From her style to the size of her crowd, here are the most memorable details of Lolla's main stage debut.
Chappell Roan performs during the 2024 Bonnaroo Music & Arts festival on June 16, 2024 in Manchester, Tenn.
Erika Goldring/Getty Images
Even with the unforgiving heat bearing down on the opening afternoon crowd at Lollapalooza 2024, seemingly every fan in attendance ditched their pockets of summer shade on Thursday (August 1) for a clear view of Chappell Roan's entrance. The vertically challenged climbed onto their partners' shoulders. others slipped through gaps in the tightly packed park in Chicago's Grant Park.
As the clock struck 5 p.m., the explosive pop star took the T-Mobile Stage to a standing ovation that spread throughout the south end of Grant Park. Roan came out to the anthemic “Femininomenon” while dressed in a cotton-colored outfit with a luchador-style mask covering her face, but she just fell into dance pop songs like “Naked in Manhattan” and “Red Wine Supernova . ” she revealed the face that quickly went mainstream and let her fiery amber hair run free. She wowed the crowd with her theatrical moves and impressive vocals, as flashing lights and fireworks helped turn Lollapalooza into a 1980s music video.
That Roan has an audience as large as Lolla's should come as no surprise. The self-proclaimed “Princess of the Midwest” has been spreading her musical fairy dust across continental lines on her world tour, and her mesmerizing stage presence was on full display on the opening day of the festival. Roan transitioned from sultry tunes like 'After Midnight' to dance jams like 'Good Luck, Babe!', unleashing back-to-back punches, dance moves and pounding chants amongst the crowd. “Thank you for having me Lola!” screamed — though on Thursday afternoon, Lolla was no doubt grateful to have the rising star on her main stage.
Here are five of the best moments from Roan's Lollapalooza set.
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The slowest moments
While Roan's sonic potpourri of 2000s-inspired pop records garnered the biggest receptions at Lollapalooza, Roan got down on one knee to deliver tales of past relationships on “Casual” and the emotionally rich, heartbreaking “Subway.” These setlist entries brought balance to Roan's soaring performance, which elicited shared hugs and kisses among the festival-goers.
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The Vocal Shapeshifting
Roan has amassed a huge fan base for a variety of reasons, but those not paying close attention might not expect the range of her vocal ability. At Lollapalooza, Roan continued to prove that she's a musical acrobat who can seamlessly switch from whimsical pop tunes to roaring ballads on a dime. Her vocal power allows for such versatility – and part of the fun of attending a Chappell Roan show is watching the audience try to match it, whooping and screaming in mesmerizing attempts to match her flowing harmonies.
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The uniform
Roan, whose aesthetic is often influenced by glittery drag, opted to go with a (relatively) muted outfit choice at Lollapalooza: the artist dressed in a short-sleeved wrestling-inspired leotard with pops of blue and pink , lots of fringe and a silver star belt. Despite the 90-degree heat, he donned a luchador mask — but only for a few minutes. Once settled on stage, Roan turned to the crowd to let her strawberry blonde hair and silver face catch the sun.
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The Welcome Theatrics
Long before she reached pop stardom, Roan was a theater kid whose Hollywood dreams first blossomed in her hometown of Springfield, Mo. and often clutched her breasts to accentuate the emotional notes more. She then did a full split halfway through her set, leading to some of the loudest audience roars of the day.
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The Global Fandom
While she's been crowned the “Princess of the Midwest,” Chappell Roan's fandom extends far beyond the confines of Lollapalooza. festival-goers ventured from all over the world to attend the annual Chicago music festival, and footage of the crowd's size began to go viral before the set was complete. Roan's mountainous vocals and sweet melodies made for one of the best performances of the first day, and with her worldwide success in full bloom, it's safe to say that Roan has graduated from “Midwest Princess” to international stardom.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/lists/chappell-roan-lollapalooza-2024-review-best-moments/
