Megan Thee Stallion is stepping into a new era, and it’s taking her from hip-hop stages to Broadway.
The Houston rapper just made her debut in Moulin Rouge!, stepping into the role of Harold Zidler — a move that marks a shift from her onstage persona into full character work.
Speaking to Blavity’s Shadow and Act timed to her new campaign with Cheetos for Flamin’ Hot Dill Pickle, she said, “I feel like this is going to be just new territory for me. It’s different getting on stage, and I’m at a concert, or I’m at a Megan Thee Stallion show, and I’m being Megan Thee Stallion. This is not me being Megan Thee Stallion, this is me being Zidler. And then also, this is a role that is not a woman, so then now I have to make this character be my own. I’m playing a whole ‘nother person, and I’m making this person be me.”
She makes history as the first female-identifying performer to portray the role not only on Broadway, but on any stage.
She continued, “And I’m very excited for my fans [and] my supporters to come see me in a light that is not just regular Megan Thee Stallion. This is me getting to play somebody else, it’s like another alter ego. Absolutely nothing to do with regular Megan, this is me in a whole new avenue and a whole new light, and I’m ready to rock it, I’m ready to kill it because this is a field that I really want to get into, so I really just want to continue to prove myself. I can do this.”
That expansion beyond music is intentional. Megan said she approaches her work, including her work with Cheetos, with a focus on authenticity and showing different sides of herself.
“For me, I feel like I only do things that feel organic and only feel natural to me,” she said. “Also, I like to decide on things so people could get to know my personality outside of hip hop and rap, outside of music in general. I’m not only what people may see online or in a music video. I have many sides to my personality that I like everybody to get to know, so that’s why when I pick my partners, and I’m doing my things, it’s like, ‘You know what? That does make a lot of sense. I could see her doing that,’ because I am doing that in my real life. So I do things that I feel like help my fans get to know me better, people get to know me better, and I only do things that I feel strongly about.”
Collaborating with Nickelback for Cheetos
That approach carries into her latest campaign, and it’s one that pairs her with an unexpected collaborator: Nickelback.
The rapper is featured in Cheetos’ “Pickle’s Back” campaign, which celebrates the return of Flamin’ Hot Dill Pickle and introduces a new Puffs version. The rollout includes a reimagined take on Nickelback’s “How You Remind Me,” blending Megan’s style with the band’s signature sound.
“So when you meet people that are obviously ultra famous already and already iconic, and “How You Remind Me” is already a big iconic song, I’m like, ‘Dang, what can I bring to this? This is already a great song. What am I going to say on this song that’s going to make it sound like me? How can I turn this up and make it Megan?’ And when I sat with the beat for a while, I’m like, ‘You know what? I know exactly what I’m going to say. I know what to do.’ And I approached it and I was like, ‘I really hope Nickelback like this,’ and they liked it and they were so nice.”
“I feel like everybody’s probably going to look at this and be like, ‘Damn, Megan and Nickelback. What the hell is that going to sound like?’ But I promise it’s great. It’s amazing. You didn’t know you needed this, but you need it.”
The campaign also taps into something personal for Megan: her love of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos and pickles.
“I think it’s a favorite of mine because I just love pickles. I love dill pickles. I love Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. I mix them together often. I will eat a pickle and a Cheeto, [at] different times. I will fry pickles with Flamin’ Hot Cheeto dust. Pickles on my sandwich, put my Hot Cheetos on the side. It was very obvious that I was going to be one of the main people that was excited about this collab. My two favorite things, mixing them together. You telling me I don’t got to eat the pickle and the Hot Cheeto at the same time? The Cheeto already tastes like a pickle? But it’s great. It was like, ‘Duh, I’m doing it.’ I’ve made it on my TikTok before, and it’s very delicious. Dipping in some ranch, oh my God.”
Working with Dave Meyers again
The campaign’s visuals were directed by Dave Meyers, a longtime collaborator Megan has worked with across multiple projects.
“Dave, you know he gets behind the lens, it’s going to be a movie,” he said. “He’s very theatrical, he’s very drama. I’ve worked with him on a lot of my own music videos, and his daughter is also one of my main photographers and she took my pictures on set too so it was like a little family affair on set. It was great. I felt so comfortable because I work with him and his daughter all the time.”
“So when I saw the tree, and I was like, ‘This is so Dave.’ Dave is going to have me doing stunts. I’m going to fly off something. I’m going to fall off something. I’m surfing on a pickle surfboard in this music video. It’s insane. There’s explosions. It looks like a mini movie, so I feel like everybody’s going to be so excited because it’s not just a music video, it’s definitely a mini movie.”
For Megan, the campaign reflects her current trajectory.
Hot Girl Art Show next?
As she continues to expand into new spaces, Megan said there are still creative areas she plans to share with the public.
“Something that I haven’t done that I really do enjoy doing that I haven’t really introduced to the public is painting. I really like art. I have a lot of little projects that I do at my house just in my free time, and I think eventually when I feel comfortable enough, I want to introduce my art to the world.”