Rent Cast - Rent Lyrics






[MARK:]
How do you document real life
When real life's getting more
Like fiction each day
Headlines-bread-lines
Blow my mind
And now this deadline
"Eviction-or pay"
Rent

[ROGER:]
How do you write a song
When the chords sound wrong
Though they once sounded right and rare
When the notes are sour
Where is the power
You once had to ignite the air

[MARK:]
And we're hungry and frozen

[ROGER:]
Some life that we've chosen

[MARK & ROGER:]
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent

[MARK:]
We light candles

[ROGER:]
How do you start a fire
When there's nothing to burn
And it feels like something's stuck in
Your flue

[MARK:]
How can you generate heat
When you can't feel your feet

[MARK & ROGER:]
And they're turning blue!

[MARK:]
You light up a mean blaze

[ROGER:]
With posters

[MARK:]
And screenplays

[MARK & ROGER:]
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent

[JOANNE:]
Don't screen, Maureen
It's me-Joanne
Your substitute production manager
Hey hey hey! Did you eat?
Don't change the subject Maureen
But darling-you haven't eaten all day

You won't throw up
You won't throw up
The digital delay
Didn't blow up, exactly
There may have been one teeny tiny spark
You're not calling Mark!

[COLLINS:]
How do you stay on your feet
When on every street
It's 'trick or treat'
And tonight its 'trick'
'Welcome back to town'
I should lie down
Everything's brown
And uh-oh
I feel sick

[MARK:]
Where is he?

[COLLINS:]
Getting dizzy

[MARK & ROGER:]
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent

[BENNY:]
Allison, baby - you sound sad
I don't believe those two
After everything I've done

Ever since our wedding
I'm dirt - they'll see
I can help them all out in the long run

Forces are gathering
Forces are gathering
Can't turn away
Forces are gathering

[COLLINS:]
Ughhhh
Ughhhh
Ughhhh - I can't think
Ughhhh
Ughhhh
Ughhhh - I need a drink

[MARK:]
"The music ignites the night with
Passionate fire"

[JOANNE:]
Maureen, I'm not a theatre person

[ROGER:]
"The narration crackles and pops with
Incendiary wit"

[JOANNE:]
Could never be a theatre person

[MARK:]
Zoom in as they burn the past to the ground

[MARK & ROGER:]
And feel the heat of the future's glow

[JOANNE:]
Hello?

[MARK:]
Hello? Maureen?
Your equipment won't work?
Okay, all right, I'll go!

[MARK, 1/2 of COMPANY:]
How do you leave the past behind
When it keep finding ways to get to your heart
It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out
'Til you're torn apart
Rent

[ROGER, 1/2 of COMPANY:]
How can you connect in an age
Where strangers, landlords, lovers
Your own blood cells betray

[COMPANY:]
What binds the fabric together
When the raging, shifting winds of change
Keep ripping away

[BENNY:]
Draw a line in the sand
And then make a stand

[ROGER:]
Use your camera to spar

[MARK:]
Use your guitar

[COMPANY:]
When they act tough
You call their bluff

[MARK & ROGER:]
We're not gonna pay

[MARK & ROGER & 1/2 THE COMPANY:]
We're not gonna pay

[MARK & ROGER & OTHER 1/2:]
We're not gonna pay

[COMPANY:]
Last year's rent
This year's rent
Next year's rent

Rent rent rent rent rent
We're not gonna pay rent

[MARK & ROGER:]
Cause everything is rent





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Rent Cast Rent Comments
  1. T.... A....

    How we gonna make last year's rent?
    Why the hell did you miss last year's rent?

  2. E.... C....

    Here I am for the 525600th time

  3. O.... M....

    This is my favorite musical

  4. e.... ....

    How can you connect in an age
    Where strangers, landlords, lovers
    *Your own blood cells betray*
    Is this line about aids already?

  5. C.... L....

    “We’re hungry and frozen. It’s the life we chose!”

