Reneé Rapp Says Her ‘Insane’ Time on Broadway Prepared Her for ‘Anything’: ‘It Made My Voice a Machine’ (Exclusive)

“I was dying. It’s insane, but it definitely – it was like bootcamp,” the singer tells PEOPLE

Reneé Rapp’s career has exploded over the past year as she gears up for an international tour, but the singer credits her start in theater for giving her an edge in the industry.

In an exclusive interview, Rapp, 23, told PEOPLE performing on Broadway when she was 19 “was like bootcamp,” helping her feel as though “[she] can do anything.”

“Eight shows a week is the hardest thing ever,” Rapp says of her run as Regina George in Mean Girls on Broadway that started in 2019. “I was dying. It's insane, but it definitely– it was like bootcamp.”

Rapp adds, “and to point out, I had a princess track, I wasn't doing s---,” referring to a term in musical theater used to describe a role that isn’t on stage for a majority of the show, but is integral to the plot.

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"You could never put me in a show like that and expect me to do eight shows a week without having a princess track,“ Rapp tells PEOPLE.

But overall, the experience “made me work really hard, and made me really resilient.”

The “Snow Angel” singer also noted some of the unintended perks that came with the intense environment on Broadway. “It made my voice a machine,” she said.

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“I figured out how to manipulate my voice in all these different ways so that you can't tell if I don't feel as good one night or the other,” she explained.

Rapp was discovered after being awarded “best performance by an actress” at the 2018 Jimmys, otherwise known as the Tonys of high school theater. She assumed the role of Regina George in 2019 before shutting down and closing during the pandemic, but will be reprising her role as Regina in the Mean Girls: The Musical movie adaptation.

Now, the singer is preparing to kick off her Snow Hard Feelings Tour for her debut album Snow Angel Sept. 15. 

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The “Tummy Hurts” singer also spoke to PEOPLE about the food that her “body can be fueled by during the day and at night" when she's performing, featured in her bowl with Sweetgreen

“The spicy cashew dressing is amazing, and it's been a new addition to my life in the last year,” the singer, who rarely changes her order, told PEOPLE.

“I absolutely don't switch up at all. I eat the same things every single day pretty much,” Rapp explained. “Being that I have a sensitive stomach, I can only eat certain things. So a lot of the bowl is just based on what my body can be fueled by during the day and at night.”

Rapp’s bowl is made up of roasted tofu, cilantro, cucumbers, red onions, shredded cabbage, spicy broccoli and tomatoes on a spring mix bed and is doused in the salad chain’s spicy cashew dressing.

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Read the original article on People.