30,000 people in pink cowboy hats listening to 70's rock

Last night I went to Chappell Roan's pop-up show at the Rose Bowl with a couple friends. I wasn't a huge Chappell fan before going, but I certainly am now! She absolutely blew me away with the vocals, the performance, and just the pure fun and humor in her music.

A few months ago I listened to a podcast where the guest was Justin Tranter who produced on "Good Luck, Babe!". On the podcast, he pointed out that Chappell is the first artist in her success bracket to start her career already out openly as lesbian. The magnitude and uniqueness of Chappell's extreme success really struck me last night as I was surrounded by ~30,000 people singing and dancing to songs about being a queer woman. Like...that is an insane level of popularity all from a single album of queer songs.

She covered Barracuda by Heart, which fucking ruled. My parents would play Heart songs for my brother and I when we were kids, making me a lifelong fan, so hearing those delicious opening guitar licks last night was awesome. I don't know that I'll ever be able to see Heart live, so I'll hold on to that performance as a loose replacement for the Heart show that I was born too late for.

On the drive home, I was thinking about how Magic Man by Heart and Pink Pony Club by Chappell are the two most unexpected songs to have a venn diagram overlap.

Mama says she's worried, growing up in a hurry "Come on home, girl" Mama cried on the phone "Too soon to lose my baby yet, my girl should be at home" But try to understand, try to understand Try, try, try to understand, he's a magic man, Mama, ah He's a magic man

vs.

Won't make my mama proud, it's gonna cause a scene She sees her baby girl, I know she's gonna scream God, what have you done? You're a pink pony girl And you dance at the club Oh mama, I'm just having fun On the stage in my heels It's where I belong

One is about running away with a man, the other is about running away to the coastal city gay club, both about making individuating decisions that disappoint your mother. I'll tell you what, if there is anything that can unite female artists across the decades, it's a complex relationship with mom.

From the week previous at the NY show where she brought out thee Nancy Wilson to do Barracuda 😱