There was no better way for me to spend my Halloween night than with drag queens and the Midwest Princess herself, Chappell Roan. Olivia, dressed as a spot-on Magnum P.I., and I followed the line of fans decked out in their costumes to House of Blues. The venue was filled with cowboys, angels, fairies, and even the teletubbies.
DFW-based queens Kylee Ohara Fatale, Dia Monte, and Blue Valentine began the night with a bang; every artist should have drag queens as their opener. No one else could get a crowd this energized. As the crowd passed bills towards the front to pay their queens, Fatale thanked the audience for their loving encouragement as performers like these three are fearful of rising tensions here in Texas. After Valentine’s performance, a fan was brought on stage continuing a tradition of Roan’s by crowning a queen of the concert. A beautiful moment was captured with all these queens on stage.
Suddenly, Regina George came out to the stage, backed by Cady, Janis, and Damian in his iconic blue sweater. Roan and her band brought the mean girls to Dallas and the crowd lived for it. Bunny ears and all, Roan began her set with the first track of her debut, “Femininomenon,” screaming for a song with “a f*cking beat” and did she deliver. Every song proceeding was high energy and, simply put, fun! Roan, in a determined fashion, taught the crowd her dance to “HOT TO GO!” creating one of the coolest moments I’ve seen live. She then gifted the crowd with a rock cover of Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” and absolutely killed her rendition. Roan slowed things down, addressing the audience telling her fans to always be themselves no matter who tries to stop them.
This was truly one of the most fun concerts I’ve attended. House of Blues turned into a feminine heaven full of hyper-pop beats and cute costumes. If given the chance, go see her open for Olivia Rodrigo on March 1st of next year!