I never really thought I was that into musicals until I recently looked through my "heavy rotation" on Spotify. I will admit I tend to go through a lot of phases with my music where I will only listen to one genre and nothing else (country, rap, pop, and now broadway). With that being said, here are some of my favorite bops from my favorite musicals that I always listen to on full volume during long car rides.
Disclaimer: there are a lot of musicals I have not seen, and therefore do not have an opinion on. I am working on expanding my repertoire of musical bops, but until then, please do not crucify me, musical theatre people.
Heathers
I saw this musical for the first time about a year ago, and have been jamming to the soundtrack a lot recently. The opening song, "Beautiful," has been stuck in my head for the past two weeks. It gets a little dialogue-heavy near the end, but the first 3/4 is a banger.
Wicked
If you haven't screamed "Defying Gravity" alone in your car than you haven't lived. Do yourself a favor, and try it.
Hairspray
We all know and love the classic "Good Morning Baltimore", which is definitely a bop, but I would also recommend "Welcome to the 60's". It is really catchy; almost too catchy.
Les Miserables
I'm not going to lie, this musical doesn't have a lot of sing-along bangers in it; it has a lot of traditional-sounding musical songs. But I will always, always, always belt along to "I Dreamed A Dream" and "On My Own".
The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Honestly, you can sing any song from this musical and have a great time while doing it. "Dammit Janet" will forever be stuck in my head, and I dare anyone to listen to "Time Warp" and not dance (you just can't do it). This is not just a Halloween musical, it is a cult classic.
Monty Python's Spamalot
This is definitely an underrated musical. If you love lighthearted, humorous musical songs, this is the musical for you. "The Song That Goes Like This" is the perfect generic ballad that makes fun of generic ballads; I would highly recommend.
Finding Neverland
I love so many songs from this musical; I sing along to every single one. Even if you have never seen the musical, you may have heard "When Your Feet Don't Touch The Ground", which is a great ballad. The song I always go back to though is "What You Mean To Me". But I would honestly recommend the entire soundtrack.
The Greatest Showman
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You either love this musical or hate it. I have heard many people complain about how generic the songs were, but I still want to recommend "A Million Dreams". It's just good, okay? (I also love "Tightrope" and "Rewrite the Stars", and I will always belt along to "Never Enough", but that's just me.)
Grease
So many bops. We all know. Here are my favorites: "Summer Nights", "Hopelessly Devoted To You", "You're The One That I Want", "Greased Lightnin'", and, last but not least, "Mooning".
Mamma Mia/Mamma Mia 2
Every song from both "Mamma Mia" and "Mamma Mia 2: Here We Go Again" are bangers. Every single song. I'm sorry if you disagree. (I actually skip a couple, but I'm not going to call them out. Most every song is bop-able.)
And that is my master list of the most singable songs from my favorite musicals. There are others that I love that I didn't include because they aren't on my heavy rotation as of lately.
(My honorable mention musicals include "The Phantom of the Opera", "La La Land", and "High School Musical".) I am sorry if your favorite musical bop didn't make the cut, I am sure it is great.
So the next time the top 40 just isn't doing it for you, definitely check these musicals out!
