Reneé Rapp is on a roll.
She not only dropped “Leave Me Alone” last month but also performed at the American Music Awards, graced the cover of Cosmopolitan, and announced her first headlining arena tour. As her sophomore album, Bite Me, is set to hit streaming services on August 1, the powerhouse vocalist is giving us another taste with her new single, “Mad.”
The song, which Reneé wrote alongside longtime collaborator Alexander 23, Ali Tamposi, and Omer Fedi (who happens to be Addison Rae’s boyfriend, ICYMI), taps into the frustration we tend to feel in the middle of a fight with our significant other. Her punchy delivery is as playful as it is honest, as she sings about wanting to work through an argument so she can go back to the good vibes of her honeymoon phase.
Ahead, we break down Reneé Rapp’s “Mad” lyrics and their potential meaning, because you have to be prepared for the Bite Me Tour. Duh.
Lyrics written by Reneé Rapp, Alexander Glantz, Omer Fedi, and Ali Tamposi
[Verse 1]
Take five, we’ve been at it all night
Not a sorry in the world I ain't already said
Ugh, Christ, getting hard to be nice
Not a single little curl on your head, don’t want me dead
Okay, I get it, you wanna be mad
I wish I could take that pretty little face
And shake some sense into you like
Reneé sets the scene of a seemingly never-ending argument with a scorned lover. She’s already apologized profusely, but is hitting a dead end when her partner is still upset.
During her Cosmopolitan cover story, Reneé opened up about her relationship with Towa Bird (who could be the “pretty little head” the curl she sings about is perched upon) and whether they fight.
“First of all, healthy relationships fight! Our first fight was probably when I was drunk. When I go out, I often stop making sense,” she said. “Towa was trying to get my attention and tapped my shoulder. I felt nothing. And she was like, ‘I’ve been trying to get your attention for half an hour.’ And I looked over, like, ‘When?’ She thought I was kidding because it was so unbelievable, which I understand.”
[Chorus]
Hey, you!
All of the time you wasted being mad
We could’ve been cute, and we could’ve been stupid
Hey, you!
All of the time you wasted in your head
We could’ve been having sex
You could have been getting all of my time
But you were being mad
Instead of using their energy to fight, Reneé suggests going back to the way things were during the chorus. While she hasn’t revealed whether the song is explicitly about a heated moment with Towa, she gushed about their romance ahead of its drop.
“She’s my best friend. I worship her. I love talking to her, and I also just love watching her talk. There’s something so special about watching the person you are deeply enamored with talk about something they find interesting that has nothing to do with you,” Reneé told Cosmo.
She added, “Which is rare, because I think I’m the center of everyone’s world and especially hers—and I am, clock it—but hearing her talk about streaming her shit [on Twitch], she’s just such a little freak. She’s this hot, sexy, intimidating thing, but I know a side of her that’s such a weirdo.”
[Verse 2]
Okay, you can pout your lips
Puff on a cigarette, face all Marlboro red
Slow down, put my finger in your mout,h pull the bitter taste out
Baby, you can have me instead
Okay, I get it, you wanna be mad
I wish I could take that pretty little face
And shake some sense into you like
On the second verse, she attempts to ease the blow with seduction tactics. They don’t seem to be working, as she bursts into the chorus again.
[Chorus]
[Bridge]
Don’t give me the shoulder
Come get closer
God, it’s pissing me off
I wanna get mad at you right back at you
But it’s kind of hot
She wants to move past their issues and get back to being lovers. And, sometimes, the heat of the argument can translate into incredible makeup sex.
[Chorus/Outro]
All of the time you wasted being mad
We could have been cute, and we could have been stupid
Hey, you
All of the time you were fucking with my head
We could have been having sex
You could have been getting all of my time
But you were being mad
You could’ve been getting head
