Cast of Mean Girls
On Friday, January 12, Paramount released the movie with the accompanying soundtrack to Mean Girls. Released through Interscope Records, the thirteen-track album features the cast of the movie. Reneé Rapp reprises her role as Regina George after playing her on the Broadway show in 2019. The star of the hit movie Moana, Auliʻi Cravalho, plays the infamous Janis Ian, Cady Heron’s best friend. Angourie Rice is Cady Heron. Rice is an Australian actress who worked alongside Miley Cyrus in her Black Mirror episode.
Avantika Vandanapu, who guest starred in an episode of The Sex Lives of College Girls alongside Rapp, plays Karen Smith. Bebe Wood plays the fetch Gretchen Wieners. Wood acted in shows like ABC’s The New Normal and NBC’s 30 Rock. Additionally, The Summer I Turned Pretty‘s Chris Briney plays heartthrob Aaron Samuels. Jaquel Spivey acts as the iconic Damian. Spivey was nominated for a Tony for playing Usher in A Strange Loop.
Tina Fey continues her role of Ms. Norbury. Ashley Park, who was Gretchen in the original Broadway ensemble, makes a cameo. Tim Meadows returns as Principal Duvall, and Jon Hamm comes back to play Coach Carr.
“Not My Fault” Review
The first single released was “Not My Fault” by Reneé Rapp and Megan Thee Stallion. The title comes from the original Cady Heron quote, “It’s not my fault you’re like in love with me.” This song is about flexing, with Rapp channeling Regina George. She paints her in a new light: a pretty blonde gay girl who will leave the party with anyone’s girl. Rapp also wants everyone to know in this role that it’s not her fault she gets things for free when you paid full price for the same things. It is a bright pop song with a strong bass line. Megan comes in and continues the hot girl energy claiming herself as the “Black Regina George.”
Although it is not a favorite due to its repetitiveness, it was a cute single. The music video is what makes this track. Rapp and Stallion are in a pink atmosphere hitting choreography effortlessly. The end of the video is a standout moment of the video. They take bats and swing them at mannequins with blonde hair. Aesthetically, it fits the theme of Mean Girls perfectly and is done perfectly.
“World Burn” Review
The second release in the rollout for the Mean Girls movie was “World Burn.” Sung by Regina George, she plots her revenge against Cady, who had sabotaged her in many ways. Cady made her gain weight with protein bars, pretended to be her friend, and took over her clique. I heard Rapp sing this live back in the Broadway adaptation. Comparing the difference to the final version, she sounds way better on the soundtrack. She is a full-time singer now and has grown her vocal strength.
This is my personal favorite off the soundtrack because it has a dark, edgy feel to it against impressive notes. “Cady time to watch your back” is the lyric where it shows Heron has no idea what is coming to her. This song takes place during the major climax of the musical/movie. George hatches up the plan to pretend Heron and “The Plastics” are to blame for the infamous Burn Book. The song’s tempo did slow from the original Broadway show, which is my only criticism.
Mean Girls Soundtrack Favorites
The Mean Girls soundtrack is spectacular. The tracks methodically tell the iconic story perfectly in a new way that resembles the original film. Along with “World Burn,” one of the other songs that stands out is “A Cautionary Tale.” The guitar-forward song is the intro to the soundtrack. “A Cautionary Tale” is a small insight into the story from the perspective of Janis, alongside Damian.
This tale is cautionary because it’s about betrayal and about someone who turned “plastic” (referring to Cady Heron as fake). Secondly, the other favorite off of this project is “Apex Predator” which is also sung by Janis and Ian. This is where they’re explaining why Regina is a horrible monster, or, the “apex predator” at the top of the food chain. George marks her territory and “smells your fear.” She has the school in the palm of her hands, which is why she is not to be trusted.
Overall Review of Mean Girls Soundtrack
Each song was written with personal care, as the plot is the most important aspect to the Mean Girls movie. Making songs that fit the theme but are also catchy can only be done by professionals. According to the Broadway Mean Girls tour website, Jeff Richmond (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt) is the lyricist.
Richmond did a great job moving the story along with hit songs that really shaped this movie adaptation of the Broadway show. When I saw the show in 2019, I thought it was going to be just alright, but left falling in love with the soundtrack. The tracks encompass many different genres and definitely aren’t basic pop. Vocal moments in the songs where they get to belt vocals and hit crazy runs/riffs are why this album is perfect from the beginning track to the closing. Are you planning on listening to the album? Or are you waiting to see the movie in theaters first?