    You chose to starve and freeze to death? I feel like if you had the money you be eating in a air conditioned house... lmao

  6. S.... I....

    This is going to be me next year.

  7. T.... H....

    MARK
    How do you document real life
    When real life is getting more
    Like fiction each day
    Headlines -- bread-lines
    Blow my mind
    And now this deadline
    "Eviction -- or pay"
    Rent!

    ROGER
    How do you write a song
    When the chords sound wrong
    Though they once sounded right and rare
    When the notes are sour
    Where is the power
    You once had to ignite the air

    MARK
    And we're hungry and frozen

    ROGER
    Some life that we've chosen

    TOGETHER
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    Last year's rent

    menu

    Rent

    Rent

    MARK
    How do you document real life
    When real life is getting more
    Like fiction each day
    Headlines -- bread-lines
    Blow my mind
    And now this deadline
    "Eviction -- or pay"
    Rent!

    ROGER
    How do you write a song
    When the chords sound wrong
    Though they once sounded right and rare
    When the notes are sour
    Where is the power
    You once had to ignite the air

    MARK
    And we're hungry and frozen

    ROGER
    Some life that we've chosen

    TOGETHER
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    Last year's rent

    MARK
    We light candles

    ROGER
    How do you start a fire
    When there's nothing to burn
    And it feels like something's stuck in your flue

    MARK
    How can you generate heat
    When you can't feel your feet

    BOTH
    And they're turning blue!

    MARK
    You light up a mean blaze

    ROGER
    With posters --

    MARK
    And screenplays

    ROGER AND MARK
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    Last year's rent

    COLLINS
    How do you stay on your feet
    When on every street
    It's 'trick or treat'
    (And tonight it's 'trick')
    'Welcome back to town'
    Oh, I should lie down
    Everything's brown
    And uh -- oh
    I feel sick

    MARK
    Where is he?

    COLLINS
    Getting dizzy

    MARK AND ROGER
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    How we gonna pay
    Last year's rent

    MARK
    "The music ignites the night with passionate fire"

    ROGER
    "The narration crackles and pops with incendiary wit"

    MARK AND HALF OF COMPANY
    How do you leave the past behind
    When it keeps finding ways to get to your heart
    It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out
    Till you're torn apart
    Rent!

    ROGER AND OTHER HALF OF COMPANY
    How can you connect in an age
    Where strangers, landlords, lovers
    Your own blood cells betray

    ALL
    What binds the fabric together
    When the raging, shifting winds of change
    Keep ripping away

    BENNY
    Draw a line in the sand
    And then make a stand

    ROGER
    Use your camera to spar

    MARK
    Use your guitar

    ALL
    When they act tough - you call their bluff

    MARK AND ROGER
    We're not gonna pay

    MARK AND ROGER WITH HALF OF COMPANY
    We're not gonna pay

    MARK AND ROGER WITH OTHER HALF OF COMPANY
    We're not gonna pay

    ALL
    Last year's rent
    This year's rent
    Next year's rent
    Rent rent rent rent rent
    We're not gonna pay rent

    ROGER AND MARK
    'Cause everything is rent

  8. D.... _....

    😍can’t believe my school were doing rent yass

  9. D.... T....

    I just saw this show on tour and it was the best thing ever!

  10. E.... N....

    Does anyone think this sounds like an anime intro?

  11. S.... V....

    Here after seeing the play three days ago. 😊 I FRICKEN LOVED IT

  12. V.... W....

    The sad part about this musical is the fact that the guy who wrote it never got to see how famous it would become.

  13. F.... M....

    The play was better, the kid was younger .-.

  14. E.... ....

    Can I just get a group of people to perform this in front of the Houses of Parliament whilst we chain ourselves to the gates to raise awareness of the fact our world is burning? I say HoP because I'm British. Anyone?

