You know the feeling. That upbeat, slightly gritty piano riff starts, and suddenly you’re back in 1998. It’s one of those rare tracks that everyone recognizes within three seconds, yet half the people in the room can't quite remember the name of the band. If you’ve been humming that massive chorus and wondering who sings you got the music in you, the answer is the New Radicals. Specifically, it’s the brainchild of Gregg Alexander.
"You Get What You Give" is the actual title of the song. It’s easy to see why people get it mixed up; the hook is so infectious that the lyrics become the identity of the track itself. It wasn't just a hit. It was a cultural flashpoint that somehow managed to insult Marilyn Manson, Courtney Love, and Hanson all in one breath while simultaneously preaching a message of global hope.
Gregg Alexander wasn't your typical pop star. He was a studio rat, a perfectionist who had already released solo albums that went nowhere before he hit gold with the New Radicals. The band wasn’t even really a band. It was more like a rotating door of session musicians and friends, with Alexander acting as the conductor of a very loud, very optimistic orchestra.
The Man Behind the New Radicals
Gregg Alexander is a bit of a mystery in the music industry. After the massive success of the album Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too, he did something almost unthinkable in the late 90s: he quit. Right at the height of his fame, he disbanded the group. He hated the promotional cycle. He hated the "performing monkey" aspect of the business.
Honestly, he just wanted to write.
If you look at the credits for some of the biggest hits of the 2000s, you’ll find his fingerprints everywhere. Remember "Game of Love" by Santana and Michelle Branch? That’s him. He won a Grammy for it. He’s the guy who realized that being the face of a movement was exhausting, but being the pen behind the hits was lucrative and private.
When people ask who sings you got the music in you, they are usually looking for a name to put to that unique, soulful, somewhat nasal voice. Alexander’s delivery is what makes the song work. It’s desperate and joyful at the same time. He sounds like a guy who’s had too much coffee and finally figured out the meaning of life at 3:00 AM.
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Why "You Get What You Give" Never Died
Music critics often lump the New Radicals into the "one-hit wonder" category, but that’s a lazy take. A true one-hit wonder fades into a trivia question. This song, however, has become an anthem for multiple generations. It’s been in countless movie trailers, it was a favorite of the late Beau Biden (which led to the band famously reuniting for President Biden’s inauguration in 2021), and it still gets heavy rotation on adult contemporary radio.
The structure of the song is actually quite complex. It starts with that "1, 2, 3, ow!" and builds through several distinct phases. You’ve got the upbeat verses, the soaring pre-chorus, and then that wall-of-sound chorus.
- The Tempo: It’s fast enough to dance to but slow enough to feel like a rock ballad.
- The Lyrics: They range from profound ("Don't let go, you've got the music in you") to weirdly specific political jabs at the FDA and health insurance companies.
- The Vibe: It captures a specific late-90s brand of "cynical optimism."
Most pop songs are about one thing. Love, or partying, or heartbreak. This song is about everything. It’s about the fear of growing up, the corruption of big business, the vanity of Hollywood, and the basic human need to keep moving forward.
The Viral Moment Before "Viral" Was a Thing
Before TikTok and Instagram Reels existed, songs became hits through sheer force of will and MTV rotation. The music video for "You Get What You Give" was iconic. Set in a shopping mall—The Staten Island Mall, to be exact—it featured a group of teenagers basically taking over the building.
It was a power fantasy for every kid who felt stifled by the suburban grind. Gregg Alexander wears a bucket hat throughout the video, a fashion choice that became synonymous with the era. When you think about who sings you got the music in you, you probably visualize that guy in the bucket hat running through a food court.
The celebrity call-outs at the end of the song were what really got people talking. Alexander threatened to "kick their asses" in the lyrics. Looking back, it was a brilliant marketing move, even if he later claimed it was an experiment to see if the media would focus on the substance of the song or the gossip. Predictably, they chose the gossip. Manson and Love were reportedly annoyed, while the Hanson brothers were actually pretty chill about it, eventually working with Alexander years later.
