Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan have both had incredibly transformative years. Both pop stars have been in the music industry for a long time, but have since skyrocketed to culture-defining success.
Carpenter and Roan have each earned six Grammy nominations, and they are both the only artists to earn nominations in the “Big Four” categories: Best New Artist, Album of the Year, Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
They dominated the airwaves, put on viral performances, and sparked so many cultural conversations this year that it’s hard to believe they started 2024 in pop’s “middle class.”
It’s a story of two tour openers. Roan, who opened for Olivia Rodrigo’s ‘Guts World Tour’ from February to April 2024, has built a reputation for drawing huge crowds at music festivals. Carpenter, who opened for Taylor Swift’s “Eras Tour” in November 2023, as well as February and March 2024, is now selling out arenas as she tours her No. 1 album.
Roan, who is 26, released her first EP in 2017, but only after the critical success of her debut album, The rise and fall of a Midwestern princessreleased in September 2023, that there was a lot of buzz surrounding her. Roan’s NPR Tiny Desk Concert in March led to a spike in popularity, highlighting her propensity for elaborate costume and drag performances. According to music data analytics tool Chartmetric, her monthly Spotify listeners grew by more than 500% from February to April.
After a string of viral performances at festivals like Austin City Limits and Lollapalooza, the MTV Video Music Awards and Saturday evening liveRoan’s monthly Spotify listeners increased by another 1,491% between April and November 2024. She simultaneously faces controversy, faces backlash for her willingness to speak out about politics, stands up for herself against a photographer who berates her, and cancels performances for her well-being. None of this, however, has raised her star.
Carpenter, 25, is a former Disney Channel star who released four albums through Disney’s Hollywood Records between 2015 and 2019. She drew ire in 2021 after rumors swirled that a love triangle she was involved in inspired Rodrigo’s viral hit, “Drivers License.” become an internet villain.
Carpenter released her first post-Disney album in 2022, Emails I can’t sendwhich eventually yielded two hits – ‘Nonsense’ and ‘Feather’ – but their popularity increased over time. The singer had a huge breakout moment in November 2023 when she opened for Swift, charming the audience with sassy puns and switching up the outros for her song “Nonsense” with topical lines for each city. The salacious church music video “Feather” sparked controversy, which she playfully dismissed by saying “Jesus Was a Carpenter.”
Between April and November Carpenter released an album, Short and sweet And started her own tour, which went viral on TikTok for its elaborate set design and sassy showmanship. She performed SNL and scored a No. 1 hit with her song “Please Please Please,” which also featured a viral music video featuring her boyfriend, Barry Keoghan. According to Chartmetric, her monthly Spotify listeners have grown 120% in that period.
Both Roan and Carpenter have undergone rapid development, from pop star opening acts to superstars. As their stars continue to rise, their Recording Academy nods suggest there is no end in sight to their success.
