If you have yet to hear of Lin-Manuel Miranda's triumphant new musical, "Hamilton," I must ask you what rock you have been living
under for the past year (and if you can disclose the location of this rock for
me to use during finals week). "Hamilton" is a groundbreaking hip-hop musical detailing
the life and times of the "ten dollar founding father"
-- yep,
you guessed it, Alexander Hamilton. I know it sounds too good to be
true -- almost like it's a trap set up by your AP U.S. History teacher who's trying
to convince you of how cool history is. But this is a real musical -- with a
really inspiring soundtrack you
must listen to. However, I'm going to give you a
little taste of the inspirational lyrical
genius that exists in this
musical, and hopefully these quotes will not only inspire you to listen to the
cast album on Spotify, but to also finish this semester as if you're Alexander
Hamilton himself.
Leggo.
1. "[He] got a lot farther by working a lot harder, by being a lot smarter , by being a self-starter." -- Laurens, "Alexander Hamilton"
2. "Get your education, don't forget from whence you came, and the world's gonna know your name. What's your name, man?" -- Burr, "Alexander Hamilton"
3. "There's a million things I haven't done, but just you wait...just you wait..." -- Hamilton, "Alexander Hamilton"
(And that's only the opening song ...)
4. "Hey yo, I'm just like my country--I'm young , scrappy, and hungry, and I'm not throwing away my shot ." -- Hamilton, "My Shot"
5. "I probably shouldn't brag, but dag, I amaze, I astonish...with every word I drop knowledge." -- Hamilton, "My Shot"
6. "The plan is to fan this spark into a flame, but damn it's getting dark so let me spell out my name." -- Hamilton, "My Shot"
7. "Don't be shocked when your history book mentions me. I will lay down my life if it sets us free. Eventually, you'll see my ascendency." -- Hamilton, "My Shot"
8. "Rise up! When you're living on your knees, you rise up. Tell your brother that he's gotta rise up. Tell your sister that she's gotta rise up." -- Laurens, "My Shot"
9. "I'm past patiently waiting. I'm passionately smashing every expectation. Every action is an act of creation. I'm laughin' in the face of casualties and sorrow--for the first time I'm thinkin' about tomorrow." -- Hamilton, "My Shot"
10. "So men say that I'm intense or I'm insane. You want a revolution? I want a revelation! So listen to my declaration: We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal. And when I meet Thomas Jefferson, I'm 'a compel him to include women in the sequel. WERK." -- Angelica Schuyler, "The Schuyler Sisters"
Yasss, feminism, yasssss.
11. "Dying is easy, young man . Living is harder." --Washington, "Right Hand Man"
12. "Love doesn't discriminate between the sinners and the saints--it takes and it takes and it takes and we keep loving anyway. We laugh and cry and we break and we make our mistakes. And if there's a reason I'm by her side, when so many have tried, then I'm willing to wait for it." -- Burr, "Wait for It"
13. "I know that we can win. I know that greatness lies in you. But remember from here on out, history has its eyes on you." - Washington, "History Has Its Eyes on You"
14. "Look at where you are. Look at where you started. The fact that you're alive is a miracle. Just stay alive, that would be enough." -- Eliza, "Non-Stop"
15. "How do you write like tomorrow won't arrive? How do you write like you need to to survive? How do you write every second you're alive?" -- Company, "Non-Stop"
16. "When you got skin in the game, you stay in the game, but you don't get a win unless you play in the game. Oh, you get love for it, you get hate for it, but you get nothing if you wait for it." -- Hamilton, "The Room Where It Happened"
17. "I wrote my way out of hell. I wrote my way to revolution. I was louder than the crack in the bell. I wrote Eliza love letters until she fell. I wrote about the Constitution and defended it well. And in the face of ignorance and resistance, I wrote financial systems into existence. And when my prayers to God were met with indifference, I picked up a pen , I wrote my own deliverance." -- Hamilton, "Hurricane"
