TFF: History meets Hip-hop

The Feeling Fragment: Music is the "fragment" of a story that connects us to characters and allows us to empathize with them. In this series, we explore the role music plays in story. Music, in my opinion is what gives the story it's humanity, and adds more "feeling".

"Forgiveness. Can you imagine?"

-Hamilton: An American Musical

Hamilton is easily one of the most important and creative art pieces of our time. It tells the unexamined (until now) story of one of our founding fathers, Alexander Hamilton. The musical is inspired by a biography, written by Ron Chernow. There are five aspects of this musical that make it valuable to our culture and time.

#1
Lin-Manual Miranda, the lyricist and main character of Hamilton, expertly crafted a hip-hop musical. 
That just isn't done. It obviously should be - just listen. But musicals have been mostly a mix of ballads and strange notes and songs that you wouldn't want to hear anywhere else. I love musicals, don't misunderstand. However, they don't usually have the grit and honesty of hip-hop. Miranda's script (I haven't seen the musical) is overflowing with words. In a 60 Minutes Overtime interview, Miranda explained that the quick-poetry of this genre was well suited for Hamilton's story. Packed with events, emotion and all the excitement of building a nation. Hamilton wrote like he was "running out of time". So naturally, the choppy couplets are perfect for relaying to us his difficult past. Being without a father or mother by age 12 - he arrived in America of drive and pure nerve. He was an assertive man, quick to action - utilizing every moment. He faced many obstacles that demanded something from him. Certainly, this translates well to hip-hop.

#2
The cleverness behind each phrase.
Hamilton was a man of paragraphs - largely owed to his intelligence and ability to "write himself out" of hardship. Miranda had to maintain a rhythm for a duration of a play - about 2.5 hours. People can write a tight rhyme for five minutes. Miranda did 30 times that about a historical figure's life. His vocabulary is equally as impressive. Using words outside the everyday, but they are easy to understand in the context. Also, the repetitive use of phrases binds the story together. My favorite and personal theory relates to the coming of age - hungry for success anthem, "My Shot," where Hamilton's character claims he is, "young, scrappy, and hungry just like (his) my country". In the end, spoiler alert -- he shoots into the sky during the dual. That ends his life. He throws away his shot. I strongly suggest a listen-through focused on wording. You'll want to own a pocket thesaurus after it - fair warning.

#3
The historical relevance.
Perhaps there is no better time for this story to reach popularity. America is trying to define itself - especially on a political note. Many are confused. Many dismiss the importance of knowing their roots. So Alexander's story is a reminder of our beginnings. An impoverished young man at a loss for everything builds our National Treasury, not to mention other accolades. Historical relevance also applies to the accuracy of Hamilton's story. Miranda didn't watch a short and put some songs with it - he poured over Chernow's biography and even made Chernow consult over the historical accuracy of the musical. It's a well-studied script that honors the historical truth.

#4
The casting of modern America.
Also in Miranda's 60 Minutes Overview interview, he tells us that he wanted his cast to allow everyone to relate. He wanted it to be told by modern Americans of every creed and color. I've only seen clips of the musical, but this aspect is beautiful. Our country, most obviously depicted with Hamilton's story - is a place for immigrants. It was built by diversity. Miranda's commentary laced with Hamilton's story - shows us something I think we may have forgotten in our fear or arrogance - that we are a people of hard work and determination. Our union depends on character and color. We celebrate differences. They give us the mosaic of art. We do not discriminate because of them. I admire Miranda's choice to use history to speak to us socially. This musical celebrates the vibrant spirit of one man to rise above the obstacles in his life. That is the American story I celebrate. One of survival despite the odds and harrowing roads to get there. We will never be a perfect nation - there isn't one. But the choice to be united begins today.

#5
Perhaps, this is the most moving soundtrack I've heard.
Hamilton expresses an array of uncut, human emotion. Thanks to the rough start of our nation - it wasn't hard to fake. Hamilton was a fatherless, unfaithful, brilliant man, and a skilled writer who died too soon. None of these things were passed over or underwhelmed. They were expressed by the pain, joy, and searing loss our characters faced. They album marks some songs as explicit. Usually, I would rather someone use creative language to express themselves instead of use profanity. Yet, I encourage truth and the rawness of a story. I think Miranda used these words well, and they certainly weren't used out of laziness. Check the script. It fits the frustration, loss, and confusion of the context. It is for art's sake and the emotion is felt. 
The most beautiful piece of the story comes to us after Hamilton's son, Philip dies in a dual defending his father's honor. The lyrics of, "It's Quiet Uptown," chronicle the move the Hamilton's make after losing their son. You can feel the silence equal to sorrow. It is "unimaginable". We walk with them as they try to pick up their lives. The ending tells us that Alexander is trying to win back his wife, Eliza's trust after his affair. After everything - starting America, marrying Hamilton though he was penniless and seen as less in the shadow of her family's wealth, losing their son, living apart from her husband while he followed his ambition - Eliza forgives him.
Can you imagine?

I'm excited about art again. Miranda has given the world a masterpiece. With the help of a historian and his subject - we keep rediscovering the human spirit. Hamilton's story is one of using every moment like tomorrow isn't coming - because one day it won't. I have always believed music is our common thread. The place we can go when we need to listen. Right now we need to listen.

Check out The Hamilton Mixtape.