Here are some must-know facts about the 23-year-old actress and singer who’s taking the internet and the entertainment industry by storm.

The stage has been Reneé Rapp’s happy place since childhood

Hailing from Charlotte, North Carolina, Rapp displayed an undeniable passion for the arts from an early age and her family soon recognised her potential. According to NPR, she started performing in local theatre productions, being praised for her exceptional singing, dancing and acting abilities.

During high school, she played Sandra in the stage adaptation of Big Fish, where her performance earned her the Jimmy Award for best performance by an actress, a title that recognises promising high school-aged theatre talents.

Her Broadway breakthrough

She chose to pursue music in New York City over a traditional university education, which she thought was necessary to develop connections with people who share her aspirations and are driven to see her succeed, also per NPR.

Remarkably, at just 19 years old, Rapp achieved a feat that many aspiring performers only dream of – she made her Broadway debut as Regina George in the hit musical Mean Girls. Her portrayal of the iconic character received high praise and established her as one of Broadway’s brightest young talents.

Doing TV wasn’t her original plan

Rapp saw the Covid-19 as an opportunity to focus on her music, per AP, as the pandemic abruptly halted her Broadway career. Yet her agents had different plans in mind and encouraged her to audition for a television show despite Rapp’s initial reservations about her suitability for TV.

To her surprise, she secured the role of Leighton Murray, a closeted queer character in Mindy Kaling and Justin Noble’s HBO comedy The Sex Lives of College Girls, which delves into the lives of four university friends navigating love, friendship, sexuality and major life decisions.

She’s open about her LGBTQ+ journey

In the HBO series, Leighton is a lesbian university student who attempts to deny her sexuality and hides it from those in her life. Even though she was excited to be a part of the show, Rapp shared in a frank interview with The Cut that she was overwhelmed with anxiety while on set, saying, “I was like, I don’t deserve to be doing this; I’m not gay enough.”

Despite being out and proud as bisexual now, her journey towards self-acceptance wasn’t an easy one. On an episode of the Call Her Daddy podcast, Rapp opened up about how she once had a meltdown when she realised her attraction to women.

Now, she’s a passionate advocate for inclusivity and diversity in the entertainment industry, using her platform to raise awareness about the importance of representation and equality.

Making music is still her main goal

Rapp’s journey to pop stardom has been nothing short of strategic and determined. With clear career aspirations in mind, she shared on The Cut that she made a bold pact with the Mean Girls show producers Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels, emphasising that her participation in the Broadway production depended on their commitment to helping her music career. To her delight, they accepted, aligning her Broadway debut with her larger vision.

This year, Rapp decided to step back from The Sex Lives of College Girls to focus on her music career. On August 18, she released her debut album Snow Angel, taking a giant leap towards her dream of becoming a pop star – and with an already sold-out tour, it’s clear there’s much more to come for her skyrocketing music career.