OCTOBER 10, 2025 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | By Maya Rosen
As a major stop on the U.S. leg of her “Bite Me” tour, Reneé Rap headlined Red Rocks on Sept. 23. Fans showed up and cheered her on in the pouring rain and 40-degree temperatures.
Instead of merch or glittery concert outfits that were on the latter legs of her tour, the sold-out crowd stood huddled together in matching clear ponchos that read “I got rained on at Red Rocks” across the back. Nonetheless, fans stayed for all two hours of the vocal powerhouse’s set.
The 25-year-old got her start in 2019 as Regina George in the national touring version of Broadway’s “Mean Girls: The Musical,” and grew to wider fame starring in HBO Max’s “The Sex Lives of College Girls” in 2021.
The name of her latest Album, “Bite Me,” isn’t a shock to many of her fans; Rapp has become known for her lack of media training and unfiltered personality, which became both a source of criticism and popularity throughout the press tour for the 2024 release of the film adaptation of “Mean Girls: The Musical.”
Most recently, she was back in the limelight not solely for the release of her sophomore album, but for her brazen comments on cheating in relationships. In an interview with comedian Ziwe Fumudoh posted to TikTok, Instagram and Youtube, she claimed it was totally okay for a woman to cheat on a man with another woman, saying, “That’s discovering yourself, that’s not cheating.”
She then detailed that she had cheated on a partner before when she was “in a miserable relationship.” These remarks drew praise from many of her fans for her blunt honesty but sparked controversy among others.
One popular comment posted to Fumudoh’s TikTok account read, “Unfortunately, I think less of her now.” Another reads “this lowkey makes me see her different[ly]…this is extremely invalidating.” Still, I think Rapp’s honesty has become so attention-grabbing, because it is refreshing to feel a sense of truth from a celebrity, even if it reveals they are not the sort of person we hoped.
From my experience at her concert, you could feel her lack of fear even from a hundred rows back. This was, of course, partly because of her many years performing on live Broadway stages, but also in part because she is, for better or worse, exactly who she says she is.
Her sense of identity was evident as soon as she stepped onto the stage. She opened her concert by speaking directly into the microphone, simply to say, “My name is Renee Rapp and welcome to the fucking Rapture, bitch.”
She was making a biting joke referencing the TikTok rumors that predicted Jesus’s return to occur on Sept. 23, two days before the show. As an openly queer woman with many queer fans, this was an especially humorous and symbolic way to begin her concert.
She then made sure to personalize her performance to her Colorado audience, taking a bite of a chicken tender on stage and shouting “Go Nuggets” before belting her hit song “Colorado.” Her vocal capabilities and years of live performing experience reflected a new kind of authenticity, perhaps even marking an end to the era of autotuned pop stars. However, it is more than just her candid humor and raw talent that draw fans to her.
Just following opener Rayyn Lenane, Rapp’s face appeared on the big screen, accompanied by a large QR Code. Then, in a two-minute video, she asked concert goers to donate “whatever they can” to “children in crisis… Children in Gaza, …in Congo… Sudan, children everywhere.”
She even offered a pointed remark saying, “‘Save the Children’ can make a difference, while governing bodies inflict pain or simply stand by and let it happen.” It is not abnormal for a concert to partner with a charity organization, but to make outspoken statements in the current U.S. political climate is certainly something to be celebrated.
While I don’t think that we should praise celebrities for speaking on issues that people with far less cultural influence have been discussing for years, I can commend her for her effort.
In an era where stars like Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, who have amassed much larger followings, are intentionally silent, perhaps Rapp’s characteristic lack of filter is a step in the right direction.