A star is born! Chappell Roan dazzled the audience in a Joan of Arc-themed (make Roan of Arc) performance of her song of the summer, “Good Luck, Babe,” at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards on Wednesday (September 11). The theatricality of it all, among other similarities, has fans online saying she’s the second coming of Lady Gaga.
Clad in full metal body armor, the first performance was fit with feuding knights, a burning castle backdrop (lit by her own arrow flame, no less), and all the theatrics one has come to expect from her.
Roan’s Kate Bush-esque aura (from her vocal stylings to her fashion, which is also inspired by drag queens) drew in scores of fans to her stage in California this summer. It was her engrossing performance of the “Good Luck, Babe” bridge during this set that will go down as the moment she became a star when we look back on her career in the future. And then we’ll look to this VMAs performance as the moment she truly locked in her place in the industry. There’s a good argument supporting the superfluous nature of the VMAs and most awards shows these days, but these kind of one-night-only performances from music’s biggest rising star remind us why these shows are worth keeping around.
chappell roan wanted to give us a popstar moment and she gave us EVERYTHING pic.twitter.com/wWXDqQKli5— alexa (@glusong) September 12, 2024
CHAPPELL ROAN GAVE US VOCALS #vmas pic.twitter.com/9TIB8Q5bnH— alexa (@glusong) September 12, 2024
The performance is already drawing comparisons to Lady Gaga’s VMAs debut in 2009 when she sang “Paparazzi” and hung from the ceiling covered in fake blood by the end. Roan’s didn’t come with a similar level of gore, so it’s not comparable in that sense. But Roan’s star power, singularly unique style, and the breath of fresh air her debut pop music provides harken back to Gaga’s early days. They’re both also queer artists who perform in high-fashion drag, drawing another parallel.
Roan was nominated in four categories at this year’s VMAs: Best New Artist, Song of the Summer (for “Good Luck, Babe”), MTV Push Performance of the Year (for “Red Wine Supernova”), and Best Trending Video (for “Hot to Go!”). Don’t be surprised if she snags a Best New Artist nomination at the 2025 Grammys either (or if she wins — I mean, who has had a bigger year in music than Chappell Roan? Her Lollapalooza set drew in the biggest crowd in the music festival’s history!).
The performance was her first at a live awards show but third on TV overall. Roan performed “Red Wine Supernova” on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert in February 2024 and “Good Luck, Babe” on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in June. These songs are from her 2023 album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.
See fan reactions to Roan’s killer performance below.
chappell roan most iconic performance i’ve seen since gaga— nic (@dietxcokewhore) September 12, 2024
I feel the same after watching Chappell Roan’s performance in 2024 as I do after watching Lady Gaga in 2009 at the VMA’s. She’s a fucking star.— Mir (@mm_hikes) September 12, 2024
CHAPPELL ROAN YOU WILL ALWAYS BE FAMOUS pic.twitter.com/CAZ8pOqNCg— alexa (@glusong) September 12, 2024
chappell roan and the creative team that she works with are a match made in heaven. absolute geniuses.— ⋆ (@filmkch) September 12, 2024
a literal slay @ChappellRoan #VMAs pic.twitter.com/mhFc40lprA— Lorie Liebig (@lorieliebig) September 12, 2024
absolutely just bawled my eyes out at chappell roan’s performance.. this missouri lesbian is very happy :” )— ☆ valentine! #TTYL (@megadoomers) September 12, 2024
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