Our Favourite Queer Artists Made Billboard’s 2024 Top Pop Stars List

Chappell Roan, Charli xcx and Billie Eilish have all made Billboard’s 10 Greatest Pop Stars of 2024 list, the earth-shattering impact of queer artists on the music industry this year.

Chappell, Charli and Billie placed at 4th, 5th and 9th respectively, with their placings taking into account both commercial numbers, cultural impact and some personal opinion to decide who dominated the year gone by. 

Billie’s inclusion in the list is thoroughly welcome, though perhaps expected. One of the biggest pop stars of the last 5 years, Billie’s latest album Hit Me Hard and Soft has received widespread critical acclaim and spawned a couple of substantial hits, such as the transcendent Birds of a Feather. Plus her team up with Charli on the Guess remix was legendary!

Though Billie has been a huge presence in the pop sphere since 2019, the placement on the list is particularly substantial for Charli and Chappell who have risen to previously unattained heights in 2024. 

Charli xcx and the year of Brat

A darling of the LGBTQI+ community and underground pop scenes, 2024 was the year everyone finally seemed to catch up with Charli xcx’s vision of pop. It’s kind of unreal seeing Charli attain so much mainstream success, particularly with an album as true to her own artistry as Brat. 

But the results speak for themselves – Brat is still the highest rated album of 2024 on Metacritic and was named the best album of the year by outlets like The Guardian, The New York Times and Rolling Stone, and a number of singles cracked top 10 lists worldwide. With ‘brat’ entering the cultural vernacular this year, it feels like it’s Charli xcx’s world now, and we’re living in it.

Chappell Roan’s rise was a pop femininomenon

But Chappell Roan’s 4th place placement is perhaps even more deserving. Though she had attained critical acclaim and success with the release of The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess in 2023, this year saw Chappell’s success absolutely skyrocket. 

Now with multiple high-charting hits, six Grammy nominations and a wildly successful tour, it feels odd to imagine a pop landscape without Chappell Roan. Her centering of the queer experience in her work has been a real highlight, with songs like Good Luck, Babe! and her commitment to having drag artists perform with her onstage. 

Chappell’s rapid rise hasn’t been without controversy, especially given her willingness to call out toxic fans and be remarkably frank (an aspect of her that I believe should be admired, not derided). Nonetheless, the success of her music and image speaks for itself, and we’re all waiting with bated breath to see what she does next. 

Other entrants on the list included Beyoncé, Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift. The final two spots are yet to be revealed, but don’t be shocked when you see Sabrina Carpenter at number 1.