HO HO WHO: Randy Rainbow, the best purveyor of Trump-era political comedy. The formerly struggling New York actor started making musical theater parodies in a tiny Queens apartment. He’s since moved to Manhattan, improved his production values and racked up more than a million hits for spoofs like “Trump’s Favorite Things,” “Cheeto Christ, Stupid-Czar,” and “He’s Just a Gurl Who’ll Quid Pro Quo.” Hey Gurl, It’s Christmas! is Rainbow’s debut, not-just-on-Youtube album. 

STOP SPREADING THE NEWS: Rainbow made a name for himself by, well being named “Randy Rainbow,” but also by turning current events into showtunes. His revised lyrics are genius—the likes of Lin-Manuel Miranda have high praise for rhymes, including “Can’t say no/quid pro quo.” Yet writing an original holiday tune about unplugging was more challenging than re-writing lyrics from Mamma Mia! to mock Rudy Giuliani. For help, Rainbow recruited Broadway veteran Marc Shaiman, who wrote music for Hairspray and several other shows to help craft a song about “not checking Twitter” while the “tree is all-a-Glitter.” “I’m only browsing retail, so don’t send me an email,” he sings, followed by a swinging blast from the horn section.  

CHEER FACTOR: 8/10. “Hey Gurl, It’s Christmas!” is a super fun solo listen, and the title track is a Spotify keeper from 2019 that should roll right through to post-election Christmas 2020. 

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