Reneé Rapp: How Broadway's Mean Girl Rewrote Pop Stardom

Named for a marquee before she could even sing, Reneé Rapp grew up in Huntersville, North Carolina, splitting her time between the varsity golf team and the theater program. Her instinct for making audiences feel a song carried her from the Jimmy Awards to taking over as Regina George on Broadway at just 19, handed the role by Tina Fey herself.But the polished pop-star mold never fit. Rapp has spoken openly about the anxiety and eating disorder the Mean Girls Broadway run intensified, her pivot to television, and her reclamation of the character in the 2024 film. This episode traces how she traded the PR-perfect image for raw authenticity, building an uncancellable bond with her audience on her own terms.How a childhood name and varsity golf shaped an unlikely path to Broadway stardomWhy the Mean Girls stage run turned toxic and pushed her toward TV and filmReturning to Regina George as a reclamation, from the soundtrack to SNL with Megan Thee StallionHer music evolution from Snow Angel to Bite Me and the influences behind her soundOpenness about her sexuality, mental health, and ADHD as fuel for her art