For Chappell Roan, the reason behind her advocacy for the LGBTQ community is really quite simple: “People deserve to have good lives. Like you deserve to be free. Every single person deserves to have freedom and to be themselves. It’s just like, why would you fight against that?”
Roan made that simple, but eloquent, statement in an interview with Elton John that is part of his 2026 Elton John Impact Awards, which launched Monday (June 1) as a podcast series on the iHeartRadio app and everywhere podcasts are heard, and as an audio special airing across iHeartRadio PRIDE stations.
Musicians Orville Peck and Melissa Etheridge; actors Jonathan Bailey and Laverne Cox; and tennis legend Billie Jean King are five other LGBTQ+ icons who are set to be honored and featured in a podcast episode. John also talked to Bailey. iHeartRadio’s Elvis Duran talked to Peck, Etheridge and King. Billy Porter talked to Cox.
The Elton John Impact Awards celebrate trailblazing LGBTQ+ community members and prominent allies, while also giving back to LGBTQ+ organizations. The award was first introduced in 2022 at “Can’t Cancel Pride,” a virtual benefit concert launched by iHeartMedia and Procter & Gamble. John was its inaugural recipient in recognition of his decades-long advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights and the fight to end AIDS.
Since then, the award has honored trailblazers including Brandi Carlile and Porter, evolving into the Elton John Impact Awards podcast series.
Created by iHeartMedia and P&G, the Elton John Impact Awards, which bills itself as the first-podcast awards ceremony, recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the LGBTQ+ community. Charitable foundation partners of this year’s event include the Elton John AIDS Foundation and Brandi Carlile’s Looking Out Foundation. For more information visit EltonJohnImpactAwards.com.
Here are edited highlights of these six conversations.
