Good Morning Baltimore Lyrics - Hairspray

Song Overview

Good Morning Baltimore opens the 2007 film adaptation of Hairspray, with Nikki Blonsky’s Tracy Turnblad greeting a city that feels like rhythm made visible. For the film, composer Marc Shaiman and lyricist Scott Wittman lift their 2002 Broadway prologue straight into cinema, polishing it with early 60s pop sheen and a wink toward girl-group classics. The official soundtrack upload confirms Blonsky’s performance credit, while discographies show a 2007 album release and a 2010 WaterTower digital reissue.

Review and Highlights

The track struts like a 1962 radio hit: handclaps, doo-wop backing, a melody that smiles as it climbs. Shaiman and Wittman write Tracy as a walking downbeat - she hears the city’s groove before anyone else does. The Broadway version already nodded to The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby” with those “oh-oh-oh” pickups; the film doubles down, giving Blonsky a buoyant lead and a street-level ensemble to echo her optimism.

Creation History

The number debuted on Broadway in 2002 and moved to the screen in 2007 with Blonsky as Tracy. The film’s principal photography took place in Toronto even though the story is set in Baltimore - the opening sequence shows only a few real Baltimore shots before switching to sets that match the period gloss. The soundtrack itself was released July 10, 2007, later hitting digital storefronts again in 2010 under WaterTower Music.

Song Meaning and Annotations

Plot

Tracy wakes up, hears the city’s backbeat, and heads to school with a plan: get onto the Corny Collins Show and dance her way into the life she wants. The song paints that route block by block, tilting the camera from her bedroom to the sidewalk to the bus she misses - then to the garbage truck that becomes her parade float.

Song Meaning

It’s Tracy’s thesis: joy as propulsion. She frames Baltimore not as backdrop but co-conspirator, where grit and glamour dance together. A small production trick helps sell it - the arrangement clears for drums when she name-checks a “drummer inside my heart,” letting the heartbeat pattern carry her forward.

Annotations

“Hungry for something that I can’t eat”

Hunger as ambition. The line reads physical at first, then pivots - she’s starving for opportunity, not breakfast.

“And someday when I take to the floor - the world’s gonna wake up and see - Baltimore and me”

Floor as stage. She’s naming her north star - TV fame on The Corny Collins Show - and tying it to civic pride.

“Oh, oh, oh, look at my hair”

A tidy wink to the title object - hairspray as both prop and pop.

“The rats on the street all dance around my feet”

Not drugs, just cartoon logic. The city joins the chorus line; that’s Tracy’s worldview.

“It’s like a drummer inside my heart”

Right after this line, the track spotlights percussion - a neat bit of text-painting.

Style, references, and rhythm

Girl-group DNA carries the tune - tambourine sparkle, backbeat sway, stacked “oohs.” Critics and reference guides often note the song’s debt to early 60s pop and its function as a tone-setter for both stage and film versions.

Emotional arc

She starts with bedroom-sized hope and ends with city-sized confidence. By the final chorus, she isn’t asking permission - she’s promising results.

Key Facts

• Artist: Nikki Blonsky (Motion Picture Cast of Hairspray)
• Composers/Lyricists: Marc Shaiman - music; Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman - lyrics
• Original Broadway release: August 13, 2002 - sung by Marissa Jaret Winokur on the cast album
• Film soundtrack release: July 10, 2007 - New Line Records; later digital reissue April 1, 2010 - WaterTower Music
• Album: Hairspray (Soundtrack to the Motion Picture)
• Notable homage: Allusion to The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby” in pickup figures and vocalizations
• YouTube audio ID: HcaPr2FdaQc
• Setting notes: 2007 film opens in Baltimore but was shot largely in Toronto soundstages and streets dressed as 1962 Baltimore

Questions and Answers

Who wrote “Good Morning Baltimore”?

Marc Shaiman composed the music; lyrics are by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman.

Who performs it in the 2007 film?

Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad, backed by the motion picture cast.

Was the song released as a single?

Promotional focus singles included “Ladies’ Choice”; “Good Morning Baltimore” is part of the album campaign rather than a major radio single.

Did the soundtrack chart or earn certifications?

Yes - the album peaked at no. 2 on the Billboard 200 and went RIAA Platinum in 2007 after first going Gold. It also topped some year-end independent tallies and received a Grammy nomination.

Other notable versions?

Maddie Baillio performed it live for NBC’s Hairspray Live! broadcast in 2016, where it opened the show’s televised staging.

Awards and Chart Positions

Soundtrack milestones: RIAA Gold in September 2007 and Platinum by December 2007; the album spent weeks in the Billboard 200 top 10 and ended 2007 as a top independent title. It also picked up a 2008 Grammy nomination.

Film awards context: The 2007 film scored major nominations at the Golden Globes and SAG Awards among others, raising the song’s cultural footprint through the movie’s success.

How to Sing Good Morning Baltimore

Range & placement: Comfortable mezzo-soprano for Tracy; sit in bright speech-mix on the verses, then open the vowels on the chorus for that girl-group glow.

Time feel: Easy backbeat with buoyant forward motion. Let the “oh-oh-oh” pickups sit like handclaps before the downbeat.

Diction: Smile in the sound. Crisp consonants sell the local color without getting percussive.

Acting beats: Treat the city as partner. Every background character - flasher, bum, rats - is a friendly witness to your momentum. Play delight, not snark.

Additional Info

The 2007 film shot most “Baltimore” exteriors in Toronto’s west end, dressing the streets for 1962 - a practical choice that still fits the fable tone. WaterTower later marked the film’s anniversary with a 2016 vinyl release.