Chappell Roan Wrote "Pink Pony Club" After Spending a Memorable Night at a Gay Bar

Chappell Roan is the kind of artist who does everything with both her past and future in mind. In a December 2023 interview with The Guardian, she told the outlet that her stage names is a nod to her grandfather as well as one of her favorite songs. Her debut album is titled "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess" and tells the classic story of a girl who doesn't fit in but does find herself eventually.

One of the breakout songs from the album is "Pink Pony Club," which she originally wrote in 2020. Four months after its release, Chappell was dropped by her label. "I burst into tears," she told Rolling Stone. Despite that setback, we were gifted with a queer anthem that focuses on a pivotal point in Chappell's life. What does "Pink Pony Club" mean? Let's giddyup and find out.

The experience of moving to Los Angeles from Missouri was overwhelming for Chappell, who told The Guardian that she once found herself "shaking in Trader Joe's" after stumbling upon two sports-bra-clad women shopping together. Something like that would never fly in her small town of Willard. "I grew up thinking being gay was bad and a sin," she shared.

That changed when the curly-haired crooner found herself in a West Hollywood gay bar called The Abbey. "I was enthralled by the go-go dancers and thought about how amazing it would be to be one, so I wrote a song about it," she explained to The Daily Shuffle. "The pink pony part was inspired by a strip club that was painted hot pink in my hometown."

In an interview with the Springfield Blog, Chappell said the strip club in question was once called the Pink Cadillac, though if you're out that way you're gonna wanna look for Centerfolds. The building itself was once painted hot pink, hence the name, and had a stunning neon sign that always stuck with Chappell. "I always adored it and wanted to go in there, but didn’t realize it was a strip club."

The "My Kink is Karma" singer opened up to the Springfield Blog about her childhood dreams of becoming an actor. She took classes from an acting coach who opened up a studio in Springfield after moving there from Los Angeles. Initially she planned on using singing as a means of getting into acting, but the musical bug bit her hard.

She was actually discovered by a cameraman from KOLR10 who was filming at Cider Days, a two-day festival in Springfield. After expressing an interest in shooting music videos for fun, Chappell and her mother transformed their garage into a mini set. Ultimately that video is what led to Chappell getting signed. Perhaps we all need to start supporting our local news stations more. You never know what could come of it.