The Hamilton Mixtape

The Hamilton Mixtape is a 2016 mixtape album featuring assorted songs from the 2015 Broadway musical Hamilton performed by various artists, as well as some deleted songs from the musical. It was widely well received by critics.

The Hamilton Mixtape
Mixtape by
Various artists
ReleasedDecember 2, 2016 (2016-12-02)
Recorded2015–2016
Genre
Length73:43
LabelAtlantic
Producer
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic77/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Pitchfork4.8/10[2]
Rolling Stone[3]

Background

In 2009, Lin-Manuel Miranda began a project titled The Hamilton Mixtape that would eventually transform into the 2015 Broadway musical Hamilton.[4] During the development of the musical production, Miranda frequently communicated that a "mixtape" of select songs from the show's score was being recorded.

On November 3, 2016, Miranda announced on Twitter that the mixtape was complete and would be released on December 2, 2016. Preorders for the album began on November 4, 2016, and two songs were officially released: Kelly Clarkson's "It's Quiet Uptown" and The Roots' "My Shot."[5] "The following Friday, at midnight in all time zones, "Satisfied" and "Immigrants (We Get The Job Done)" were released, followed by "Wait For It" and "Wrote My Way Out" the Friday after. In addition to its digital, compact disc and vinyl record releases, a 12-song cassette tape version of the album was also made available on February 10, 2017, featuring the original explicit versions of the songs.[6]

Commercial performance

The Hamilton Mixtape debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 187,000 album-equivalent units, of which 169,000 were pure album sales.[7] It marks the largest sales in a week for a compilation album since Cruel Summer by GOOD Music in 2012, and is the first compilation album to reach number one since Now 50 in 2014.[7] According to Nielsen Music, the cassette version of the album sold just under 3,000 units in the year of 2017, in conjunction with the increase of overall cassette sales increasing by 35 percent the same year.[8]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."No John Trumbull (Intro)" (The Roots)Lin-Manuel Miranda
0:46
2."My Shot (Rise Up Remix)" (The Roots featuring Busta Rhymes, Joell Ortiz and Nate Ruess)
Mike Elizondo4:31
3."Wrote My Way Out" (Nas, Dave East, Lin-Manuel Miranda and Aloe Blacc)
Illmind4:21
4."Wait for It" (Usher)MirandaDwayne "Supa Dups" Chin-Quee3:28
5."An Open Letter (Interlude)" (Watsky featuring Shockwave)Miranda
1:08
6."Satisfied" (Sia featuring Miguel and Queen Latifah)Miranda
  • Elizondo
  • Tony Esterly[a]
5:18
7."Dear Theodosia" (Regina Spektor featuring Ben Folds)Miranda
2:25
8."Valley Forge (Demo)" (Lin-Manuel Miranda)MirandaMiranda2:46
9."It's Quiet Uptown" (Kelly Clarkson)MirandaJason Halbert4:37
10."That Would Be Enough" (Alicia Keys)Miranda
4:04
11."Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)" (K'naan, Snow tha Product, Riz MC and Residente)
Trooko4:41
12."You'll Be Back" (Jimmy Fallon and the Roots)Miranda
4:10
13."Helpless" (Ashanti featuring Ja Rule)MirandaFrequency3:35
14."Take a Break (Interlude)" (Illmind)MirandaIllmind0:48
15."Say Yes to This" (Jill Scott)
  • Miranda
  • Scott
  • Aaron Pearce
Pearce3:50
16."Congratulations" (Dessa)Miranda
2:11
17."Burn" (Andra Day)MirandaElizondo3:39
18."Stay Alive (Interlude)" (J.Period and Stro Elliot) 
  • J.Period
  • Elliot
0:33
19."Cabinet Battle 3 (Demo)" (Lin-Manuel Miranda)
Miranda2:49
20."Washingtons by Your Side" (Wiz Khalifa)
ID Labs2:55
21."History Has Its Eyes on You" (John Legend)MirandaLegend3:16
22."Who Tells Your Story" (The Roots featuring Common and Ingrid Michaelson)
Illmind4:13
23."Dear Theodosia (Reprise)" (Chance the Rapper and Francis and the Lights)Miranda
  • Francis and the Lights
  • Peter Cottontale
  • Nico Segal
  • Chance the Rapper
3:39

