Pop’s rising high priestess of heartbreak, Chappell Roan, has officially dropped the long-awaited studio version of “The Subway”—a fan-favorite ballad that’s haunted her live sets since last summer. Co-written and produced by Daniel Nigro, the song captures Roan at her most raw, navigating the ache of a missed connection through vivid, lonely snapshots of New York life. “I made a promise, if in four months this feeling ain’t gone, well f*ck this city, I’m moving to Saskatchewan!” she belts, turning personal grief into a glittering rallying cry for the romantically wrecked.
Directed by Amber Grace Johnson and shot on 35mm film, the accompanying music video paints a high-camp, hyper-stylized love letter to Manhattan—and to the one that got away. From subway specters to garbage-drenched sidewalks, Roan floats through the city like a flame-haired phantom, shedding her signature red locks in a symbolic metamorphosis.
In true Roan fashion, the rollout has been theatrical and grassroots at once: mysterious posters popped up in NYC, a viral moving truck in Saskatchewan sparked speculation, and a limited edition 7” copper vinyl (with B-side demo “I Hate It Here”) sold out in hours.
Alongside the release, Roan announced her Visions of Damsels & Other Dangerous Things pop-up tour—eight shows across NYC, Kansas City, and LA this fall. These intimate performances, happening in venues like Forest Hills Stadium and Pasadena’s Brookside at the Rose Bowl, continue her mission to keep ticket prices fair and fan-focused. As always, $1 per ticket supports organizations helping trans youth, a cause Roan calls “essential to everything I do.”
This summer marks yet another milestone for Roan, who dominated the 2024 festival circuit with record-breaking sets at Lolla, Gov Ball, and Primavera. Her previous single, “The Giver”, debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, smashing genre boundaries and redefining the queer country ballad.
Roan’s rise has been anything but conventional—but then again, nothing about her ever is. From “Pink Pony Club” to The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, she’s built an empire on queer joy, theatrical melancholy, and unabashed maximalism. With “The Subway”, she adds another glitter-drenched, mascara-streaked jewel to her crown.
Article updated Aug. 4 – Chappell Roan fans hoping for a new album may need to be patient—in a Vogue interview published today, the singer revealed that despite recent singles like “The Giver” and “The Subway,” a second album is not yet in the works—“There is no album. There is no collection of songs,” Roan said, noting that her debut took five years to write and she expects a similar timeline for the follow-up. She emphasized that her creative process can’t be rushed: “I don’t think I make good music whenever I force myself to do anything.” Addressing fans’ impatience, Roan added, “Even if I was in the studio 12 hours a day, every single day, that does not mean that you would get an album any faster.”
Watch “The Subway” official video and stream the new single now.
Tickets for registered Fair AXS users go on sale August 5–7. More info at axs.com/chappellroan2025.
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