  15. Q.... Q....

    So I'm listening to a "happy songs in rent" playlist and I'm so extremely grateful bc I couldn't listen to life support one more time without breaking into tears...

  16. M.... B....

    Anyone else think this sounds like the song No More from Tick Tick BOOM? I know both musicals are by Jonathon Larsen but STILL!

  17. H.... ....

    College debt in the 21st century be like

  18. K.... m....

    🤢🤢🤢🤢🤮😥🤦‍♀️

  19. C.... C....

    If one of them gasps into the microphone one more time, I'm going to scream

  20. A.... E....

    i cant pay this years rent :/

  21. B.... ....

    Anyone else notice the typo in the description?

    B.... ....

    Your profile picture is actually great lmao

    B.... ....

    s co t t
    haha ty, yours is great too

  22. M.... V....

    Who the hell is Rich???

  23. S.... F....

    Does anyone else try to sing this part of the song all in one breath or just me?

    How do you leave the past behind
    When it keeps finding ways to get to your heart?
    It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out
    'Till you're torn apart
    Rent!
    How can you connect in an age where
    Strangers, landlords, lovers, your own blood cells betray?
    What binds the fabric together
    When the raging, shifting winds of change keep ripping away?

  24. h.... ....

    I had never seen the stage musical and only heard "Seasons Of Love" when I finally went to see the movie version. In the last 30 seconds of this song I almost leaped out of my seat. I was kicking myself for not seeing it back in the 90's.

  25. I.... S....

    we should do an actual school version of this song and movie! burn the hw and drive the teachers out of the schools! kids would rule the schools!!!! yassss!!!!

  26. T.... T....

    Probably the best opening number of all time.

    T.... T....

    true! i get pumped up listening to this song!!!

  27. M.... W....

    I still get chills when it gets around the end of this song! It's so good!!

  28. F.... T....

    Rent doesn’t feel like a word anymore...

  29. D.... D....

    This is one of my favorite musicals ever, with the most kickass soundtrack EVER!

  30. R.... T....

    The most underrated musical of all time

    R.... T....

    it really was an underrated masterpiece

  31. R.... T....

    Best Musical ever 🌟

  32. B.... ....

    What is the sequel for Rent was Buy?

  33. g.... y....

    We light candles

  34. S.... B....

    HIV add when listening to rent wooww

  35. P.... P....

    Wow I’m very late 😩😩🥺😂❤️

  36. N.... G....

    Broadway though!!!! I’m on the minority here. It’s the obc recording that I love

  37. h.... ....

    OMG, just get a damn job. And your friend was going to let you live rent free if you stopped one stupid protest. Idiots.

  38. M.... P....

    The guitar solo is so fucking hype holy fuck

  39. H.... ....

    This sucks trash I could make a better song in my sleep

    H.... ....

    HannahWarriors_Fan this song is amazing. Why do you think it’s bad? I’m legit curious.

    H.... ....

    Get out

    H.... ....

    lol it's a joke my sisters a huge fan of Broadway and me not so much i wanted to see how people reacted

    H.... ....

    Oh lol. I’m super into this musical, so I get defensive anytime someone criticized it 😂. Say hi to your sis for me :-) us theatre kids gotta stick together!

  40. I.... W....

    i love this ovie

  41. C.... 1....

    This and Seasons of Love are my favorite songs in the productions.

  42. P.... B....

    *aggressive head banging*

  43. A.... B....

    howcanyouconnectinanagewherestrangerslandlordslovers, yourownbloodcellsbetrayyyy

  44. A.... A....

    "Well, that backfired"

    If you get it... FREE COOKIES

    A.... A....

    Thomas Sanders

  45. Y.... t....

    A good paying job question mark

  46. B.... B....

    HOW WE GONNA PAY?!?!

    B.... B....

    LAST YEAR'S RENT?!?!?#

  47. J.... ....

    I am officially in love.

