tch, you can think whatever you want. You are allowed to hate it with all your guts.’ But when it comes to me and my personality, it’s like, ‘Damn. Am I the most insufferable b*tch of our generation?’”

Adding that it “makes [her] cry,” Roan said, “I don’t know if it will ever feel okay to hear someone say something really hateful about me.”

SZA was “deeply relieved” to hear it. She told Roan she saw her as “superhuman” for seemingly staying unbothered and worried she herself was “a punk b*tch” for not being able to do the same.

The Pitfalls Of Fame

Backlash is just one of the drawbacks Roan has encountered since her career skyrocketed in 2024. She has made waves for setting boundaries to safeguard her mental health, including by cancelling performances as needed and even calling out “predatory” and “weird” behavior from fans.

“I chose this career path because I love music and art and honoring my inner child,” she wrote, in part, in an Instagram statement on Aug. 23. “I do not accept harassment of any kind because I chose this path, nor do I deserve it.”

At the time, she reminded fans that they don’t know much about her, her life, or her boundaries just because they know her work. While she noted that they’ve made her “feel more love” than ever before, she also shared she’s been made to feel “unsafe.”

She further explained how hard it is to be in the public eye in an interview for The Face’s Autumn 2024 issue. “I feel like fame is just abusive,” she said. “The vibe of this — stalking, talking sh*t online, [people who] won’t leave you alone, yelling at you in public — is the vibe of an abusive ex-husband. That’s what it feels like. I didn’t know it would feel this bad.”