Notes

Public announcements

In a tweet posted about a month before the Mixtape's release, Lin-Manuel Miranda implied that the album released on December 2 would only be the first volume, hinting at a Vol 2 to be released later.[9] However, about a year later, Miranda admitted he was having trouble compiling a second album that satisfied him as much as the first mixtape, and cancelled the second volume, announcing that instead he would be releasing 13 tracks, once a month, over the following year. He referred to these releases as "Hamildrops."[10]

Ben Franklin's Song

On December 14, 2017, the same day as announcing the Hamildrops, Miranda announced that the first release would be "Ben Franklin's Song" by The Decemberists. The song's lyrics are taken from lyrics to an unused Hamilton song that Miranda had written with the band in mind. The finished track had lyrics written by Miranda and music written by Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy.[10] The song was released the following day, and was received warmly by fans and historians alike.[11]

"Ben Franklin's Song" peaked at number 15 on the US Hot Rock Songs chart.[12]

The Hamilton Polka

On March 2, 2018, (referred to as "February 30" by Miranda), a polka medley of songs from the musical recorded and arranged by "Weird Al" Yankovic was released. "The Hamilton Polka" peaked at number 1 on the US Comedy Digital Track Sales.[13]

Found/Tonight

On March 19, 2018, Miranda released a mashup of the songs "Story of Tonight" from Hamilton and "You Will Be Found" from the musical Dear Evan Hansen, sung as a duet with Ben Platt. A portion of the proceeds are being donated in support of the March for Our Lives initiative. The following weekend, Miranda and Platt performed the song together along with frequent Miranda collaborator Alex Lacamoire (who had also orchestrated both shows) at the March for Our Lives rally in Washington, D.C., on March 24. "Found/Tonight" peaked at number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[14]

First Burn

On April 30, 2018, Miranda released a preliminary version of the song "Burn" performed by five singers who were currently playing or had previously played the role of Eliza; Arianna Afsar, Julia Harriman, Lexi Lawson, Rachelle Ann Go and Shoba Narayan. "First Burn" peaked at number 22 on the US Digital Song Sales chart.[15]

Other announcements

On January 26, 2018, Miranda released a remix of "Wrote My Way Out" from Hamilton by Royce da 5'9", Joyner Lucas, & Black Thought featuring Aloe Blacc. A few days earlier, on the 19th, he released a music video on YouTube for the original version from the Mixtape.

On May 31, 2018, a cover of "Helpless" performed by The Regrettes was released.

On June 18, 2018, Miranda released "Boom Goes the Cannon...," a song written and performed by rap duo Mobb Deep. The release of this song was nearly a year after Mobb Deep member Prodigy passed away, with Miranda tweeting "Rest in peace, Prodigy. Thank you Havoc."[16]

July's Hamildrops were delayed to the last week of August.[17][18] The first one was "Rise Up Wise Up Eyes Up," a Hamliton-inspired piece by Ibeyi. The second was a YouTube music video of Andra Day's cover of Burn from the original soundtrack.

On September 20, 2018, Miranda released "A Forgotten Spot (Olvidado)" featuring Puerto Rican singers Zion & Lennox, De La Ghetto, Ivy Queen, PJ Sin Suela and Lucecita Benitez.[19] The song peaked at number 13 on the US Latin Digital Song Sales chart.[20]

On October 30, 2018, a cover of a deleted reprise of "Dear Theodosia" performed by Sara Bareilles was released.[21]

"Cheering For Me Now", a new original song with music by Broadway composer John Kander and performed by Miranda, was released with an accompanying video on November 20, 2018.[22]

On December 21, 2018, "One Last Time (44 Remix)" was released as the final Hamildrop. It is a remix of "One Last Time" featuring vocals from Original Broadway Cast Member Christopher Jackson, BeBe Winans, and 44th President of the United States Barack Obama.[23] The remix peaked at number 38 on the Digital Song Sales chart and number 22 on the Hot R&B Songs chart.[24][25]

