Elton John reveals advice he gave Chappell Roan on coping with fame

6 January 2025, 13:58 | Updated: 6 January 2025, 15:54

Elton John and Chappell Roan — Elton John Chappell Roan. Picture: Don Arnold/WireImage/Getty, Rebecca Sapp/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

By Jenny Mensah

The legendary piano man reached out to the singer, who has witnessed catastrophic rise last year.

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Elton John has revealed the advice he gave to Chappell Roan on her sudden success.

The legendary singer-songwriter has been known to reach out to young musicians and he's opened up about the FactTime chat he had with the US sensation after her catastrophic rise last year.

Speaking to The Ankler, the Rocketman legend said: "Sometimes, you know, they get a little overwhelmed. Chappell was a little overwhelmed with her sudden success — although she’d been writing for a long time, it really kind of ballooned very quickly.

"I just try and calm her down and say, ‘Listen, it’s fine. It’s fine. Do what you want. Don’t listen to anybody. Walk at your own speed. Do not listen to the record company saying, ‘We want another album, we want another album.’ Do it when you’re ready to do it.’ I’ve got that experience. I’ve been through everything in my life as far as knowing what to do in music, seeing people come, seeing people go. Sometimes they disappear much too quickly."

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"I’m kind of a survivor," he added, reflecting on his own longevity. "One of the people still around at 77. I’m probably as popular as I was when I was younger, and that’s been a miracle. But it’s nice to be able to pass that stuff on and see the results in people.

"There’s this English singer Raye, who’s a wonderful artist. She left her record company on principle and did what she wanted to do. And it just completely was successful. I admire her so much for doing that. She took a stand and her result was her own vision of what she should be doing. It just exploded."

Sir Elton John's advice to Chappell Roan - whose real name is Kayleigh Rose Amstutz - will have no doubt came in handy for the artist, who shared her frustrations on fan behaviour last year.

Taking to TikTok last September, the Hot To Go! singer opened up about "weird" and "creepy" fan behaviour in a video rant, where she asked: "If you saw a random woman on the street, would you yell at her from the car window? Would you harass her in public? Would you go up to a random lady and say, ‘Can I get a photo with you?’ And she’s like, ‘No, what the fuck?’ And then you get mad at this random lady?"

She went on: "Would you be offended if she says no to your time because she has her own time? Would you stalk her family? Would you follow her around? Would you try to dissect her life and bully her online? This is a lady you don’t know. And she doesn’t know you at all. Would you assume that she’s a good person, assume she’s a bad person? Would you assume everything you read about her online is true? I’m a random bitch. You’re a random bitch. Just think about that for a second, okay?

The 26-yer-old also later described fame as being like "an abusive ex-husband".

Despite splitting some fans with her thoughts on fame, Roan's star continues to rise with huge dates in the diary for this year. The Pink Pony Club singer is booked to play a headline set at Reading & Leeds 2025, marking her English festival exclusive for the year.

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