Billboard is celebrating 20 years of being all in this together by ranking all nine songs from the iconic 2006 Disney Channel Original Movie.
1/20/2026
High School Musical Cast (from left): Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel
Disney Channel/Courtesy Everett Collection
What time is it? Twenty years (exactly, as of Jan. 20, 2026) since Disney Channel released arguably its most enduring original film yet: High School Musical.
On the surface, the 2006 TV musical dramedy starring Vanessa Hudgens and Zac Efron in their breakout roles seems no different than any other high school movie. You’ve got shy but brainy new girl Gabriella (Hudgens) and golden boy jock Troy (Efron) who end up together despite their differences. Then there’s Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale), the popular diva who tries to rip them apart; Ryan (Lucas Grabeel), Sharpay’s brother and partner-in-crime; and Chad (Corbin Bleu) and Taylor (Monique Coleman), the best friends of the two leads — who give pretty bad advice, but that’s what part of drives the plot forward.
What made this film — and the two sequels that came after — unique wasn’t how the characters broke out of their archetypes by the end of the story (which they do), but rather the music that came with it. The first film’s soundtrack topped the Billboard 200, and a handful of its songs hit the top 40 of the Hot 100. There was even a concert tour with the original cast members (excluding Efron, who was replaced by Drew Seeley, the singing voice for Troy in the first film). One could say it inspired the TV musicals that came after — including Hannah Montana and Glee — not to mention Disney+’s 2019 adaption High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, which spawned a new breakout star of its own in Olivia Rodrigo.
To celebrate 20 years of the East High Wildcats, Billboard is revisiting the soundtrack that started it all. Check out our ranking of all nine songs from the first film, ranked from worst to best, below.
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Gabriella Montez, “When There Was Me and You”
What’s a musical without the female lead’s breakout ballad? The first film’s only solo song isn’t completely rancid, but it is its least memorable and most corny. We will give Gabriella extra points for her staircase dramatics in the film, though.
Standout lyric: “I thought you were my fairy tale/ A dream when I’m not sleeping”
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Troy Bolton & Gabriella Montez, “What I’ve Been Looking For (Reprise)”
In the movie, Troy and Gabriella’s stripped-down version of “What I’ve Been Looking For” is actually how songwriter Kelci (Olesya Rulin) intended the song to go. But Sharpay and Ryan’s pop-ified rendition is much less sleepy, despite the leads’ beautiful harmonies.
Standout lyric: “I’ve never had someone/ That knows me like you do/ The way you do”
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High School Musical Cast, “We’re All in This Together”
It’s the song we all know, love and memorized the choreo for. You can’t help but feel nostalgic listening to the film’s uplifting closer, bringing all the characters together despite conflicting interests.
Standout lyric: “We’re all in this together and it shows/ When we stand hand in hand/ Make our dreams come true”
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Sharpay & Ryan Evans, “What I’ve Been Looking For”
Sharpay and Ryan’s first duet was the perfect bouncy introduction to their characters. It honestly should’ve gotten them the leads in the school musical the film centers around — Ms. Darbus was certainly feeling the beat, too.
Standout lyric: “For so long I was lost/ So good to be found/ I’m loving having you around”
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High School Musical Cast, “Stick to the Status Quo”
The breakout number featuring the entire cast is one of the most memorable moments of the entire franchise. From the dancing on lunch tables in the school cafeteria to the different cliques breaking out of their niches, you can’t help but bop along when this song comes on.
Standout lyric: “If you wanna be cool, follow one simple rule/ Don’t mess with the flow, no no/ Stick to the status quo”
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Troy Bolton & Gabriella Montez, “Start of Something New”
It’s the New Years duet that started it all. From Troy’s soft vocals in the opening verse to Gabriella’s soaring harmonies at the bridge, the duet perfectly sets up the story — and remains an important presence in zillennial karaoke nights to this day.
Standout lyric: “Livin’ in my own world/ Didn’t understand/ That anything can happen/ When you take a chance”
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Troy Bolton & the East High Basketball Team, “Get’cha Head in the Game”
From the skid of the sneakers and the bounce of the basketball on the court in the first couple seconds, Troy goes all in for his breakout solo number. And his inner monologue in the bridge (below) only takes it to the next level.
Standout lyric: “Why am I feelin’ so wrong?/ My head’s in the game, but my heart’s in the song/ She makes this feel so right”
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Sharpay & Ryan Evans, “Bop to the Top”
“Bop to the Top” has everything you can ask for from a Ryan and Sharpay number. Sharpay’s diva attitude is in full force alongside Ryan as her unending support, atop a Latin-flavored beat. ¡Ay, qué fabulosa!
Standout lyric: “Kickin’ and a-scratchin’, grindin’ out my best/ Anything it takes to climb the ladder of success”
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Troy Bolton & Gabriella Montez, “Breaking Free”
Troy and Gabriella’s vocals soar as one in the penultimate number, “breaking free” from the stereotypes they felt held to for most of the film. The pop ballad has grown far beyond the HSM universe — becoming perhaps one of the most recognizable duets in Disney history (and one of the highest-charting, peaking at No. 4 on the Hot 100).
Standout lyric: “We’re soarin’, flyin’/ There’s not a star in heaven that we can’t reach/ If we’re tryin’, yeah, we’re breaking free”