Chappell Roan Started as a Background Vocalist For Olivia Rodrigo Before Hitting Stardom

If you listen closely to some of Olivia Rodrigo’s songs, you might catch the voice of your favourite artist’s favourite artist. With Chappell Roan’s meteoric rise over the past few months, fans on TikTok have discovered that the ‘Hot to Go’ artist’s distinctive vocals are featured on some of Rodrigo’s popular tracks from her second album, ‘Guts’. Rodrigo confirmed last fall that Roan contributed background vocals for her.

In an interview, Roan revealed that she provided vocals for the songs ‘Lacy’ and ‘Obsessed’ from Rodrigo’s second album and ‘Can’t Catch Me Now’, the song for ‘The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’. “We all work out of the same studio and Dan [Nigro] is like ‘Are you free right now, can you come help?’” she said about recording the vocals. “So I go over there and sing harmonies because it’s really nice on a song to have different tones. I love that [Olivia’s] open to having another vocalist; she’s so sweet to me.”

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The ‘Good Luck Babe’ singer then opened for Rodrigo again during the U.S. leg of the Guts World Tour. “I adore you and the community that surrounds your project,” Roan wrote in her Instagram caption. “I CAN’T WAIT 💜” In an interview, Roan expressed her gratitude for Rodrigo asking her to open up for her again. “I’ve only played my first headline show last May, and to go from like 200 people to 20,000 in less than two years is very intense and fast,” she said.

While they haven’t directly worked together on music, Roan told a magazine that she would be “so down to collaborate” with Rodrigo more. “Whatever she’s up for,” Roan said. “I don’t push for that type of stuff.” 

Last year, Rodrigo said that Roan is “such a great performer.” Praising the Grammy winner and her “very close” friend and former tourmate, she added, “She’s just such an incredible singer and she inspires me a lot.”

Overall, the collaboration between Olivia Rodrigo and Chappell Roan showcases the powerful synergy between two talented artists, and their mutual respect and admiration hint at more exciting projects in the future.

-Sushmita Sarkar