Chappell Roan is one of the year's biggest stories in music, and she is quickly learning that fans aren't always respectful of an artist's privacy.
The 26-year-old shared her "side of the story" in two videos posted to TikTok asking her fans to cut out the "abuse and harassment" they have been directing towards her since her career has taken off, which she says includes cyber-bullying her, stalking her and her family, and getting angry if she refuses to pose for photos.
“If you saw a random woman on the street, would you yell at her from your car window? Would you harass her in public? Would you go up to a random lady and say, ‘Can I take a photo with you?’ and she says ‘No, what the f**k?’ and then you get mad at this random lady?” Roan asks in the first video.
“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?" she continues. "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 online about her is true? I’m a random b**ch, you’re a random b**ch. Just think about that for a second, OK?”
In a second video, Roan then offers up a code of conduct, explaining how such toxic attention is not acceptable, saying, "I don't care that abuse and harassment is a normal thing to do to people who are famous or a little famous. I don't care that it's normal. I don't care that this crazy type of behaviour comes along with the job, the career field I've chosen. That does not make it OK."
"It's weird how people think that you know a person just because you see them online and you listen to the art they make," she continues. I'm allowed to say no to creepy behaviour. [Being a singer] doesn't mean that I want it. It doesn't mean that I like it.
"I don't [care] if you think it's selfish of me to say no for a photo or for your time or for a hug. That's not normal, that's weird," she concludes.
Roans comments mirror those made by Halsey last month, who admitted that she regretted coming back to music after her struggles with lupus SLE and wanted to "crawl in a hole" because some of her fans are so "awful" to her.
Watch the videos below.
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