Chappell Roan Challenges Op-Ed Writer to Match Donation for Struggling Artists
Chappell Roan “put her money where her mouth is” and challenged the writer of the op-ed who criticized her Grammys speech to donate $25,000 to a fund supporting struggling artists who have been dropped by their label.
At the Grammys Sunday, Roan used her Best New Artist acceptance speech to demand that record labels treat young artists as “valuable employees with a livable wage and health insurance and protection.”
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In an op-ed for The Hollywood Reporter, published with the title “Chappell Groan: The Misguided Rhetoric of an Instant Industry Insider,” music exec Jeff Rabhan criticized Roan’s speech, calling the singer “far too green and uninformed to be the agent of change she aspires to be today.”
“Put your money where your mouth is and invest in new models of artist compensation instead of expecting labels to change overnight,” Rabhan wrote.
Halsey first came to Roan’s defense on social media Thursday — calling the op-ed “boot licking behavior” — and Roan herself responded to Rabhan’s op-ed in her own Instagram Stories on Friday.
“Wanna match me $25k to donate to struggling dropped artists?,” she wrote, tagging both Rabhan’s Instagram handle and that of her PR company. “Let’s talk.”
Roan continued, “Will keep everyone updated on the much awaited response!!. And I will show receipts of the donations <3. Mr. Rabhan I love how in the article you said ‘put your money where your mouth it.’ Genius!!! Let’s link and build together and see if you can do the same.”
Following Roan’s response to Rabhan, Nirvana’s Krist Novoselic entered that chat on social media, sharing his own advice, “When Nirvana signed with a major label, our accountant suggested we join [SAG-AFTRA]. We did and I have had great health insurance for 35 years.”
Rabhan later responded to Roan’s Friday post in a lengthy X/Twitter post, writing, “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? Right idea pointed in the wrong direction.”
The music exec claimed his article was not a “personal attack,” but “a call to action and a warning to avoid the pitfalls of many who walked before you.”
This article was updated at 7:50 p.m. ET on Feb. 7, 2025, to include a social media post from Jeff Rabhan.
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