The cast recording of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton was made available for streaming on NPR on Monday several days ahead of its scheduled 25 September digital release date.
You can listen to the whole thing right here.
Hamilton follows the life of America’s first treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton, or, as creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda refers to him in the opening number, “the 10-dollar founding father without a father”. The show has captivated the theater world for months after originating at the Public Theater in New York’s East Village in February, thanks to its thoroughly modern musical approach to the centuries-old story of one of US history’s most fascinating characters. It transferred to Broadway this summer and has become one of the most expensive and unobtainable tickets in New York theater.
But now everyone can enjoy the show – for free.
Theater fans were heading to work or school when the album started streaming, but they were not about to throw away their shot to get an early listen to the hottest Broadway musical in years.
By late afternoon on the east coast, the hashtag #Hamiltunes was trending on Twitter as Broadway fans discovered the recording was available and immediately began to listen.
When you're about to go to class, but the @HamiltonMusical cast album drops on NPR. #Hamiltunes pic.twitter.com/NgIUcs4kzq
— Jack Feria (@jack_feria) September 21, 2015
Even celebrities couldn’t contain their excitement.
For my fellow showtune lovers, the @HamiltonMusical soundtrack was released today! http://t.co/JHi5PBYNrU #Hamiltunes #LunchtimeFun
— Katie Couric (@katiecouric) September 21, 2015
And, with the audio available to savor in its own right, Twitter delighted in picking apart the lyrical intricacies and countless references Miranda had woven into the show.
Bringing this back! Now all can hear @Lin_Manuel reference actual Yorktown songs! #hamiltunes #WorldTurnedUpsidedown pic.twitter.com/unHmFqDTTS
— Aliza W. (@AlizaTweets) September 21, 2015
Hail poetry, motherf*ckers https://t.co/2GfXdpAU8e
— Lin-Manuel Miranda (@Lin_Manuel) September 21, 2015
But really it was the music itself – an effortless potpourri of hip-hop, R&B, traditional theater, and more – that really hooked listeners.
@Lin_Manuel When Guns and Ships came on. #Hamiltunes @HamiltonMusical 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/ACtxdHFuy5
— Desuana Dubose (@Desuana_D) September 21, 2015
Want to know what all the fuss is about but don’t have time to listen to the entire recording? Here are the tracks the Guardian advises you not to miss, to, courtesy of NPR:
