Christopher Polk
More than four decades after She’s So Unusual made its mark, Cyndi Lauper’s influence remains unmistakable — a fact Chappell Roan recently acknowledged in a heartfelt tribute.
With Lauper slated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Nov. 8, Roan took a moment to outline the many ways Lauper shaped her creative outlook, from bold styling to theatrical stagecraft.
“I’m so excited to be inducting Cyndi Lauper into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” Roan says in a short video shared by the Hall. She credits Lauper for influencing her fashion, hair, makeup and music, and even recalls auditioning for America’s Got Talent at 13 with Lauper’s “True Colors” — a try that didn’t land her a spot, but left a lasting impression.
Roan, who broke through in 2024, channels many of Lauper’s synth-pop instincts. Her debut album, Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess, produced the Hot 100 top-20 single “Hot to Go” (No. 15). Notably, both artists have taken home the Grammy for best new artist — Lauper in 1985 and Roan in 2025.
After Roan’s Joan of Arc–inspired staging of “Good Luck, Babe” at the 2024 MTV Video Music Awards, Lauper praised the younger artist’s “performance art,” noting on Andy Cohen’s Watch What Happens Live (Sept. 15, 2024) how visually striking Roan’s work is.
Though she hasn’t released a second studio album yet, Roan scored two Hot 100 top-10 hits this year: the country-tinged “The Giver,” which peaked at No. 5, and the sweeping ballad “The Subway,” which reached No. 3 — the highest-charting single of her career to date. After Lauper’s Rock Hall induction, Roan is scheduled to close out her Visions of Damsels & Other Dangerous Things Tour with a headline slot at Mexico City’s Corona Capital Festival on Nov. 14, 2025.
Earlier in October, Lauper was honored with a Hollywood Bowl–set special, the Grammy Salute, which aired on CBS and Paramount+ on Oct. 5. The following day, Oct. 6, she announced her first-ever Las Vegas residency, set to begin in April 2026 at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. (Deadline covered the residency announcement.)
Watch Chappell Roan’s affectionate tribute to Cyndi Lauper on Instagram here.
