Chappell Roan Sparks Debate About Boundaries With Fans

Rising pop star Chappell Roan has skyrocketed in popularity in the last couple of months, with her streams on Spotify increasing from around 2.5 million to 40 million between January 2024 and now. She has also had seven songs appear on the Billboard Hot 100.

With such a rapid increase in fame and stardom, the singer posted two TikToks on August 19th to share her thoughts on boundaries with her ever-growing fanbase.

What Did Chappell Say?

Chappell begins by asking viewers a multitude of rhetorical questions, such as: “If you saw a random woman on the street, would you yell at her from the car window?”, “Would you harass her in public?” “Would you stalk her family?”

In this first video, she also details her discomfort with fans randomly approaching her for photographs and her confusion at fans who get offended if she says no to giving them her time. Additionally, she calls out those who harass her online and try to dissect her every move.

She continues her rant in a second TikTok in which she says that she does not care if harassment, abuse, or stalking is a normal part of being famous. Chappell explains that popularity does not make that behavior okay, and that she does not care if fans think it is selfish of her to say no to a photograph, her time, or a hug. She also thinks that it is strange for people to act as if they know somebody just because they see them online or listen to their music. The video concludes with her saying: “I’m allowed to say no to creepy behavior.”

These videos have accumulated millions of views and have sparked a debate surrounding Chappell’s boundaries and expectations. This discourse is most prominent on X/Twitter and TikTok.

Positive Response

Some people have agreed with Chappell and believe fans can often be demanding. Users on X/Twitter have expressed that celebrities do not owe people anything and that having a parasocial relationship that causes you to think otherwise is not normal. Others have said that people far too often forget that celebrities are real people and are entitled to their own personal space.

Brianna LaPaglia posted a TikTok where she shares: “I think a sane human being would watch that and be like ‘valid’. She had to turn the comments off and everyone’s calling her a brat, a diva, saying she’s not grateful for her fame. Proving her point about the entitlement from random people.”

Negative Response

As mentioned, a lot of people have disagreed with what Chappell said, viewing her as entitled. X/Twitter users have expressed annoyance over Chappell complaining about fans wanting to take a photograph with her despite being famous for only a short period of time. People have also claimed that she is not suited for fame if she cannot handle the ‘sacrifices’ she must make in exchange for stardom.

Celebrity Culture

The debate surrounding Chappell’s TikToks has opened a wider discussion around celebrity culture. Negative responses toward Chappell note that she should be grateful for certain behaviors from fans, such as taking photographs and receiving a hug. It has been said by people online that this comes hand in hand with fame. While some celebrities are fine with such interactions, everybody has different boundaries. Chappell’s boundaries over normalized fan behaviors have been the driving point behind most of the negative responses. This has forced this debate over whether such behaviors should be normalized in the first place.

Furthermore, sometimes parasocial relationships can cause people to stop viewing celebrities as human beings. This can develop into stalking and harassment. Chappell’s TikToks also highlight the normalization of this extreme behavior, as it puts into question where we should draw the line with celebrity interaction.