TIL

Kayleigh Rose Amstutz (b. February 19, 1998), known professionally as Chappell Roan, is an American singer-songwriter currently signed to Amusement Records.

When she was 17 years old, Roan uploaded a song titled “Die Young” to YouTube, which would lead to her being discovered, and eventually signed by Atlantic Records.

Following the release of “Pink Pony Club” in April 2020, Roan would be dropped from Atlantic due to low commercial success at the time. She would continue to work alongside Dan Nigro on her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess which would eventually release in 2023 under his label, Amusement Records, an imprint of Island Records.

Roan would rise to stardom in 2024, following her opening for Olivia Rodrigo’s “GUTS World Tour,” her NPR Tiny Desk Concert, and the release of her biggest single to date, “Good Luck, Babe!”^[1]

Article by CNN:

Chappell Roan’s rise to stardom has been 10 years in the making. Here’s how she became famous [Scottie Andrew | September 11, 2024 | https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/11/entertainment/chappell-roan-who-is-cec/index.html]

Chappell Roan is having the year of her life. Her songs are taking over TikTok, she’s touring the country to massive, record-breaking crowds and she’s been rising up the Billboard charts all summer long.

But Roan wasn’t pumped out of the pop-music machine as a fully formed star in 2024. Her ascent to stardom has been a steady climb, one thwarted by the pandemic and issues with her label, over 10 years. It just so happens that the last six months of her career have been stratospherically successful.

Ahead of Roan’s performance at the MTV Video Music Awards — once a star-making showcase for icons like Madonna, Britney Spears and Beyoncé — revisit Roan’s journey from Missouri teen musician to one of pop’s most exciting new faces in years.

Article Sections:

1. The rise of Chappell Roan, 2014 — 2015
2. Roan’s early work and roadblocks, 2017 — 2020
3. The making of ‘Midwestern Princess,’ 2021 — 2023
4. Roan’s star-making year, 2024

Chappell Roan’s The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess has a banner week on the Billboard charts (dated Oct. 5), reaching No. 1 on Top Album Sales for the first time (rising 6-1), returning to the top of Vinyl Albums (up 4-1), as well as rising 3-2 on the Billboard 200 for a third nonconsecutive week at its peak position. She also leads the Billboard Artist 100 chart for the first time, ascending 3-1. The tally ranks the most popular artists of the week.

The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess earned 105,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in the week ending Sept. 26 (up 64%) according to Luminate, marking its biggest week yet by units earned.* Traditional album sales comprise a career weekly-best 56,000 (up 328%). Vinyl sales were red-hot for the set, with 50,000 sold (up 548%), easily Roan’s best week on vinyl and the sixth-largest week for any vinyl album in 2024.

Midwest Princess’ total year-to-date sales now rise to 248,000 sold, making it the 10th-biggest selling album of 2024. The Tortured Poets Department has a runaway lead as the year’s top-seller, with 2.77 million. Her 2024 vinyl sales climb to 167,000 – the third-biggest selling vinyl title of the year thus far. Poets is also the top-selling vinyl album of 2024, with 1.03 million.