On Sunday, Feb. 2, Chappell Roan won her first Grammy for “Best New Artist.” This win followed her over-the-top performance of one of her hit songs, “Pink Pony Club,” that got artists and other crowd members up on their feet. Roan and her backup dancers and singers, painted in white clown makeup base and big, colorful eyeshadow, performed on an eccentric set featuring a large, pink pony.
Roan is known for her willingness to confront, and that was no different during her Grammy’s speech. After a list of “thank you”s, and one specifically to her “Papa Chappell” who she has named herself after, she confronted the music industry.
“I told myself, if I ever won a Grammy and I got to stand up here, in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry profiting millions of dollars off of artists, would offer a livable wage and health care, especially to developing artists,” says Roan, reading her speech out of a diary.
Roan’s speech was greeted with cheers from the audience, including new artists like Benson Boone and Sabrina Carpenter. This discussion about health care in the music industry has not been discussed by most artists. Artists are none to be part of the rich and wealthy of LA and New York City, but what about artists who are trying to break out in the industry? What about musicians who weren’t originally child actors/actresses like Olivia Rodrigo or Miley Cyrus? What about people who don’t have relatives in the industry?
According to HELLO! Magazine, Roan moved to LA at 17 years old and signed with Atlantic Records. But, in 2020, Atlantic Records opposed the release of her now hit song, “Pink Pony Club,” and dropped her from the label.
“Because I got signed so young, I got signed as a minor, and when I got dropped, I had zero job experience under my belt and like most people I had a difficult time finding a job in the pandemic and could not afford health insurance,” says Roan in her Grammy’s speech.
Roan eventually made her way back to LA, after moving back home to Missouri and working odd jobs to support herself. She signed with Amusement Records in 2022, and became more widely known for opening for Rodrigo’s “Guts” tour.
Roan’s story of becoming “your favorite artist’s favorite artist” is one not unlike many other artists in the industry today, who have struggled to make their way to the top. But, none of the others have drawn attention to the need for health insurance when it comes to up and coming artists.
So, what is the health insurance situation in the music industry? Well, there isn’t much research on it. But, since Roan’s speech, many news outlets such as PopSugar have been stirring up the conversation on what is going on with health insurance in the music industry. Maybe Roan’s speech is just the beginning of a deeper conversation between artists and their record labels.
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