Chappell Roan Osheaga review montreal

Photo by Cindy Lopez

Music, Shows

Chappell Roan was phenomenal at Osheaga

by Darcy MacDonald

A headliner-sized crowd gathered on Saturday afternoon to witness the Midwest pop princess and LGBTQ2+ folk-hero who’s on her way to becoming a household name.

After an overhead photo of the truly staggering crowd that turned up to see her midday Lollapalooza set on Friday went viral on music nerd social media, the buzz over Chappell Roan’s 3:30 p.m. appearance on the River Stage at Osheaga intensified from swarming to droning. 

While the drag-inspired American singer, songwriter and LGBTQ2+ folk hero’s rise isn’t quite an overnight success story, the suddenness of her accelerated momentum is more akin to the rise of Nirvana than it was to more identifiable pop peers like Pink or Lady Gaga. Notably, Chappell Roan’s story includes succeeding at first and trying again. Dropped by Atlantic Records in 2020 despite a single that performed decently, the Missouri-born 20-something reemerged in 2023 with an independent LP, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, a sleeper hit that made many a credible year-end list in 2023 but only caught fire this spring.

So why were easily three quarters of a reported 40,000 Osheaga attendees gathered at 3 p.m. on Saturday cheering before the stage lights went up?

Maybe it’s the underdog story. Maybe it’s the colourful, pro-queer, pro-expression, expertly composed fun tunes. Chappell Roan’s music captures the best elements of generational pop trends from the last several decades, including but not limited to the aforementioned artists, plus a bit of Elton John, a little Police, and, intentionally or not, a lot of Gwen Stefani and No Doubt.  

Maybe it’s simply that every generation needs artists to plant their cultural flag and claim a piece of the zeitgeist. Democratized for the anything-goes attitude of digital youth and delivered with charisma and stage presence, perhaps the fates were merely waiting for the perfect moment to smile at Chappell Roan. ■

Chappell Roan was phenomenal at Osheaga

For more on Chappell Roan, please visit her Instagram.

For more Montreal music coverage, please visit the Music section.

Posted in Music, Shows

by Darcy MacDonald

Contributor
Darcy MacDonald has been with Cult MTL since day one, a decade ago. Which means today, he’s a middle-aged white guy (albeit one more interested in other people’s ideas than in his own). He was previously a columnist and reporter for Montreal Mirror, and has also created content (FKA “written”) for RBMA, Noisey, Montreal Gazette, The National Post and probably some other great places he’s forgotten about. Music, culture, community and miscellaneous questions in search of answers all come across his desk, sooner or later.