Chappell Roan wishes you “Good Luck, Babe!” for your weekend

It’s Chappell Roan’s world, and we’re just living in it. Some fans have known this since the release of “Pink Pony Club” in 2020, but everyone else is starting to catch up. From her confident, effervescent debut album to her run as Olivia Rodrigo’s tour opener to her buzzy Tiny Desk performance and beyond, Roan’s ascent over the last year has been unstoppable. Capitalizing on the momentum on Friday, she released her new song “Good Luck, Babe!”, described as “the first song of the next chapter.” Listening to it, it’s clear we’re witnessing the rise of a Midwest Princess, with no fall in sight.

Roan has teased “Good Luck, Babe!” for weeks—if you really wanted to, you could’ve found one of the many videos on YouTube of her performing it at her headline shows—but the full studio version has its own pleasures. Produced by Roan’s frequent collaborator Dan Nigro (who also produces for Rodrigo), the track recalls shades of Kate Bush in her wailing, high-pitched vocal. As with much of Roan’s oeuvre, the single tells a queer love story—or tragedy, in this case, as she warns her lover that she won’t be able to repress the feelings she has for another woman.

Though “Good Luck, Babe!” might herald the next chapter for Chappell Roan, the song fits snugly with the themes and sound of The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess (which The A.V. Club named as our #2 album of 2023). Lyrically, it’s a sequel to “Casual,” where the singer is looking for more than her lover is willing to give. And in the bridge, when she warns her soon-to-be-ex that “When you wake up next to him in the middle of the night/With your head in your hands, you’re nothing more than his wife/And when you think about me, all of those years ago/You’re standing face to face with ‘I told you so,’” it’s a sentiment shared in her previous album opener “Femininomenon,” in which she imagines a woman “stuck in the suburbs” in a loveless relationship with a man.

Roan’s clever, queer, campy lyrics are a highlight of her work, but her status as a powerhouse performer is what makes her a true standout. That quality is highlighted in the rich, deep tones in the verses of “Good Luck, Babe!” and the effortless jump to her head voice on the chorus. But it’s also evident in the visual aesthetic of her live performances, like the Mary Pickford-cum-drag queen look in her Late Show With Stephen Colbert performance. The single art for “Good Luck, Babe!” features the artist in medieval garb with a wide pig nose, a mix of the vulgar and the refined that already feels like a classic Roan trick. Few pop stars are playing with character and performance while also delivering smart, self-assured songwriting like Chappell Roan is right now. The next chapter seems guaranteed to deliver similar treats.