As long as we have celebrities, we will have celebrity idolization that comes along with it. These performers and artists are put on pedestals and judged for everything they do, no matter how small it may be. This idolization has quickly swept up rising popstar Chappell Roan and she’s not supporting it.
She released a respectful statement last week in which she explained that it was wrong for fans to stalk and harass her for attention during her time off. Her argument consisted of her explaining that her time away from performing is her personal time where she is allowed to say no to their requests. However, people find her response rude and think she should have expected this behavior considering how she rose to stardom due to fans’ attention.
A question I want to ask people who believe in these overwhelming cries for attention from Roan is appropriate: if you truly love her so much, why would you not want to respect her right to privacy? Roan is a human too, one who goes home after shows, interviews or photoshoots and does ordinary everyday activities just as we all do. Although her songs are widely accepted and well liked, it does not give fans the right to bother, harass or stalk her. Celebrities are human, as stated, and are subjected to the same right to privacy as any other being on this earth.
Melanie Martinez went through a similar process and even has a song about this phenomenon, “Show and Tell.” Unlike Roan, her protests and the song were met with respect as her fans understood how hard she worked on her content. Why does Roan have to put up with it?
One shouldn’t take Roan’s request as an attack. Rather, this is an opportunity to turn around the idolization of her and remind audiences that fan culture is simply a rose tinted lens that is not truly about the person underneath the popstar. If we love Chappell Roan, then we should love Kayleigh Rose Amstutz.
By turning away from this blind idolization, we save our celebrities from being held to extreme standards as well as ourselves from a cycle of disappointment at those we have idolized.
pbortner@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of Jason Martin, Wikimedia
