Chappell Roan and Bowen Yang Discuss Viral Moo Deng ‘SNL’ Skit

Chappell Roan is once again asking her fans to keep it more casual. On the latest episode of Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers’ Las Culturistas, the pop singer discussed how several fans online mischaracterized the viral Saturday Night Live skit in which Yang compared Roan’s massive success with the internet-famous pygmy hippo Moo Deng. “People don’t have to get mad on my behalf,” Roan said. “I wasn’t even mad!” she exclaimed.

In fact, Roan found the skit funny. “That is SNL, it’s comedy,” Roan stated, adding, “It was so light-hearted. It was, to me, harmless.”

At the time, Drag Star winner Sasha Colby even confirmed Roan’s good sense of humor to Yang. “I was like ‘Is she okay?’ Sasha was like, ‘yeah girl, she’s laughing, she’s loving it.” Meanwhile, co-host Rogers also recalled “getting texts from people asking ‘are Bowen and Chappell okay?’” and being confused by it. “Why are we assuming that people don’t have a sense of humor?” he said.

For Roan, the whole misunderstanding only proved how often fans online cross boundaries. “Even if you didn’t think the Moo Deng sketch was funny, you don’t have to say anything,” she said.

Since her breakout moment in 2024, Roan has been open about her struggles with fame and being a highly visible person in public. In her Rolling Stone cover story, Roan shared how far certain fans have gone to get a picture with her or talk to her, and even revealed that she’s had stalkers. “I don’t want to be agoraphobic. That’s [how] most of my peers [feel],” she said at the time. “Every fucking artist is on this page. Everyone is uncomfortable with fans. Some people just have more patience. I fucking don’t.”