Chappell Roan dedicates VMA title for best new artist to “Queer Kids in the Midwest”

There is nothing “casual” about this: Chappell Roan just won her first VMA.

The “Good Luck, Babe!” singer was named Best New Artist at the 2024 MTV VMAs at New York’s UBS Arena on Wednesday, September 11.

The 26-year-old pop star (real name: Kayleigh Amstutz) took the stage in a wire mesh dress and headgear to accept the award and read her speech directly from her diary.

After thanking MTV, her team and her family and friends, Roan thanked the drag queens who inspire her, adding: “I dedicate this to the queers and trans people who power pop. The gay people who dedicate my songs to someone they love – or hate.”

She added, “And thank you to the people who are fans, who listen to me, who hear me share my joys and my fears. Thank you. To all the queer kids in the Midwest watching right now: I see you. I understand you because I am one of you, and don’t let anyone tell you that you can’t be exactly the person you want to be.”

Roan released her debut album, The rise and fall of a Midwestern princessin September 2023 and rose to fame this year on the summer festival tour. Since then, she has Billboard Hot 100 hits with a whopping seven songs: “Pink Pony Club”, “My Kink Is Karma”, “Femininomenon”, “Casual”, “Red Wine Supernova”, “Hot to Go!” and “Good Luck, Babe!”

What draws fans to Roan is, among other things, their high-energy and kitschy live shows, which feature dress codes and themes like “pajama party kissing,” “gothic grunge and glitter,” and “so you want to be a pop star.”

“I think people like to party, and I think my project feels like a party,” she previously told PEOPLE. “I think people just want to be happy and think and sing and dance and dress up and feel free. The project gives people the opportunity to express themselves without judgment and the freedom to discover themselves, just like I feel like the project allows me to discover myself.”

Roan also performed at the 2024 VMAs and received additional nominations for Push Performance of the Year for “Red Wine Supernova,” Song of the Summer for “Good Luck, Babe!” and Best Trending Video for “Hot to Go!”

The 2024 MTV VMAs will air live from the UBS Arena in New York on September 11 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.