Maya Rudolph says she’s ‘grateful’ for Chappell Roan calling out ‘aggressive’ fans

‘Saturday Night Live’ star said she also doesn’t do well with being ‘grabbed’ or ‘yelled’ at

Inga Parkel
New York
Friday 13 September 2024 17:50 BST
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Chappell Roan's three-word response to rude photographer at VMAs

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Kelly Rissman

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Maya Rudolph related to Chappell Roan when the pop star recently spoke out against aggressive fans who cross boundaries.

Roan, 26, who shot to fame earlier this year with her hit “Good Luck, Babe!”, posted a lengthy TikTok rant in August blasting “entitled” fans for “crazy” behavior.

Speaking to Variety in a new interview, Rudolph, 52, said she too has experienced her fair share of being grabbed and yelled at by fans in public.

“[Roan] said a lot of things that felt very relatable,” Rudolph said.

“I was grateful that someone of her status spoke that honestly and openly. I think it was the moment when she spoke about people touching her that I thought, ‘Ooh, I’ve never heard anyone really talk about that!’ Because no one’s really thinking about it when they’re grabbing you, but it actually isn’t pleasurable for me, and I don’t do well with it. I wish that I handled it better, but I really don’t.”

She continued: “I think that I had to learn a long time ago that when people are yelling out at me, they are probably trying to be funny.

“But it just comes off as a very aggressive energy. And when you’re at the market, or when you’re walking with your kids, or doing something with your family, it’s not always the right time.”

Maya Rudolph says she’s grateful to Chappell Roan for speaking out ‘honestly and openly’
Maya Rudolph says she’s grateful to Chappell Roan for speaking out ‘honestly and openly’ (Getty Images)

The Saturday Night Live alum noted that she thinks aggressive fan behavior stems from “the accessibility that we have to people and who we think they are has created something where people think that you’re theirs.”

Rudolph also added that she thinks it’s become more commonplace for younger generations to protect their boundaries and mental health.

“‘Boundaries’ is not a word that we Gen Xers were taught,” she said. “It’s such an important thing to develop in your own life. But every human being walking around with a camera in their pocket, that has not helped boundaries. I believe in energy, and I don’t carry myself in a way that’s like, ‘please, no pictures.’ I go about my day in the world, and I hope that people treat me with the same respect that I treat them.”

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In her TikTok rant, Roan, real name Kayleigh Amstutz, said: “I don’t care that abuse and harassment, stalking, whatever, is a normal thing to do to people who are famous or a little famous whatever.

“I don’t care that it’s normal. I don’t care that this crazy type of behavior comes with the job, the career field I’ve chosen. That does not make it ok. That doesn’t make it normal. It doesn’t mean that I want it, doesn’t mean that I like it. I don’t want whatever the f*** you think you’re supposed to be entitled to whenever you see a celebrity.”

Roan, who isn’t afraid to speak her mind, has also been praised for telling off a photographer at the MTV VMAs who told her to “shut the f*** up.”

In footage of the viral moment, the “Femininomenon” artist could be seen pointing at the offender and sharply responding: “YOU shut the f*** up.”

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