Review | Chappell Roan’s ‘Visions of Damsels and Other Dangerous Things’ Tour

Chappell Roan feels like an artist that is going to be timeless no matter how far in the future we look back at her. A writer whose lyrics take the specific and make them universal, whose song about a very niche aspect of queer love went number one in multiple countries. A writer so skilled that Adele praised for having not just one, but seven brilliant songs. A performer so captivating that her recent release “The Subway,” which was only performed live for the longest time, had the producer’s family members begging him to record and release it. Something about the music she makes feels like it has always existed, with every word in every line bringing a boatload of emotional information, from not just her writing choices but the voice behind it. There’s not enough I can say to describe the artist who put on quite possibly my favorite live show I have ever been to, but I’m going to try.

Roan, a pop star who is, as she puts it, “your favorite artist’s favorite artist,” came through Pasadena October 11 to perform an almost miniature festival. Entering the venue, there were stands on either side of the lawn, representing all the aspects that Roan has shown of her personality. At the start of her career, Roan would post videos of her thrifting outfits, and there was a station to bedazzle her merch next to the merch booths, as well as a collaboration with eBay selling secondhand pieces she selected. Proceeds went to charity, and she spoke on equality at the Grammys, advocating for living wages and healthcare and sharing how hard it is to find a job. There were of course booths with information on how to vote as well as queer organizations, and a gigantic pink pony in the center, where a sizable crowd stood waiting in several different lines to get a picture. 

The show began with “Super Graphic Ultra Modern Girl,” and the crowd’s excitement was deafening. Roan came out from a castle prop onstage, which she walked in and out of throughout the show. The energy stayed high as she played “Femininomenon,” “After Midnight,” and “Naked In Manhattan,” then slowed to a dreamy, emotional state with “Casual” and “The Subway.” It was a treat to hear her sing the sustained note in the outro of the latter, as she sang, “she’s got away, she got away.”

Highlights included Roan leading the crowd in her “HOT TO GO!” dance, a powerhouse vocal on “Kaleidescope,” her smash hit “Good Luck Babe,” and a personal favorite (whose music video I dressed up as for Halloween), “My Kink Is Karma,” complete with her writhing on the floor with her band.

Roan closed the show with the perfectly symbolic “California” and “Pink Pony Club.” The former sees Roan, before her success, feeling like she failed and won’t make it. “But people always say, ‘if it hasn’t happened yet then maybe you should go.’ Come get me out of California, no leaves are brown. I miss the seasons in Missouri, my dying town. Thought I’d be cool in California, I’d make you proud. To think I almost had it going, but I let you down.” At the start of the song, Roan was brought to tears, and it was incredibly moving. Watching her sing a song she wrote when she felt as though nothing would happen for her, named after the state where she told the crowd, “this is the biggest headline show I’ve ever had.” It was almost impossible not to get emotional too.

Then, closing the show right after that with “Pink Pony Club” showed that evolution through the hope she had before writing “California,” and why she wanted to move to L.A. in the first place. “I’m gonna keep on dancing at the Pink Pony Club, I’m gonna keep on dancing down in West Hollywood…I’m having wicked dreams of leaving Tennessee…I know you wanted me to stay, but I can’t ignore the crazy visions of me in LA.”

Roan thanked the crowd, and shared, “last year I was really questioning why I’m doing this to myself. I’m so sad, I feel so awkward all the time. Why am I putting myself through this?… Then, I started doing shows again and it all made sense that it was to bring queer people joy. It’s the only thing that matters, is joy.”

Hearing her share, and closing the show with those two songs back to back, in L.A., it was truly the biggest victory lap. Roan has achieved everything she set out to do, and doesn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.