Zac Efron’s Original Singing Surfaces, Fans React to ‘High School Musical’ Demo
A new clip of Zac Efron singing from the original “High School Musical” has popped up online, and fans are having mixed reactions. The demo, shared on social media Tuesday, features Efron performing the song “Get’cha Head in the Game,” a key moment from the 2006 Disney Channel movie.
Although Efron played the lead role of Troy Bolton in the film, it was actually singer and actor Drew Seeley who provided the vocals for the first movie’s soundtrack. The two-minute demo shows Efron performing the song on set, giving fans a rare glimpse of his original voice.
Original demo of "Get'cha Head in the Game" with the vocals of Zac Efron leak online. 20 years after the release we can finally hear his voice.
— High School Musical Fan Archive (@archive_hsm) November 11, 2025
With the date from June 2005 the song has some different adlibs and the instrumental was still under production. #HSM20 pic.twitter.com/Tfa2vlVM4P
Some viewers weren’t impressed. One comment read, “This sounds a mess.” Another joked, “Thank god for Drew Seeley cause omfg my ears!!!!!! They’re bleeding!!!! … he redeemed himself with ‘Bet On It’ though so I’m not gonna do too much.”
However, others pointed out that Efron’s voice wasn’t a mismatch, it was simply that the first movie’s songs were written for Seeley’s voice. As choreographer and director Kenny Ortega explained in an interview, the soundtrack of the first film was tailored to Seeley, while the second and third movies were arranged for Efron’s voice.
Efron later sang his own vocals in “High School Musical 2” (2007), “High School Musical 3: Senior Year” (2008), and the movie “Hairspray” (2007), proving he could hold his own as a singer once the material suited him. Many fans now understand why he didn’t sing in the first film.
This clip has sparked a mix of nostalgia and criticism, giving viewers a behind-the-scenes look at the early days of the “High School Musical” franchise.
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