How Chappell Roan and Reneé Rapp’s star power is making 2024 the year of lesbian pop

By L. Holland, PhD candidate in the Department of Music, University of Bristol

“Lesbian” has been a fraught word in the queer community for many years. This was discussed in the mainstream recently in the BBC’s sapphic reality dating show I Kissed A Girl, where contestants were shown having an emotional conversation about their difficult relationships with the word.

“It is a word that has been taken and made negative. Growing up, it was used in a way that suggested something was wrong with you,” said Georgia, one of the contestants. “Being a lesbian is something…

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