From Broadway to bangers: Reneé Rapp facts to know ahead of her SNL debut

Returning from its holiday break, Saturday Night Live is set to air a new episode on NBC on Jan. 20 with BAFTA nominee Jacob Elordi as host and the amazingly talented singer and actress Reneé Rapp as the musical guest!

Where are all the Reneé Rapp fans? It's our girl's time to shine, and we know she's going to absolutely rock the SNL stage. We can't wait to see what songs of hers she will perform. Obviously, "Snow Angel" and "Tummy Hurts" are my top picks. Those two songs are easily two of her best songs. Then again, her whole debut album has tons of hits in my opinion. She's just that good of a singer.

But for the people who have no idea who Reneé Rapp is, we're about to give you a little rundown of just who this rising star is. I promise you'll be a fan of hers by the time we finish.

Below, we’ve shared some fun facts about Reneé Rapp that might surprise you!

How old is Reneé Rapp?

As of January 2024, Reneé is 24 years old. In fact, she recently celebrated her 24th birthday on Jan. 10. She even posted a photo on Instagram of her drinking a bottle of champagne on the day of her special day. The caption to the post read, "fell before I was drunk happy birthday to me." If you know Reneé's humor, you'd know that this is definitely something she would say.

She was born on Jan. 10, 2000, making her zodiac sign a Capricorn. Actually, she's a Capricorn sun, Pisces moon, and Gemini rising. She shared this juicy information during an interview with Today back in August 2023. Additionally, she was born and raised in North Carolina and has a younger brother named Charles who's also a musician.

What was Reneé's first major television role?

Well, it would be her role as Leighton Murray in Max's teen comedy-drama series The Sex Lives of College Girls. It's a show following four roommates in college as they navigate life, love, friendships, independence, and sex. Leighton is a wealthy legacy student from New York City who attends the fictional Essex College in Vermont.

While Reneé did appear in the first two seasons as a series regular, for the upcoming third season, she will only appear in a few episodes in a recurring role. While the exact reason for her exit is unknown, it looks like it has something to do with her stepping back from acting altogether. In a 2023 interview with L.A. Times, Reneé said that she's taking a break from acting as a result of her anxiety.

Who are some of Reneé's favorite music artists?

In an MTV interview, Reneé shared that she'd love to do a show at Carnegie Hall with music artists such as Frank Ocean, Jazmine Sullivan, Beyoncé, and Kacey Musgraves. And this isn't the first time she's mentioned this dream collaboration. I think it's safe to say that these are musicians that she looks up to.

What was Reneé's debut studio album?

It would be Snow Angel which was released on Aug. 18, 2023. It received mostly positive reviews from music critics and even debuted at No. 44 on the US record chart Billboard 200. There are a total of 12 songs on the album which are "Talk Too Much," "I Hate Boston," "Poison Poison," "Gemini Moon," "Snow Angel," "So What Now," "The Wedding Song," "Pretty Girls," "Tummy Hurts," "I Wish," "Willow," and "23." Out of all the songs on the album, Reneé said "Snow Angel" was the hardest song to write and "23" was the quickest.

There's also a deluxe version that includes three new songs and a remix to "Tummy Hurts" featuring Coco Jones. The three new songs are "Messy," "I Do," and "Swim."

We highly recommend checking out her debut EP Everything to Everyone too. There are a lot of hits on there as well.

Reneé Rapp is actually best friends with her The Sex Lives of College Girls co-star

Yes, you read that right! After meeting on the set of the comedy-drama series, Reneé formed a tight bond with her co-star Alyah Chanelle Scott, who plays Whitney in the series. In a 2022 interview with People Magazine, Reneé explained their friendship as being "thing one and thing two." This is a Dr. Seuss reference. If you weren't aware, Thing One and Thing Two are twins and really close in The Cat in the Hat book. It looks like Reneé was using this reference to describe how close she and Alyah are as friends.

"The best part of this job was having Alyah become my best friend. She has gotten me through a lot, and vice versa, and I am very, very grateful for her."

- Reneé Rapp

Reneé is part of the LGBTQ+ community

On the Call Her Daddy podcast back in March 2023, Reneé talked about her past struggles with coming out as bisexual. She said the first time she realized that she was queer was in high school. She had found herself having a crush on a girl, and since she grew up in a small conservative town, she felt ashamed of her feelings. It didn't help that her family wasn't supportive then either.

She talked about how she initially thought that she had to pick a side, meaning choosing to be straight or lesbian, so she decided that she was a lesbian. But after talking it through with a friend, she realized that she was bisexual instead. When it comes to her coming out story, she said that she would always get laughed at every time she tried to come out, so she would stop talking about it. But now, she's openly queer and we're glad to see her living in her truth!

Here are some more quick facts about Reneé Rapp that you may not know.

• Her Broadway debut was playing Regina George in the musical Mean Girls. She also reprised the role in the musical film of the same name that's now in theaters.
• Reneé's favorite TV show is Shark Tank.
• She's been open about her ADHD diagnosis, saying that it sometimes helps with her creative process.
• She's rumored to be dating TikToker Alissa Carrington.

Were you surprised by any of these fun facts about Reneé Rapp?

You can watch Saltburn star Jacob Elordi and Mean Girls star Reneé Rapp on SNL, returning on Jan. 20 on NBC at 11:30ET/10:30CT/9:30MT/8:30PT!