Variety: In the digital age, the traditional songbook — filled with lyrics and sheet music and maybe some pictures — can feel like a lost art, but it certainly is not to classical musicians, and particularly musical theater veterans. So even for Grammy, Emmy, Tony and Pulitzer winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, his first songbook, containing 27 songs from “Hamilton,” “Encanto,” “In the Heights” and more, was a big deal.
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Lin-Manuel Miranda is such an influential songwriter for our time, and his songs are so iconic. It makes my heart happy reading that he had a singbook release party with friends and family, and I can just imagine the joy emanating from the room. All of Miranda’s songs have a certain sound to them, most of which you just can't help but sing or dance along. It astounds me that this interview was done in just twenty minutes. It was great getting to read more about Miranda’s songwriting process, specifically how finding the lyrics went for his songs. The concept for We Don’t Talk About Bruno (an absolute banger, may I add,) “We can learn a little bit about everyone by what they choose to whisper about,” makes me want to listen again with this statement in mind.
Firstly, I just want to applaud Lin-Manuel Miranda for making spaces for POC actors to be seen and put into roles/positions within history in which we do not typically see them. Their initiative of being inclusive and sharing as well as embracing POC stories and creators is truly admirable and I look up to them very fondly. I gained a lot of information on Miranda from this article regarding his artistry and progression as an artist. It is always very intriguing to hear how such incredible and innovative artist have gotten to the position their in now. It illustrates that everyone starts at different paces, times, and skill levels. As well as the notion that everyone has a contrasting creative process that makes them a unique artist. I really enjoyed reading Miranda's replies because it showed that you don't need the most expensive equipment, be a prodigy at a very young age, have a specific way of conducting your art, or even have all of your thoughts together. Everyone's process and growth as a artist is unique. Which makes Lin-Manuel Miranda's songs/musicals stand out amongst other musicals as he has taken the time to understand his culture, identity, personal goals as an artist and learned to develop unique characters.
I love this interview. There is something about a question answer format for an article that really lets you get to know the person that is being interviewed. And this one felt like the pinnacle of that. I loved reading about the background of his musical interest and where he gets all of his inspiration. I am also so excited about the song book. And I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy. I know that in the future Lin Manuel will be the type of composer who's music you can pick out just by his unique style. I absolutely adore his style and ability to make a cohesive song out of so many overlapping and seemingly contradictory melodies. That kind of song seems to be his signature and pops up in every one of his works so far. I cannot wait to read the song books and hopefully see how he puts together his masterpieces.
Lin Manuel Miranda was the first big theatre name I had ever heard. The first musical I had ever listened to was In The Heights. He’s one of the reasons I keep doing theatre. I’ve often wished to have a mind like his. He’s just brilliant. Lin will truly be in the ranks of the most legendary musical theatre writers of our generation, maybe of the whole history of theatre. I love reading about his processes and how he got into theatre because it makes me reflect on my beginnings and has me deep dive into what got me started in this journey. While I was visiting home this week, I felt like I was in the world of In The Heights. My family isn’t Dominican, but we are Mexican. I’d love to write a play or a musical about where I’m from one day, and I’ve always looked to Lin for that inspiration.
One thing I love about Lin-Manuel Miranda is how articulate he is, and how whenever you hear him speak, he seems genuinely humbled and passionate about his process. That’s wonderful to see in a creator of such immense talent and skill who has become such a big part of the musical theatre public consciousness. He always seems to find real joy in what he’s doing and to want to continue to push the boundaries of each project he works on, stretching to their fullest extent of what is possible. And that comes through listening to him talk, but also in his shows and everything he works on, too; there’s such a sense of reality and dedication to character. He always finds the perfect words to make his exact point, often with multiple layers. That’s why I love reading these interviews and getting a slight glimpse into how his brain works.
Lin-Manuel Miranda is one on the most popular and influential musical writers of our time. He keeps writing show after show and movie after movie that the general population just adore. Getting to hear about his process is really fun because that’s not something we get to see all the time and it reminds me a lot of how when I’m coming up with ideas for things you just kind of pull inspiration from everywhere around you and compile it all into this one thing. It’s really exciting that he now has his own song book I could see that being a Big step for somebody in his occupation I’m sure with all of the work he’ll continue to produce that within the next few years he will be able to have a second song book.. Lin Manuel Miranda continues to be an inspiration to us all and continues to demonstrate how the theater in the modern day needs to be approached especially with his shows and movies creating spaces for POC actors to really shine.
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