The Pink Pony Club singer told fans it was 'awesome' to see New Zealand embrace queer visibility.
Video / @toddfishernz
Chappell Roan used a break in her Laneway Festival set to speak candidly about fear, safety and queer visibility, telling the crowd she had not realised how scared she felt in the United States until arriving in New Zealand.
The Pink Pony Club singer, 27, paused mid-set last night duringthe Auckland festival to reflect on what she’d observed since being in Aotearoa, describing a sense of peace she said had been missing back home, videos show.
“I didn’t quite realise how scared I was until I got here and realised how calm I was,” she told the packed crowd.
“This job is really hard. I forget my favourite part is doing the shows. So thank you for having me.”
Roan’s remarks formed part of a poignant address in which the singer touched on the political and cultural climate in the US, particularly for the LGBTQIA+ community, and the impact of seeing queer visibility embraced so openly in New Zealand.
Chappell Roan attending the 68th Grammy Awards ahead of her appearance at Laneway Festival in Auckland this week. Photo / Getty Images
“It’s always been tough, but Jesus f****** Christ.
“When I saw pride flags here, I was just like, ‘God, I’m so scared of the United States’, but to be here and see so many businesses with pride flags, this is f****** awesome.”
She thanked the crowd for fostering a culture “that accepts and values queer people”, noting that the visit had been grounding amid the pressures of her rapidly accelerating career.
Laneway, a six-stop touring festival throughout Australasia, held its only New Zealand date at Western Springs yesterday, with thousands of concertgoers descending on the grounds.
Roan, widely considered a global pop phenomenon, headlined the festival following a breakout year that saw her debut album The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess (2023) soar to the top of the charts.
The album’s unexpected rise pushed Roan from the pop fringes into the mainstream, and culminated in her winning Best New Artist at the 2025 Grammy Awards.
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