A Summary of Chappell Roan’s ‘Money Where My Mouth Is’ Movement
Chappell Roan winning Best New Artist in the 2025 Grammy Awards solidified her place as one of the industry’s most exciting new artists. But it wasn’t just her victory that had people talking—it was her powerful speech that resonated with fans and other artists.
Chappell Roan’s Grammy Speech
Roan’s speech was about her journey and how she needed to start from scratch after her label, Atlantic Records dropped her in 2020. The “Good Luck, Babe!” singer said, “I told myself if I ever won a Grammy, and I got to stand up here in front of the most powerful people in music, I would demand that labels and the industry, profiting millions of dollars off of artists, would offer a livable wage and health care, especially to developing artists.”
What she said was reasonable, and in other industries, it’s the norm. However, Roan’s speech was criticized, notably by Jeff Rabhan, a former Atlantic Records executive, in a post published by The Hollywood Reporter.
Jeff Rabhan: Roan “Is Far Too Green and Uninformed”
Rabhan’s piece pointed out that Roan “Wants to turn labels into landlords, bosses and insurance providers” and how her speech called out music labels as “Slumlords in front of 60 million viewers.” He also asked that “If labels are responsible for artists’ wages, health care and overall well-being, where does it end and personal responsibility begin?”
He also wrote, “Why isn’t Roan pushing her artist peers to put their money where their mouth is and donate 2 to 3 percent of their advance to a fund that supports fellow artists?”
Roan read what he wrote, and put her money where her mouth is, and other artists followed suit.
Putting “Money Where My Mouth Is” Movement
Rabhan’s post was met with backlash, not only from artists but also from fans. Halsey posted on her Instagram and also called out The Hollywood Reporter for giving Rabhan a platform. She wrote, “If you want to profit off of someone else’s art; that artist should have the basic living means to feel safe enough to create that art,” via BuzzFeed.
Roan also responded to Rabhan’s post. In her Instagram story, the “Hot to Go” singer posted that she’s pledging a $25,000 donation to struggling artists. She posted a screenshot of The Hollywood Reporter post and tagged Jeff Rabhan urging him to match her donation. She also wrote, “Mr. Rabhan I love how in the article you said ‘put your money where your mouth is’ Genius!!! Let’s link and build together and see if you can do the same”
The “money where your mouth is” movement has taken root. On February 8, Noah Kahan wrote, “Hey @chappellroan, I’m going to match your 25k to support artist’s access to healthcare. I’m inspired by you. Happy to help get the ball rolling. Money where my mouth is!” He posted a selfie with a handwritten note that said “Money” and an arrow pointing to his mouth.
Charli XCX also pledged and wrote, “I saw @noahkahanmusic say that he would do the same and so i thought i’d follow suit. Your speech at the grammys was inspiring and thoughtful and from a genuine place of care. Happy to help get the ball rolling too. Money where my mouth is xx.” She also posted a selfie with the same pose as Kahan.
Rabhan posted an open letter to Chappell Roan and Halsey and posted it on his X account.
It was met with more backlash. One X user wrote, “This is such a self-righteous attempt to be bitter [and to] dismiss the validity of lived experience. Chappell raised such a beautiful point. Artists break their backs NIGHT AND DAY to try to get any kind of recognition from executives like you (not just professors). If they work for you, they DESERVE compensation. End of story.” While another pointed out the irony of what Rabhan said to Roan in his THR post. “You quite literally initiated the challenge by telling f—ed over artists to “put their money where their mouth is”, and instead of taking the action you expect from others you write an essay about being victimized???”
Roan posted on her Instagram story her “receipts” and tagged @backline.care as the charity she’s working with plus confirmation of her $25,000 donation. She also wrote that her Grammy speech “Wasn’t meant to be a crowdfunded band aid but a call to action to the leaders of the industry to step up, help us make real change and protect their investments in a sustainable way.”
She also added that she will not change her mind about “Artists deserving more than what’s standard in the industry.” Roan also called out Rabhan and wrote “Random dudes are allowed to criticize my Grammy speech, but they best put their money where their mouth is, otherwise MOVE out of the way.”
