Have you ever poured your whole soul into a performance – singing from the depths of your little dramatic heart – only for someone to scroll through their phone like you’re background noise? Yeah… welcome to Chappell Roan’s origin story.

In her W Magazine cover story (April 30), our favorite pink-haired powerhouse opened up about the tragicomedy that was her audition for The Voice and it was giving no notes, no eye contact, no respect. The year was 2012, and 15-year-old Chappell Roan (Kayleigh Rose Amstutz) stepped into the room armed with courage, eyeliner, and Rihanna’s "Stay." However,  the only thing staying was a producer’s attention on his phone.

“I went up there and sang a cappella, the scariest thing ever,” Roan told the outlet. “He never really looked at me… He was like, ‘OK, next.’”

And if that wasn’t enough rejection for one teen pop dreamer,the vocalist revealed she had already faced the heartbreak of America’s Got Talent at just 13.

“We flew to Austin, Texas, and waited in line with thousands of people at 4 a.m. I sang ‘True Colors’ by Cyndi Lauper. Did not make it either,” she previously shared with People.

The girl who couldn't get a look from a talent scout is now everywhere – from winning Best New Artist at the 2025 Grammys to setting the Billboard Hot 100 ablaze with" Good Luck, Babe!" Roan has become the face of queer pop excellence, turning her early rejection into a rhinestone-studded revenge arc.

Her Grammy acceptance speech? Straight from her actual diary.

“Labels, we got you — but do you got us?” she asked, reading from her middle-school-era notebook. “I’ve been keeping a diary for — oh my God — like, 15 years. Every day was horrible back then, but it felt as dramatic as my life feels now," she laughed to the magazine.

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Despite it all, Roan is rising like a feathered phoenix in thigh-high glitter boots. She’s doing it for the weirdos, the queers, the theater kids, and everyone who ever got a “next” when they deserved a standing ovation.

So the next time someone doubts your sparkle, just remember Chappell Roan was once overlooked by a dude glued to his phone and now? She's the main character of the pop universe.

Photo Credit: @chappellroan on Instagram.