Chappell Roan’s comments about not knowing any happy parents sparks discourse for both mothers and child-free people online

Chappell Roan saying she doesn’t know any happy parents has resulted in backlash and a heated debate within the parenting community. Speaking on the Call Her Daddy podcast, the singer remarked that the emotional condition of her friends back home made her question whether she ever wants to have kids because they all seem pretty miserable.

Some current parents, especially those with young kids or infants, rushed to TikTok to call Roan out and demonstrate how much joy they experience. Others, however, say that she’s right—not because they hate their children, but because a lack of childcare support means motherhood isn’t living up to the hype.

What did Chappell Roan say about parenting?

On March 25, 2025, Call Her Daddy published their interview with singer Chappell Roan. During her talk with host Alex Cooper, Roan mentioned how different her life is from that of her friends back home in Missouri, most of whom now have young kids. After speaking with them, she’s not so sure she wants to have the same adventure.

@youtube.podcast.rewind #callherdaddy #alexcooper #unwellnetwork #chappellroan #chappellroantour #chappellroanconcert #midwestprincess #hottogochappellroan #pinkponyclub ♬ original sound – youtube & podcast rewind

“All of my friends who have kids are in hell. I actually don’t know anyone who’s happy and has children at this age,” she said. “I’ve literally not met anyone who’s happy, anyone who has light in their eyes, who has slept.”

She continues, “I’m like, ‘why did my parents do this?’”

Roan never specifically mentioned moms during this part of the interview, but that didn’t stop some online mothers from taking offense.

“It’s so far from the truth”

After listening to the clip, many TikTok moms jumped to make videos showing how happy they are with their lives. It became a bit of a trend to film tender moments like a first birthday cake or cuddles to the sound of Roan saying her parent friends are suffering.

On March 30, user @haileyosbrne posted a video accusing Roan of perceiving misery in her friends because she expects them to be miserable. In reality, while parents may complain about the tough times, there are many joyful moments as well.

“It’s so far from the truth,” she says. “I don’t care who her friends are. I truly think that it is her perspective of like, you are misunderstanding hard work and hard days for hell.”

“Is hell your child locking eyes with you across the room and you immediately seeing them relax because they know they’re safe in your presence? Is hell your child coming up to you and saying ‘love you, mom’?”

Others felt sorry for Roan’s buddies after the interview. User @adhd_farm posted a skit acting as a friend of the singer talking about how nice it was to catch up with her, then finding out what she said.

Motherhood and ‘the greatest lie ever told’

Plenty more TikTok parents saw these backlash videos and came forward to defend Roan. It’s not that their lives are complete misery, but parenting these days is immensely difficult. They feel that instead of getting mad and trying to prove something online, maybe the anti-Roan moms should redirect their fury.

The first problem is the motherhood hype, which starts at a very young age. According to user and mother @tailor_and_paws, the backlash is really anger from moms who got suckered by “the greatest lie ever told.”

“Women are told, from the second that they put a little baby doll in our hands, that being a mother is our ultimate goal. It is who we are intrinsically, to reproduce. If we reproduce, we will be fulfilled. We will feel like we have a purpose and direction. It will do everything for us. Fix us. Finish us. Complete us, as it were.”

She believes that some of these moms become enraged when anyone exposes this lie because they fell for it. No one likes to feel like a rube, after all.

How can Seth Rogen get away with saying it?

Chappell Roan is far from the first person to point out that parents are struggling. In fact, Seth Rogen has repeatedly spoken about he and his wife’s decision to be child-free, and yet somehow manages to avoid the backlash that Roan is facing right now.

@extracellestial Chappell Roan said this Chappell Roan said that. Get a grip. God forbid a woman say she doesn’t want children. Having kids is hard on top of a life that’s already really hard. Seth Rogen has been saying this for years and no one has batted an eye. #greenscreenvideo ♬ original sound – Extracellestial

“Doesn’t seem that fun,” he said during The Kelly Clarkson Show on March 15, 2023. “Most of my friends who are parents, god bless ’em, spend a lot of their time talking about how much they don’t like having kids. And what me and my wife spend a lot of time talking about is how much fun stuff we can do because we don’t have kids.”

Childcare costs and lack of support for parents

Another TikToker, @charlotteparler, pointed out that parents are indeed miserable, but not because they or their children are bad. It’s because they’re getting less support and more heart attacks.

“None of my friends are having issues with their kids, it’s actually [that] the process of raising children has become unbearable in the United States,” she says. “It’s wild to me that the attacks to Chappell Roan have been so individual—’let me show you how joyful I am’—and most of the people appear to have a level of wealth.”

According to the World Population Review, affordable childcare costs less than seven percent of the family income. Only one state—Mississippi—meets this criteria for married couples as of 2025. If you’re a single parent, forget it.

The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.