What You Want lyrics

[ELLE, spoken]

Wait a sec! This is the kind of girl Warner wants

Someone serious

Someone lawyerly

Someone who wears black when nobody's dead!

Girls, I have a completely brilliant plan!

(sung)

What you want, Warner, what you want is me

But you need to see me in a brand new domain

Well it's plain, Warner, in a different setting

You will see you're getting all of this, plus a brain!

I'll meet you there at Harvard with a book in my hand

Big sturdy book, big wordy book

Full of words I'll understand

And right there is where you'll see it too

Warner, what you want is right in front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

It's clear

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

Right here

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

It's clear

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

Right here

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Is right in front of you, front of you

[ELLE]

Step one, he's off to Harvard Law

So I get in there, too

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR, spoken]

Step two!

[ELLE]

Make Warner reassess

Impress him with my high IQ

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR, spoken]

Step three!

[ELLE]

We throw a great big wedding

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

And invite all Delta Nu!

[KATE, spoken]

That's great, nice plan

Now, can we think this through?

Harvard Law School?

[ELLE, spoken]

I have a 4.0 average

[KATE, spoken]

Yeah, in Fashion Merchandising

What makes you think you can do this?

[ELLE]

Love! I'm doing this for love

And love will see me through

Yes, with love on my side, I can't lose

And Harvard can't refuse

A love so pure and true

Don't lawyers feel love too?

[KATE, spoken]

Even if they do

(sung)

What you want, sweetheart, is no easy thing

If you're going to swing it, it will wreck your senior spring

Yeah, it's true

First, you'll need an LSAT score of more than one seventy-four

So, no more parties for you

You'll need a killer essay or do not even hope

And glowing letters from your betters

Any chance you know the pope?

[ELLE, spoken]

Uh, nope

[KATE]

Too bad, 'cause that would be a coup

And you've got a lot of work in front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

Yes, I know

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE]

Even so

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

(spoken)

Girl, you go!

(sung)

What you want

[KATE, spoken]

No, really! Go

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[ELLE/MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Is right in front of you, front of you

[FATHER, spoken]

Law school?

[ELLE, spoken]

Yes, Daddy, law school

[FATHER, spoken]

Good God, why? Law school is for boring, ugly, serious people!

And you, Button, are none of those things

(sung)

What you want, Button, hey, you just say the word

But what you want's absurd!

And costs a whole lot of swag

And hell, why, Button, when you can stay right here?

Pursue a film career

[MOTHER, spoken]

How 'bout a nice Birkin bag?

[FATHER]

Yes, the east coast is foreign, there's no film studios

It's cold and dark, no valet parking

(spoken)

All the girls have different noses!

Christ, Button!

(sung)

It's like the damned frontier!

[FATHER AND MOTHER]

Tell me, what's out there that you can't get right here?

[ELLE, spoken]

Guys, love!

[FATHER AND MOTHER, spoken]

Love?

[ELLE]

I'm going there for love

[FATHER AND MOTHER, spoken]

Love, love

[ELLE (MOTHER/FATHER)]

A love I have to win (Ah)

I can live without sun or valet

I can't just walk away

Betray what might have been

[FATHER]

Fine, okay, I'll pay your way if you get in

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[FATHER AND MOTHER]

Make the grade

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[FATHER AND MOTHER]

And it's paid

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR/MOTHER/FATHER]

Is right in front of you, front of you

[MARGOT, spoken]

Hey everybody, it's the spring fling beer bash extreme!

[FRAT GUYS, spoken]

Extreme!

[KATE, spoken]

Not for you. Time to study. Go!

[MARGOT, spoken]

This year's theme: Jamaican me crazy!

[FRAT GUYS, spoken]

Oh!

[GRANDMASTER CHAD]

What you want, you wanna be out because the sun she warm?

What you want, you wanna be study, stuck inside your dorm?

What you want, you wanna be party with us all night long?

What you want, you wanna be strong?

[SERENA/PILAR, spoken]

Be strong!

[FRAT GUYS]

Whoa-oh

[KATE, spoken]

One thirty-four, not good enough

Try again. Go!

[GRANDMASTER CHAD, sung]

What you want, you wanna be groovin', bumpin' shake da room?

What you want, you wanna be provin' somethin' and to whom?

What you want, you wanna be wonderin' where your youth is gone?

What you want, you wanna hold on?

[ELLE, spoken]

Hold on!

[FRAT GUYS]

Whoa-oh

[KATE, spoken]

One fifty-one, still not Harvard material

Once again. Go!

[ELLE (GRANDMASTER CHAD)]

Love, I'm doing this for love (What you want, you wanna be breathin' in the healthy air?)

And that's how I'll survive (What you want, you wanna be chasin' him and he don't care?)

(What you want, you wanna ignore the pity in their looks)

Here you go, I said no, go away (What you want, you wanna say, "Sorry, gotta hit me books")

Right here is where I'll stay (What you want, you wanna sittin' like a lonely child)

Until that happy day (What you want, you wanna be drivin' all the fellas wild)

(What you want, you wanna be feelin' good to be alive)

That day I hear them say—

[KATE]

One seventy-five!

[COMPANY]

One seventy-five!

[ELLE, spoken]

One seventy-five?

[COMPANY]

One seventy-five, one seventy-five!

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

So, gentlemen

Harvard Law grants admission to Adam Cohen and Sundeep Padamadan

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #2, spoken]

Outstanding

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

And now, Ms. Elle Woods

Who was kind enough to send in a headshot

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #2, spoken]

We should admit her, for reasons of, um...

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #3, spoken]

Multiculturalism!

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #2, spoken]

Multiculturalism

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

Oh gentlemen, please! Get a hold of yourselves

Oh, look at that! Oh, what a shame

She didn't bother sending in a personal essay

[PILAR, spoken]

How's this for a personal essay?

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #2, spoken]

Goodness me!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

Security!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want is right in—

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

Who are you?

[ELLE]

I'm what you want! Harvard, I'm the girl for you

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]

And to prove it's true

[ELLE]

We all flew here on Jet Blue

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE, spoken]

Thank you!

[JET BLUE PILOT, spoken]

Thank you!

[ENSEMBLE]

This is what Elle Woods inspires

Everyone admires her

And Harvard should too

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

This is not a personal essay!

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]

Nope! An essay's so boring and so much does not fit

So we're appearing live, right here

Making clear you must admit

That Elle Woods should join the chosen few

Harvard, what you want is right in front of—

[ELLE]

May I approach?

[ENSEMBLE]

Uh-huh!

Oh, yeah!

Go Elle!

Ho!

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

Now see here, Ms. Woods!

You can't just barge in here with singing and dancing and ethnic movement

This is a very flashy presentation, but I still don't see one reason to admit you

[ELLE]

How about love?

You ever been in love?

'Cause if you have, you'll know

That love never accepts a defeat

No challenge it can't meet

No place it cannot go

Don't say no to a woman in love

Don't laugh when I say love

Don't think that I'm naïve

Because even a person who's smart

Can listen to their heart

Can listen and believe

So believe in what love can achieve

Do you believe?

[PROFESSOR #3, spoken]

I do!

[ELLE]

Do you believe?

[PROFESSOR #2, spoken]

Me too!

[ELLE & ENSEMBLE]

Yes, we believe in love, how 'bout you?

[HARVARD PROFESSOR #1, spoken]

...Welcome to Harvard!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Now we're set!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Let's go get!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want is right in front of you, front of you

What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

Now we're done!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want

[MARGOT/SERENA/PILAR]

With step one!

[ENSEMBLE]

What you want is right in front of you, front of you

What you want, what you want, what you want

What you want!