Exclusive: Chappell Roan on the surprising Grammy award she really wants to win

By Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN

(CNN) — Most musicians dream of winning a Grammy, but there’s only one award Chappell Roan is aiming for.

The 26-year-old pop artist has had a meteoric rise into superstardom this year. Her debut album “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” topped the Billboard 200 Chart, only second to Taylor Swift; she performed to record-breaking crowds at festivals like Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits; and she won best new artist at the MTV Video Music Awards.

So what better way to cap off her mega year than by winning her first Grammy Award? With Recording Academy voting closing on October 15, Roan appears to be a shoo-in for a best new artist nomination, among other top categories. But she has said she doesn’t care about accolades.

“I’m kind of hoping I don’t win, because then everyone will get off my ass,” she said in a recent interview.

She has also said she doesn’t pay much attention to the buzz around her recent career success.

“I’ve never given a f**k about the charts or being on the radio, but it’s so crazy how industry people are taking me more seriously than before,” she said this year in Interview magazine. “I’m like, “I’ve been doing this the whole time, bitch.”

But there is one award Roan cares about deeply — and it’s in a category the general public probably hasn’t heard of.

The Grammy Award for best recording package honors the visual look of an album, awarded to the art director of the project. Earlier this week, Roan and her creative director, Ramisha Sattar, posted a video to social media, to campaign for support in the category.

“Please, please, please put some type of energy, a spell, whatever, that we get nominated for the Grammy,” Roan said in the video. “It’s not televised, most people don’t know about it, but it would mean we would both win a Grammy. We have to be nominated.”

Roan has been in the headlines quite a bit. First, for some provocative interviews that turned to politics. Then, for her announcement that she’d be voting for Vice President Kamala Harris, after she hesitated to make a public endorsement. Most recently, Roan made news when she cancelled festival performances to prioritize her mental health.

Roan has not done any media interviews since her endorsement or cancelled appearances, but in a conversation over email with CNN this week, she explained why she wants to shine a light on her creative director, Sattar, who she credits with her much of success.

“She has the vision behind my aesthetics, merch, and the feeling of campiness. She brings the camp to the project. That is very rare and it needs to be spotlighted,” Roan told CNN about Sattar.

Sattar, who first connected with Roan over Instagram when the singer followed her after spotting one of her artistic collages, is responsible for creating the over-the-top, Gen Z Lisa Frank-esque aesthetic that has become closely associated to Roan’s drag-inspired stage persona. Sattar creates the animations behind Roan for her shows, helps select her single covers and plays a hand in the star’s makeup and outfits.

“She is just as much Chappell Roan as I am, honestly,” Roan told CNN. “She is Chappell Roan too.”

This week, Roan and Sattar launched a paper doll kit to accompany her vinyl album for “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” which is adorned with a theater curtain sleeve over the album cover, so fans can create their own stage. Designed by Sattar, she and Roan created the packaging together, which was submitted for Grammy consideration. They hope the paper dolls spark creativity among Roan’s music listeners.

“The paper dolls were something we were always dreaming about,” Sattar told CNN, also via email. “When I first designed the vinyl with Chappell, it was always with the intention that more was to come. The idea of a theater frame that fans could personalize and get creative with was so fun to us both. I hope that my art can inspire creativity, and encourage people to DIY something, especially with their hands. The joy of tactile art is something many miss out on as they grow up, so I love to encourage play in silly ways.”

Sattar said that working with Roan is “like craft night, every night” and praises her best friend for bringing a “clear vision to each project.”

In an industry where the artist receives the public praise and accolades, Roan wants to share the stage with her team.

“This project isn’t just my ideas. There’s a huge team working on it. It’s because of everyone’s creativity that it’s working,” Roan told CNN, calling Sattar her “twin flame.”

When Grammy nominations are announced on November 8, Roan and Sattar are hoping they are recognized in the packaging category and that the award presentation might actually air in the live show.

“I would love for it to be televised so that more people can experience the art of packaging,” Sattar said.

“Ramisha is so inspiring to me because she really leads with her inner child and what is cute and makes her feel good. That is how I try to run my project – as genuine as possible and honor my inner child,” Roan said of their collaboration. “We inspire each other, but I feel like she has opened so many doors emotionally for me with art and letting go.”

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