  48. V.... F....

    *Everyone in this movie is my child-*

  49. C.... G....

    The 266 is the people who turned off their power and heat and needed them to pay rent

  50. T.... /....

    Wish this was on SoundCloud :D

  51. T.... ....

    This song made this movie extremely epic.

  52. A.... i....

    ... *LAST YEARS RENT*

  53. A.... M....

    Me when I have to pay someone back

  54. B.... B....

    i love rent!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  55. D.... L....

    lol i like a roof over my head, so i pay rent.

  56. D.... L....

    the irony? these people, not the actors (mostly), whom the actors are representing, are the reason we have all the safe space pussies and SJWS of the modern era.

  57. J.... M....

    Great Song Lyrics and The Music

  58. D.... E....

    this is one my favorite musicals along with Hamilton

  59. M.... ....

    The guitar in the “how we gonna pay” part is fucking amazing

  60. S.... H....

    Where is Mr. Ditkovich??

  61. S.... ....

    I love this song but I've heard rent so much it doesn't sound like a word anymore

  62. b.... ....

    Seeing mimi singing "we're not gonna pay". Makes me think of catwoman for some reason. Rosario Dawson is just awesome.

  63. E.... A....

    My school did this for the play this year. It was so good! The set was amazing,and personally I liked the songs better with British accents.

  64. s.... a....

    Who wants to reenact this song by being gay and poor

    s.... a....

    sad and gay me

    s.... a....

    Gotcha covered already, my man

    s.... a....

    OMG YESSS

    s.... a....

    I've been reenacting this song for years.

  65. B.... D....

    When roger asks how to start a fire



    Just ask Rich. He burned down the house. I guess he didn’t wanna pay rent either

    B.... D....

    Or JD or Eliza know what what is with musicals and burning things?

    B.... D....

    Burning stuff seems to be a common thing. In RENT, they burned eviction letters, in Hamilton, Eliza burned Alexander's letters, in Be More Chill, Rich burned a house down..

    B.... D....

    THIS IS ABSOLUTELY THE BEST COMMENT EVER!

    B.... D....

    I legit just listened to that song for the first time before reading this

    B.... D....

    O.M.G. CHLOE. ANSWERR MEE!

  66. S.... ....

    Childhood is idolizing the characters in Rent and loving Rent. Adulthood is realizing the characters in Rent are all bad people and hating Rent. Sagehood is realizing the characters in Rent are all bad people, but loving Rent anyway for the music.

    S.... ....

    SourSkittles all bad people??? ANGEL DID NOTHING WRONG

    S.... ....

    Also it’s like about how compassion for people effected by poverty and sickness, regardless of what they’ve done

    S.... ....

    @Tara Raw
    Dead dog.

  67. I.... ....

    *agressive headbanging*

  68. L.... F....

    "Howie gonna pay"






    What did ever do to you guys

  69. G.... T....

    I'm two songs in my first listen and I'm already official Rent trash

  70. C.... S....

    Bruv they out here worrying about last years rent but I'm still worrying about about 2001's rent

  71. r.... ....

    This one seems a little faster than the broadway version? Am I the only one that noticed that?

    r.... ....

    Yes it does, why it is even faster than the 1994 NYTW version and the demo version.

  72. J.... T....

    roll credits.

    J.... T....

    J Thomas would be great at CinemaSins.

  73. I.... l....

    There's very few songs I can't help but head bump to. This is one. HOW CAN YOU NOT HEAD BANG!!!???!?

  74. W.... D....

    REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEENT

  75. V.... C....

    Oooo I like it

  76. M.... R....

    I will never get over;
    Mark and Roger during 'Rent': HOW WE GONNA PAAAAYYY LAST YEAR'S REEEENT??
    *1 song later*
    Benny: I'm hear to collect the rent
    Mark and Roger: what? we don't even pay the rent ??
    XD

    M.... R....

