Rating: 5/5

Chappell Roan certainly gets the job done in her latest single “The Giver,” a pop-country song released on March 13, following months of teasing new music. 

Roan brings a new flair to both country and pop music, maintaining her pop-princess presence while channeling influences from female country stars like Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain and The Chicks in the process. 

Opening with a count off like her hit “Hot To Go!” Roan’s spunky voice is the cue for a duo of fiddles to lead into the first verse, quickly accompanied by an electric guitar and bass. The instrumental adds depth to the song as a perfect blend of pop-rock (which Roan has spoken about exploring in her upcoming music) and good old-fashioned country music. The Mixolydian key hits Roan’s vocal sweet spot, and the country transition is coming off incredibly natural for the Midwestern Princess.

Like all of Roan’s songs, “The Giver” is nothing short of a strikingly confident and flirtatious anthem. She mentions typically male-dominated interests like trucks, going to bars and drinking beer and appears to reclaim the scene for women by putting herself in that position of power. 

Keeping with the likeness of her other works, “The Giver” is a catchy fusion of two beloved genres that is incomparable to others. The lyrics exude fun and clever double entendres for both a power dynamic and sex. 

Like many of the songs off of “The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess,” “The Giver” easily could have taken a campier turn than it did, potentially bordering the edge of a country parody – but Roan’s take on the genre is far from it. The single is an earnest expression of the singer’s love for country. Having grown up in the Midwest, where country reigns supreme, the influence it had on Roan and her musical journey is not lost in her work. 

The ease in which country and pop music are mixed makes the single palatable for those who are not typically fans of country. As someone who likes very little country music but adores Chappell Roan, I was instantly drawn in and tapping my foot. “The Giver” is proof that Roan is incapable of making a bad song.

Image from Chappell Roan via YouTube