Reneé Rapp can thank her mom for her career in music. Speaking on podcast Good Hang with Amy Poehler, Rapp shared that her mom, Denise Rapp, specifically chose her name to ensure success.
“My mom chose my first and last name to be—well, okay, arguably chose my first and last name to both have R’s,” Rapp told Poehler. “She was like, ‘Alliteration, just in case she wants to be a pop star.’ Like before I was born.” She added that she’s aware the decision was “conceited,” but said “I’m obsessed with the way she did it. I’m like, ‘Thank you, God.’”
Poehler replied, “She gave you a pop star name just in case, because Reneé Rapp is a huge pop star name.” Rapp agreed: “It’s a really good one!” Poehler added, “And Reneé Rapp is a huge pop star.”
Elsewhere in the interview Rapp spoke about developing as a singer, meeting Beyoncé, and coming out on Saturday Night Live. She recounted being on SNL and how some of the writers wrote a sketch where she would be referred to as a “little bisexual intern.”
“At that time I was very publicly bisexual,” Rapp said. “I had been for a very long time. In private I was talking with my girlfriend and a lot of my friends for the last maybe eight months before that of being like, ‘I actually don’t really feel very bi at the moment. I feel very much like a lesbian and it feels so nice and that word feels amazing.’” She asked the writers to change the sketch to “lesbian.”
“Labeling yourself publicly is really, really, really empowering,” Rapp added. “And also, I think, can be kind of intimidating.” She said that coming out as a lesbian on SNL was “pretty cunty,” but it felt “so fucking good” and she “didn’t even look online” at the response after.
Earlier this week, Rapp live debuted a new song, “Leave Me Alone,” at the American Music Awards. “Leave Me Alone” marked the first release from Rapp as a lead artist since sharing the deluxe edition of her debut album Snow Angel in 2023, and is a glimpse into her forthcoming second LP, Bite Me, out Aug. 1.
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On the single, Rapp takes jabs at her departure from the recently-cancelled HBO Max series Sex Lives of College Girls and her label chasing her down for new music. “Signed a hundred NDAs but I still say something/Leave me alone, bitch, I wanna have fun/Took my sex life with me, now the show ain’t fuckin’,” she sings over banging percussion and blaring guitars. “Can I tell you a secret/I’m so sick of it all.”
Rapp left Sex Lives after two seasons to focus on her music career. The series was cancelled following the conclusion of its third season. By that point, the singer had already moved on to headlining tours in support of Snow Angel, packed festival sets, and a lead role in the film adaptation of Mean Girls: the Musical.
