Jewel backs Chappell Roan’s remarks on harassment: ‘I’ve faced hundreds of stalkers’
Jewel is standing up for Chappell Roan.
Offering her support to the “Hot to Go” singer, the Grammy nominee shared her own incidents of harassment and the way she has managed overly enthusiastic fans “as an experienced artist.”
In a TikTok video, the “Foolish Games” artist, 50, removed a green hat to show her gray hair, mentioning that she started getting gray hairs “overnight” after her “first stalker” appeared when she was 21.
“It was really frightening. This person would leave explosive devices outside my house. I received death threats claiming I could be shot on stage,” she recounted. “I’ve dealt with hundreds of stalkers throughout my career.”
Reflecting on her decision to step away from her career due to the harassment, Jewel mentioned how it forced her to revisit trauma from her childhood. “Fans touching me, grabbing me, turning me around, crowding me, it just wasn’t healthy.”
It became “overwhelming,” but she eventually figured out how to handle interactions with her fans.
“Over time, I learned that I could tell my fans, ‘You must stay at least six feet away from me,'” she said. “Just a couple of weeks ago in Beverly Hills, a fan made a safe gesture by keeping six feet of distance and told me how much they loved my music. That was so lovely; it made me feel safe. It allowed me to choose to take a picture without concern.”
Jewel highlighted that Roan has had to disable comments on her posts after a two-part TikTok in August, during which she spoke out against the abuse and harassment she has encountered from fans.
In those clips, Roan, 26, criticized individuals who feel “entitled” to a celebrity’s time, stating she doesn’t mind if fans perceive her refusal of a photo or hug as “selfish.”
“That behavior isn’t normal,” she stated. “It’s odd how people assume they know you just because they follow you online or enjoy your work.”
This year has seen Roan’s popularity skyrocket, thanks to her 2023 album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” her role as an opener for Olivia Rodrigo’s Guts World Tour, and record-breaking performances at festivals like Coachella, Bonnaroo, and Lollapalooza.
She shared her challenges with the sudden fame, expressing to an audience during a June performance that she felt “off” and was struggling to keep pace with the rapid growth of her career.
In her August TikTok, Roan urged viewers to think about how they would treat a “random woman on the street” compared to how they have treated her. She recounted instances of fans yelling at her from cars, harassing her in public, bullying her, stalking her family, and expressing their anger for her not wanting to take photos.
“I refuse to accept that abuse, harassment, and stalking are just normal for people who are in the public eye, however prominent,” she stated. “Just because this kind of behavior is associated with my chosen career does not make it acceptable.”
Contributing: Brendan Morrow