Rent and Glee fans will want to check this out. There’s a performance from next week’s episode that Rent fans will probably either love, or dislike (depending on how you feel about covers). Spoilers ahead!
Last month, Ryan Murphy said that Rachel (Lea Michele) and Mercedes (Amber Riley) would be performing a Rent song. The episode’s set to take place next week and the audio of the song they’ll be singing was leaked online today:
As predicted/hoped-for by some, Rachel and Mercedes are covering “Take me or Leave Me.” While it seems they’ve stuck close to the original arrangement, I’m on the fence about the song being covered on the show now that I’ve heard it. It’s fitting that Michele would be singing the part originally played by Idina Menzel, who played Rachel’s bio-mom in Glee, however in the context of Rent, I always took “Take me or Leave Me” to be a very emotional, sexually charged song between Maureen and her partner Joanne. In a way, it showcases their relationship and what makes them tick. I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that Mercedes and Rachel aren’t singing this song at each other. But, I’m willing to keep an open mind on this and consider that maybe within the context of whatever they’re going through (and whoever they’re singing to), the song will work on a different level.
Broadwayworld.com has a few more songs from the episode posted on their site.
Glee’s “Comeback” episode airs Tuesday, February 15th (8:00 p.m. ET/PT) on Fox.