    Meghan Robertshaw broadway version makes more sense ngl

  77. A.... ....

    I always say the "Maureen I'm not a theater person" followed by "damn" because I forget I'm not listening to the OBCR

  78. a.... ....

    Everything's BROWN
    **mr regular intensifies**

  79. B.... ....

    I think 2:50 is my favorite part <3

  80. M.... H....

    My favorite movie, thank you drama teacher!

  81. G.... Y....

    we light candles!!!

  82. m.... ....

    the only part I like is when he says drawl a line in the sand and then make a stand. lol only part 3:05

  83. K.... ....

    Sometimes I think about college and just sing "How we gonna pay? How we gonna pay?"

  84. I.... D....

    is it just me or the were not gonna pay last year's rent sound like lets do the timewarp again

  85. C.... ....

    But in all seriousness I feel like this song as well as "You're What You Own" relates more now more than ever. Who agrees?

  86. C.... ....

    Every month I play this song and I always instead sing....."How am I gonna pay. How am I gonna pay. How am I gonna pay my student loans!"

  87. C.... H....

    Well fuck me gently with a chainsaw, this is good

    C.... H....

    Cecilia Higgins What's your damage, Heather?!

    C.... H....

    Favorite comment so far, fellow Heather's fan

  88. O.... V....

    THE EDGE IS REAL

  89. s.... !....

    Did anyone come here just because it's an amazing song , or they just like RENT not from someone ???

  90. i.... s....

    pay your fucking taxes

  91. J.... S....

    PAY YOUR FUCKING TAXES

  92. E.... A....

    "We´re not gonna pay-" Hamilton bursts in: "PAY YOUR FUCKING TAXES"

  93. I.... l....

    I like how at the beginning of the movie their biggest problem was paying rent, but at the end it was AIDS.

    I.... l....

    Really didn't listen to the lyrics, did you?

    I.... l....

    I like Food a I d s

    I.... l....

    AIDS was always the problem.

    They're saying fuck paying the rent because they're going to die anyway.

    I.... l....

    Legion Ivory exactly 😂

    I.... l....

    The point the creators want to assert is that poverty and illness are connected. Poverty is physical violence (by people who keep people stuck in poverty - not everyone can afford school and CEO's *can* afford to pay entry level workers a living wage, they simply won't. If you can't pay to live, or to live well - you are more likely to engage in reckless activities for survival (prostitution, drug dealing), or to engage in unprotected sex to avoid the overwhelming stress of traumatic dead-end jobs/poverty. That exposes people to circumstances where they're going to get sick or become more poor by having children, being incarcerated which eliminates most job potential, being in abusive relationships which make working impossible and expose the persons involved to financial abuse. The poor then become even more dependent on family or likely on their abusers bc if (healthy) family could have helped, they already would have let them help. Poverty and abuse in are both inter-generational (and connected) and it lead to illness and death.
    But your quick judgement is also unfortunate - there's a lot to appreciate about this musical socially, musically, and in other capacities.

  94. D.... ....

    Man this movie was so underrated. One of the best movies of the 2000's in my opinion. And with a kickass soundtrack.

    D.... ....

    DeMario Burns I tbink it would have been more known and piblicized if Jonathan larson was alive.

    D.... ....

    DeMario Burns but the broadway was better

    D.... ....

    @Navy Gaming absolutely agree. I was lucky enough to see it on Broadway before it shut down, cried my eyes out. Beautiful 💗

    D.... ....

    Broadway was definitely better tho

  95. M.... ....

    I'm new to this am I in the right place

    M.... ....

    MassacreWolf _ Start at seasons of love.

  96. A.... G....

    you know how every musical has one or two songs you can play for hours on end and never get sick of it? Thats this song

  97. l.... ....

    First time listening to Rent, this song means I can out 'Heavy Metal' in my Instagram bio (bants)

  98. R.... O....

    🌚🌚🌚🌚🌚🌚🌚🌚🌚🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝🌝👈👈👈👈👈👈👈