10-02-2025
Chappell Roan Gives Her Final Word to Music Industry Leaders: "My Mind Will Not Be Changed"
CBSChappell Roan remains, as ever, your favorite artist's favorite artist, with Charli XCX pledging to match her $25,000 donation to support healthcare for developing musicians.
Last week, the Hollywood Reporter published an attempted takedown of Roan's Grammys speech, in which she advocated for labels to provide better healthcare for up and coming musicians. The op-ed, written by former music industry executive Jeff Rabhan, was widely criticized, including by Halsey, who called the piece a 'ranting, seething tantrum.' Roan herself responded last week via Instagram Stories, tagging Rabhan's personal account and challenging him to match her donation of $25,000 to 'struggling dropped artists.'
In turn, Rabhan posted an 'open letter' to Roan and Halsey on February 7, opening with, 'Who thought it was a good idea to publicly challenge an educator to a 25k 'one-upping' contest? Really? Do you know what teachers make?' (Per Rabhan's public LinkedIn, he was the Chair of New York University's Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music from 2009 to 2021, and had several high-level positions in the music industry prior to that.)
Roan posted to her Instagram story again on Sunday night, writing that her speech 'wasn't meant to be a crowdfunded bandaid but a call to action to the leaders of the industry to step up, help us make real change and protect their investments in a sustainable way.'
She went on to say that she won't be changing her mind about artists 'deserving more than what's standard in the industry.' 'Random dudes are allowed to criticize my Grammys speech, but they best put their money where their mouth is, otherwise MOVE out of the way.'
In her subsequent slides, Roan posted a link to Backline Care, a mental health and wellness organization specifically for workers in the music industry, and posted a receipt of her donation.
Charli XCX later posted to her story to say that she'd be matching Roan's donation, inspired by folk singer Noah Kahan, who also said he'd be doing the same. 'your speech at the grammys was inspiring and thoughtful and from a genuine place of care. happy to help get the ball rolling too. money where mouth is xx,' she wrote, accompanied by a picture of her mouth with an arrow pointing to it, and the word 'money.'
Maybe not quite the Chappell x Charli collab we envisioned, but it's absolutely the one that artists deserve.
Originally Appeared on them.
