If you haven't heard about the wonder and art that is the Tony award-winning musical" Hamilton," then you are truly missing out. The premise of the musical sounds bizarre on paper: a hip hop retelling of the life and times of Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, where the only dialogue is fast-paced spoken word and rap songs. Crazy, right? That's what I once thought, too, and then I listened to the cast album and for the first time in a very long time, I fell in love with music again. The kind of music that tells you a story while also letting you see the story in your own mind.

I haven't got the money or the means to be able to see "Hamilton" on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theater, but the music lets me see it all in my head. I can listen to the album for hours and feel inspired and invigorated. I experience highs and lows as I listen to not just Hamilton's story but also the stories of those he loved or who loved him, those he respected, and the others that helped write his story. So let me tell you about this musical that took over six years to put together, and the effect one man who read one book has had on an entire nation.

The History of Hamilton

In case you haven't heard the story by now, let me give you a quick summary of how "Hamilton: An American Musical" came to be.

Our story starts off with one man, like many stories do, named Lin-Manuel Miranda. An actor of Puerto-Rican descent, who grew up in New York City, and lived for the theatre. He played the lead in the Tony award winning musical "In the Heights." While on vacation from "In the Heights," Miranda found a biography written by Ron Chernow about Alexander Hamilton. He was inspired by Hamilton's story and envisioned an entire musical built around this concept. Thus he began a project called the "Hamilton Mixtapes."

He wrote song after song, word after word and slowly the story came together after a few years of writing. It took him a year to write the first song, "Alexander Hamilton," and another to write the next "My Shot"; both would be hit songs from the musical. He even performed his rough version of "Alexander Hamilton" at the White House's Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word in front of the President and First Lady.

Soon after the small project became a workshop, then an off-Broadway performance, and then at last a musical on Broadway. Now the show has been playing since opening night nearly a year ago, August 6. The musical is now set to open in theaters across the country from LA and San Francisco to Chicago and even out of the country to the West End in London.

The "Hamilton" Effect on America

Since opening on Broadway, Hamilton and its cast have had wave after wave of influence not only in the world of theatre but also on the lives of many Americans around the country.

Re-Discovering History

One of the most important things about the musical is that it opens up a dialogue about people who were forgotten by history. People who died far too young like John Laurens, a man who fought for the idea that slaves were people and they should get a chance to fight like anyone. People who were removed from the narrative like Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton who continued her husband's legacy long after he died and contributed much to the country up until her death as age 97. Even people who were allies like the Marquis de Lafayette, who returned to France to help his country and he narrowly escaped death by the hands of the French Revolution.

Saved the $10 bill for the $10 Founding Father

As many people know, the U.S. Treasury Department had had plans on adding a woman to our money for some time. Originally the chosen woman would have taken Alexander Hamilton's spot on the $10 bill. But with the rising popularity and affection for the Founding Father, the department has now decided to instead replace Andrew Jackson on the $20 bill with Harriet Tubman. This is a victory not only for fans of Hamilton, but also for many women's rights activists as the $20 bill is a bill higher in use than the $10. (And also because Andrew Jackson was a bigot in his own right).

Re-learning How to Teach History

Across the nation, schools are changing their curriculum in order to fit the growing interest in our nation's history. I remember almost nothing about Alexander Hamilton from my years of schooling. Sure he was mentioned once or twice when we talked about the Revolution, but before Hamilton I barely knew a thing about our first Treasury Secretary. News stories are popping up all around the country about how schools are using Hamilton's hook in their lessons.

Like the NY high school that has developed a course called "Hamilton: A Musical Inquiry" to an LA eighth grade teacher who has been developing a more detailed revolutionary unit for her class.

Not only is the subject of Hamilton's life interesting, but it's the American dream in real life. Hamilton's story is a story that many an immigrant understands, especially those who are children of immigrants who had to rise up. The musical itself is blowing people away as it showcases that theater music doesn't have to fit one genre. Also the images of a show where the mainly white founding fathers are now being played by a multi-cultural cast.

In one of the more notable efforts, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, and the Rockefeller Foundation teamed up with the creators of the musical to bring 20,000 eleventh graders to the show. They let these kids create their own creative interpretations of early American history.

Millionaire Historian

Historian Ron Chernow is now very rich after the creation of Hamilton. Not only is it from the skyrocketing sales of his book that inspired the musical in the first place, but also because Miranda brought Chernow on as a historical consultant while developing the songs, script and stage for the musical. Chernow receives a one percent royalty from sales of the show (this averages to about roughly $900,000 a year). His book now ranks as one of Amazon's most bought books.

Little Baby Hamilton's Everywhere

The hot new baby name is Hamilton. According to BabyCenter, which tracks name trends over the years, the name Hamilton soared in popularity by 60 percent over the past year. It's important to not that the popular name was Hamilton, not Alexander. Other names from the show that have increased in popularity include Jefferson (up 171 percent), James, as in Madison as in our fourth president (up 25 percent for boys), Maria, Hamilton’s mistress' name (up nearly 22 percent), and George, as in our first president (up nearly 21 percent).

Hillary's Knows all about "Hamilton" Fever

Recently, the Clinton's campaign has sent out fundraising emails dangling incredibly hard to get tickets for "Hamilton" as bait for more supports from younger voters. Just donate to the campaign and you may win tickets to the coveted show. “I’m saving a seat for two supporters like you at ‘Hamilton,’” the former first lady said in an email to supporters. “Don’t miss this chance! I’ve really been looking forward to this, and I want you to be there.” The apparent miracle giveaway also included round-trip airfare and one night’s stay at a New York hotel.