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The 2021 Reunion
For over 20 years, Alexander refused to perform as the New Radicals. He turned down massive offers. He stayed behind the scenes. Then, the 2021 presidential inauguration happened.
Because "You Get What You Give" was a song that resonated deeply with the Biden family during Beau Biden’s battle with cancer, the band agreed to a one-time performance. It was a surreal moment. Seeing a slightly older Gregg Alexander put on the bucket hat one more time to sing those lines felt like a closing of a loop. It proved that the song’s message of "don't give up" wasn't just a catchy phrase; it was a lived philosophy for the people who loved it.
Technical Brilliance in a Pop Package
If you’re a musician, you know that the song isn’t as simple as it sounds. The chord progression has some unexpected turns. The production is incredibly dense. There are layers of percussion and background vocals that you only notice after the tenth listen.
Rick Nowels, a legendary songwriter and producer who worked on the track, has often spoken about Alexander's genius. They weren't just trying to make a radio hit. They were trying to make a "classic." They succeeded.
When you’re searching for who sings you got the music in you, you're really looking for the source of that specific energy. It’s a song that makes you feel like you can quit your job, buy a van, and actually be okay.
Common Misconceptions
A lot of people think the song is by Smash Mouth or maybe Sugar Ray. It fits into that late-90s sun-drenched aesthetic. But New Radicals had a much more soulful, almost Motown-influenced undercurrent than those bands.
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- Is it a band? Not really. It was Gregg and whoever he needed at the time.
- Are they still together? No, they broke up before their second single even finished its run.
- Did he ever write other hits? Yes, dozens. For everyone from Rod Stewart to CeeLo Green.
The album itself, Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too, is actually quite dark. It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. It deals with drug use, corporate greed, and depression. "You Get What You Give" is the bright light at the end of a somewhat murky tunnel.
The Influence on Modern Music
You can hear the echoes of the New Radicals in bands like Foster the People or even The 1975. That blend of high-concept lyrics and undeniable pop hooks started here. Alexander showed that you could be smart, weird, and commercially successful all at once, even if you only chose to do it for about fifteen minutes.
The song has been covered by everyone from Kelly Clarkson to the cast of Glee. Each version tries to capture that "lightning in a bottle," but it’s hard to replicate Alexander’s specific vocal tension. He sounds like he’s leaning into the microphone, trying to tell you a secret while a riot happens in the background.
How to Find More Like It
If you’ve discovered who sings you got the music in you and you want more of that specific sound, you should actually dig into Gregg Alexander’s solo work from the early 90s. His album Intoxifitz is a weird, funky precursor to what the New Radicals would become.
You should also check out the soundtrack for the film Begin Again. Alexander wrote most of the songs for it, including the Oscar-nominated "Lost Stars." It has that same melodic DNA—bittersweet, catchy, and deeply human.
Actionable Steps for Music Lovers
- Listen to the full album: Don't just stick to the single. Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too is a 90s masterpiece that holds up surprisingly well.
- Watch the 2021 Inauguration performance: It’s a rare look at an artist revisiting their legacy with total sincerity.
- Check the credits: Next time you hear a pop song you love, look at the songwriters. If you see Gregg Alexander, you know why you like it.
- Make a "90s Optimism" playlist: Pair the New Radicals with bands like Blind Melon, Len, and Fastball to recapture that specific era of music history.
The New Radicals might have been a short-lived project, but their impact is permanent. Gregg Alexander walked away from the spotlight on his own terms, leaving behind one of the greatest anthems ever written. He gave us the music, and then he let us keep it.
Next Steps for Your Discovery:
Check out the song Someday We'll Know, the second and final single from the New Radicals. It’s a slower, more melodic track that showcases a different side of Gregg Alexander’s songwriting. After that, look up the lyrics to the "celebrity diss" section of "You Get What You Give" to see just how bold a move that was for a debut artist in 1998.