Kevin McHale reacts to Glee's 'Defying Gravity' hitting the music charts again

All these years later, we're still holding space for Glee.

As the Wicked movie continues to soar in the box office and smash records worldwide, the movie's rendition of "Defying Gravity" has also taken over everyone's playlists.

However, Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande aren't the only musicians who have slayed Elphaba's showstopping number originally performed by Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth on Broadway! It turns out that the Glee version of "Defying Gravity" has kept fans singing this beautiful track for years.

In fact, the "Defying Gravity" covers from Glee stars Lea Michele, Amber Riley, and Chris Colfer have invaded music charts around the world since Wicked opened in theaters last month.

While attending the Out100 event in Los Angeles, Kevin McHale — who played Artie Abrams in the Fox TV series — expressed his surprise that those Glee versions of Wicked continue to make such an impact despite the show ending back in 2015.

"It was a different time! It was early Glee," McHale told Out. "I can't explain to you why they were charting, but I have plaques! Thank you to those people who bought them. I don't know why. That does not mean one is better than the other. We say thank you, Cynthia Erivo. Thank you, Ariana [Grande]."

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Watch Out's full interview with Kevin McHale at the 2024 Out100 red carpet in the video at the top of this article. Wicked is now playing in theaters.