Wildcats, welcome to the final season 2 High School Musical The Musical The Series article. In this article, we look back at season 2 of HSMTMTS and rank the original songs. This season featured some unforgettable performances, and if you missed our season recap, click here to see all the awards we gave out in our season 2 review. For now, let’s get to ranking the original songs! 

14. “Around You” (performed by Kate Reinders and Derek Hough)

Why do I always get like this whenever I’m around you

Ms. jen

“Around You” is catchy, and the choreography is outstanding; however, this song really struggles with the overuse of autotune. “Around You” starts off with Kate saying “yeah” in this weird autotune start to the song that really sets the mood for the entire performance. Kate absolutely crushed her solo song last season but this season she missed what could have been a great opportunity with Derek Hough.

13. “You Ain’t Seen Nothing” (performed by cast ensemble)

Remind yourself at times that time can wait

Just ’cause you take a break

Don’t mean the lights are out on Broadway

CAst Ensemble

“You Ain’t Seen Nothing” is a great song to showcase the entire cast’s talent, but it’s missing something to it. In the original High School Musical movie, the big assemble songs were really catchy and featured crazy choreography; however, this one just falls short in every category. I will give Dara Renee a shoutout for her crazy awesome solo in this song (this girl can SING)!

12. “Red Means Love” (performed by Larry Saperstein and Julia Lester)

You caught me red-handed

‘Cause I can’t get enough

I’ll put some color in your world, girl

Red means love

Big Red

“Red Means Love” was performed in the post-credits early on in season 2, and the chorus is really catchy. I think Larry really showcased his skills in season 2 in a way that we didn’t get to see in season 1 and pairing him with Julia Lester makes him shine even more. Julia has so many subtle great moments in this song that even though it’s not my favorite of the season, it’s still enjoyable. 

11. “Something In the Air” (performed by cast ensemble)

There’s something in the air

About to go off right now

Line up all around

I feel it coming

Cast ensemble

“Something in the Air” is the first song performed in season 2, and it does a wonderful job of showcasing the cast as a whole. I really enjoyed Sofia Wylie’s choreography, but more so, I loved that everyone in the cast had a moment to shine within this song. “Something in the Air” is the first song that we get to hear the amazing voice that Frankie Rodriguez (who plays Carlos) will share with us in season 2. 

10. “1-2-3” (performed by Sofia Wylie, Julia Lester, and Dara Renee)

Power individually, ‘vidually

Let’s take that to infinity, finally, yeah

Look at us together, there’s nothing better

Gina, AShlyn, and Kourtney

“1-2-3” is the girl powerhouse of season 2; this song features three insanely gifted cast members showcasing their talent. I love the premise for this song as it was proposed as a way for Ashlyn, Gina, and Kortney to audition for the spring musical as a trio. “1-2-3” really fits the older style of HSM because I could totally see Sharpay singing this song in the original series. 

9. “A Dancer’s Heart” (performed by Sofia Wylie) 

We all share the same thing

A dancer’s heart

Gina

Sofia Wylie performed “A Dancer’s Heart” at Carlo’s Quincenero in season 2. I love this song for everything that it showcases. Rarely in HSMTMTS do we get the opportunity to see Sofia’s character Gina go solo, normally she is featured in big group scenes where she gets a solo and a dance break. “A Dancer’s Heart” is the perfect song to showcase Sofia in a way that we haven’t seen so far.

8. “In a Heartbeat” (performed by Frankie Rodriguez and Joshua Bassett)

When all’s said and done

You’ll always be the one that I keep comin’ back to

In a heartbeat I’d choose you

Carlos

One of the best storylines of season 2 is the growth of Carlos as a person. In season 1, there is no way we would have seen a solo Carlos song; however, Carlos has newfound confidence in season 2 that pushes him creatively to finally share with Seb how much he means to him. I love that this song starts off as an acoustic performance with Joshua Bassett but then evolves into this great upbeat song that fits Carlos so perfectly. 

7. “Granted” (performed by Olivia Rodrigo)

Am I takin’ it for granted?

