The Midwest Princess isn’t rushing her return.
Chappell Roan, the glitter-drenched pop phenom behind The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, has confirmed what many fans feared: her sophomore album hasn’t been started—and might not arrive until 2030.
In a candid new Vogue profile published August 4, Roan—real name Kayleigh Amstutz—was blunt about her timeline. “My sophomore album doesn’t even exist,” she said, adding that if it takes as long to make as her debut, “it’s going to be five years.” That first record, a maximalist queer coming-of-age opus released in 2023, was in the works since at least 2018.
“We’re So Far Away From That”
This isn’t the first time Roan has cautioned fans to manage expectations. During a TikTok Live in March, she responded to a question about the next album with a definitive: “We’re so beyond… so beyond far away from that.”
Despite releasing new singles—“The Giver” in March and the unreleased “The Subway”, which debuted live this summer—Roan says these tracks are standalone, not teasers for a full project.
No Rush, No Cameras, No Pressure
Even as her career accelerates—with a viral NPR Tiny Desk, a show-stealing Coachella 2024 set, and growing demand for new material—Roan is resisting the churn of the modern pop machine.
In multiple interviews, she’s emphasized her refusal to create under pressure. “Just because you spend time in the studio doesn’t mean anything will come out of it,” she told Cosmopolitan. “The songs have to come from somewhere real.”
A Private Process, No Content Strategy
Roan also confirmed that she won’t be documenting the creation of her next album publicly. “It’s going to be private,” she told Vogue. “There will be no social media, no YouTube series, no cameras in the studio. Just me and the music.”
While longtime collaborator Dan Nigro has hinted they’ve worked on around five songs—with sounds ranging from rock to country—Roan made it clear that these are fragments, not the foundation of a new record.
2030 or Bust?
Whether or not fans will wait until the end of the decade remains to be seen. But one thing’s clear: Roan is determined to take her time.
And if the Midwest Princess taught us anything, it’s that sometimes the long wait is worth it.