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[35] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Awards
Year Award type Category Result
2017 MTV Video Music Awards Best Fight Against the System[36]
(for "Immigrants (We Get the Job Done)")		 Won

References
  1. "The Hamilton Mixtape by Various Artists". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  2. Greene, Jayson (December 10, 2016). "Various Artists: The Hamilton Mixtape". Pitchfork. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  3. Dolan, Jon (December 2, 2016). "Review: 'The Hamilton Mixtape' Reimagines Musical with Sia, Miguel, Nas". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  4. Viagas, Robert. "Beach Read to Broadway! How Lin-Manuel Miranda Turned a History Book into 'Hamilton'" Playbill, August 5, 2015
  5. Hall, Ellie. "The "Hamilton" Mixtape Has A Release Date And Oh My God The Tracklist Is Incredible". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  6. "The Hamilton Mixtape to be Released on Audiocassette". 3 February 2017.
  7. Caulfield, Keith (December 11, 2016). "'The Hamilton Mixtape' Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  8. "U.S. Cassette Album Sales Rose 35 Percent in 2017, Led by 'Guardians of the Galaxy'". The Hollywood Reporter. 5 January 2018.
  9. Lin-Manuel Miranda [@Lin_Manuel] (November 9, 2016). "What, y'all though we'd leave Schuyler Sisters unremixed? Room Where It Happens? One Last Time? OF COURSE vol. 2! (Lemme finish vol 1 tho)" (Tweet). Archived from the original on November 17, 2016 – via Twitter.
  10. "Lin-Manuel Miranda Announces 'Hamildrops' Series, Promising New Monthly 'Hamilton' Content for the Next Year". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-12-19.
  11. "Lin-Manuel Miranda and the Decemberists Wrote a Benjamin Franklin Song". Time. Retrieved 2017-12-19.
  12. "The Decemberists: Chart History - Hot Rock Songs". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  13. "Comedy Digital Track Sales - March 17, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  14. "Lin-Manuel Miranda: Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  15. "Digital Song Sales - May 12, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  16. "Hear Mobb Deep's 'Hamilton'-Inspired 'Boom Goes the Cannon'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2018-09-07.
  17. Lin-Manuel Miranda [@Lin_Manuel] (July 24, 2018). "*Deep inhale* The planned July Hamildrops aren’t 100% where I’d like them to be yet. Can I make it up to you with two in August?" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 8, 2018 – via Twitter.
  18. \ Lin-Manuel Miranda [@Lin_Manuel] (August 10, 2018). "I'm going to crowd you with love (and Hamildrops) the last week in August" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 8, 2018 – via Twitter.
  19. Blistein, Jon (September 20, 2018). "Hear Lin-Manuel Miranda Celebrate Puerto Rico on 'A Forgotten Spot'". Rolling Stone. Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
  20. "Latin Digital Songs Sales: October 06, 2018 - Billboard Chart Archive". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  21. "Sara Bareilles Theodosia Reprises Hamilton". Rolling Stone. 31 October 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
  22. "See Lin-Manuel Miranda Celebrate Diversity in 'Cheering for Me Now' Video". Rolling Stone. 20 November 2018.
  23. "Barack Obama featured on 'Hamilton' remix". CNN. 21 December 2018.
  24. "Hot R&B Songs - January 5, 2019". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  25. "Digital Song Sales - January 5, 2019". Billboard. Retrieved November 30, 2019.
  26. "Australiancharts.com – Soundtrack – The Hamilton Mixtape". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  27. "Ultratop.be – Soundtrack – The Hamilton Mixtape" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  28. "On The Charts...This Week". FYIMusicNews. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  29. "https://slagerlistak.hu/album-top-40-slagerlista/2017/6 "Válogatás- és mixlemezek slágerlistája – 2017. 6. hét"] (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved February 22, 2017.
  30. "Charts.nz – Soundtrack – The Hamilton Mixtape". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 9, 2016.
  31. "'The Hamilton Mixtape' Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  32. "Various Artists Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
  33. "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved December 12, 2017.
  34. "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  35. "American album certifications – Various Artists – The Hamilton Mixtape". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 2, 2018.
  36. "MTV VMAs 2017: Complete Winners List".
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