Everything that I’ve been granted

I keep lyin’ awake with these dreams in the dead of the night

‘Cause somethin’ don’t feel right

Nini

Fair warning there is a lot of Olivia Rodrigo and Joshua Bassett songs to finish off this list, and it’s fitting because the two of them shared incredible performances all throughout season 2. I love the context of the song “Granted”. Nini (played by Olivia) is struggling with her new school and wants to return home, but there’s this lingering feeling that she is taking all the opportunities she has been given for granted. “Granted” has been a regular on my Spotify “On Repeat” playlist because it’s really catchy, but it’s a thought-provoking song that hits all the right notes (no pun intended).

6. “The Perfect Gift” (performed by Joshua Bassett)

The perfect gift that I could give

To the perfect gift that ever lived

Yeah, this song’s the second best that I could do

When the perfеct gift is you

Ricky

“The Perfect Gift” technically debuted in the HSMTMTS Christmas Special, but it was featured again in season 2. I will always be a huge fan of Joshua Bassett’s solo songs because he gives the audience a raw and emotional performance every time he sings. “The Perfect Gift” is a song that breaks into a whole new musical world in the sense that it feels like it was made on the spot and not rehearsed. 

5. “Even When/The Best Part” (performed by Olivia Rodrigo and Joshua Bassett)

The best part is knowin’ there’s somethin’ in my dreams

That always makes me smile, it’s you

Nini

In the press interviews before season 2, Olivia mentioned that she loved this song where Ricky and Nini are singing to each other over voice mail, and even though they are singing two different songs, it flows into one incredible performance. “Even When/The Best Part” is two songs that merge together in a perfect display of balance and rhythm. I love it when Olivia and Josh join together for a song because the flow of the song becomes seamless; it’s magical how well these two voices blend together. 

4. “Second Chance” (performed by Olivia Rodrigo, Joshua Bassett, Sofia Wylie, and Matt Cornett) 

I’ve got a second chance to fly

I’ve got a second chance to fall

What can make the tide turn?

What can make the fire burn?

A second chance is all

Nini, Rick, EJ , and Gina

“Second Chance” is the final original song performed in season 2, and it’s a perfect showcase of the four leading roles of HSMTMTS. Each character in this song is dealing with an issue, and they come together to face these struggles within a song in a way that HSMTMTS has really struggled to do in the past. This song is a combination of great lyrics, storytelling, and my favorite chorus of season 2. 

3. “If I Can’t Love Her” (performed by Roman Banks)

No beauty could move me

No goodness improve me

No power on earth, if I can’t love her

Howie

The biggest shock of season 2 was the performance by Roman Banks in “If I Can’t Love Her”. Roman is a new cast member in season 2 as he played Howie, the love interest for Kourtney, and in this song he is trying to apologize to Kourtney for not being honest with who he is. This song was featured in the broadway edition of “Beauty and the Beast” but this entire performance is authenticity personified to a point where I had to throw it into the list.

2. “The Rose Song” (performed/written by Olivia Rodrigo) 

Cause I am more than what I am to you

You say I’m perfect but I’ve got thorns with my petals, too

And I won’t be confined to your point of view

Nini

Olivia blessed the HSMTMTS team by writing an original song for season 2 called “The Rose Song”. The premise for this song is that Nini is singing from the perspective of the Rose in “Beauty and the Beast”, but she uses the real-life drama of her and Ricky to encapsulate the emotions of the rose. Olivia gave her absolute best performance of season 2 in this song, and it deserves all the recognition in the world. 

1. “Let You Go” (performed by Joshua Bassett) 

I love you so much that I’ve gotta let you go

It couldn’t last forever

And I hope you find better

Ricky

The biggest storyline of the season was the breakup of Nini and Ricky. “Let You Go” is the post-break-up song that Ricky sings to finally let go of the girl that he has loved since he was a kid.  I will take a solo acoustic performance by Joshua Bassett over anything else because his songs always hit deep in my heart. This song is a Taylor Swift level of break-up song, as it hits all the feels but shows emotional clarity and how to finally move on. I love everything about this performance and that is why I have ranked it as my number one song from season 2 of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.

Thank you for reading this ranking of HSMTMTS season 2 songs, comment below with your favorite song from the season, and we will give you a shoutout on the BRE Twitter account!