What do you get when you put a hip-hop score, a story about America’s Founding Fathers and a diverse cast of Broadway creatives together?

The world has become obsessed with hip-hop musical Hamilton, with endless sold out shows, tributes from across the music industry, live performances on talk shows and beyond. Now, it has received the highest accolades in the musical world (having already nabbed a Grammy), smashing the Tony Awards, winning 11 awards  out of a total 16 nominations. These included Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical, while many individuals involved in the musical were also honoured.

The creatives scooped up many of their awards including Andy Blankenbuehler for Best Choreography, Paul Tazewell for Best Costume Design of a Musical and Howell Binkley for Best Lighting of a musical. Director Thomas Kail accepted his award for Best Direction of a Musical while composer and Miranda’s “right hand man” Alex Lacamoire won for Best Orchestrations.

Most of the nominated actors who work tirelessly to perform every night now have Tony wins to their names. Leslie Odom Jr won Best Leading Actor in a Musical against his Hamilton co-star, who also wrote the musical, Lin-Manuel Miranda, for his role as former American vice president Aaron Burr. Renee Elise Goldsberry, who plays the oldest Schuyler sister and Hamilton sister-in-law Angelica Schuyler, took home the award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and Daveed Diggs snagged the award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for the roles of Thomas Jefferson and Marquis de Lafayette.

One of the most talked about speeches on the night was Miranda’s moving sonnet after winning Best Score of a Musical, in which he paid tribute to the victims of the Orlando shooting. “The show is proof that history remembers,” he said. “We live in times when hate and fear seem stronger. We rise and fall in light from dying embers, remembrances that hope and love last longer.”

The cast also performed on the night, using two songs from the song, History Has Its Eyes on You and Yorktown (The World Turned Upside Down). They then closed the ceremony with a surprise performance of The Schuyler Sisters.

See Miranda’s acceptance speech for Best Book of a Musical below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pi44405wMoI

Image: Billboard

If you need any more proof that there really are great role models within the music industry, this is it.

Time’s list of the Top 100 Most Influential People for this year has been released with plenty of artists joining the ranks.

Among them were Kendrick Lamar, Adele, Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande and Hamilton composer Lin-Manuel Miranda. Each person had a mini-essay written about them by another important person in society, honouring them with some words about their personal impact and their overall influence.

Below are extracts from a few examples.

Activist Alicia Garza spoke about Lamar in ways that speak on behalf of many of us:

“The first time I heard To Pimp a Butterfly was on a crowded plane heading to Jackson, Miss. With headphones on, there I was, bobbing my head and having audible conversations with myself because that album made me feel—moved and troubled, challenged, uplifted, angry, skeptical and raw. Far from creating “conscious rap,” Kendrick Lamar has evolved a new genre of movement music that asserts no answers but raises hard questions and brings us together to take them on.”

Lil Wayne wrote these words of admiration for Minaj:

“She’s reached far beyond everything I would have imagined. Man, she’s so influential and doing all the right things. She’s an icon, a boss and a role model to all these young girls out here on how to do it the right way. Her work ethic speaks volumes and has yielded these results. The scary thing is she’s still going. Ha!”

While actress Jennifer Lawrence poured her heart out for Adele:

“Growing up. Changing in some ways and being stuck forever in others. Being so young with the most successful career in the world. She says, “I wish I could live a little more, look up to the sky, not just the floor.” The way she is able to capture herself, and then in turn us, has turned her into a star that’s not a star we look at, but a giant star with its own gravity that we are drawn to. All of this about her lyrics, and I haven’t even gotten started on the voice—how could I? It’s once-in-a-lifetime. All this about her voice and I won’t have time to talk about her intelligence. Her 500-year-old wisdom. Her patience and kindness all wrapped up in the tough skin of a damn gangster.”

See the full list of the Most Influential People on Time’s website.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRK7PVJFbS8

Image: Danielle Hansen

The composer of Grammy Award winning musical Hamilton Lin-Manuel Miranda will release a mixtape featuring Chance The Rapper, Sia, Busta Rhymes, Usher, Ben Folds, Regina Spektor and Queen Latifah. Unofficially known as The Hamilton Mixtape, it will include remixes, covers and other tracks inspired by the musical.

Miranda spoke to Vanity Fair about the exciting project, explaining some of the important details. “People are coming out of the woodwork, knocking on the door. Half the songs are cover versions of songs in the show, and the others are interpolations- we’ll take some of this, some of that, and make something new out of it.”

Although Miranda stars in the musical as the title role of the show, he will not be featured on the tape. “I’m not going to be on it because for me, the goal is to keep this inspired by the original.”

Hamilton won Best Musical Theatre Album at the Grammy Awards two weeks ago (during which Miranda rapped his acceptance speech) and performed at the show. According to Playbill, the cast album also claimed the top spot on the rap and cast album Billboard charts.

“I really wanted the hip hop community to embrace Hamilton because it’s such a love letter to them,” Miranda said.

Watch clips from the musical below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOdWU-EnOEk

Image: Stereogum

Here it is folks, my weekly round-up the best new tunes. Click below for an awesome playlist for your weekend! Lots of garagey guitar stuff this week, with a little soul, a little  electronic, and one epic funk track for good measure!

  • Pearls, Big Shot
    Big beats and bluesy chords open this understated track. The light, punchy male & female vocals lie somewhere in between The Dandy Warhols and Arcade Fire. A deceptive slow burner, it’s subtle, simple, but so catchy and so damn smooth. An impressive new track for Remote Control’s new signees.
  • Sunbeam Sound Machine, Wandering, I
    I love the sun-drenched shoegaze sentimentality of this track. Another crooner with rich guitars and jangly effects, this is a summer soundtrack waiting to happen. The chorus is so hypnotic with its mantra-like vocals. A beat track from the Melbourne man.
  • Moses Gunn Collective, Mary
    Moses Gunn Collective’s new one     Mary is one demanding, catchy as hell psych-blues track. Thisis the stuff that the ’70s was made of, but there isn’t an ounce of irony or nostalgia throughout. It’s punchy, it’s funky, I love it. So keen for more from the Brisbane band.
  • Hamilton, You’ve Got Me Wrong
    Some people might think this is a kinda strange entry, but I really digit. It sounds like the kind of music played during some sort of demented circus act. Lovely lyrics and a gorgeous voice lead the way, with some quirky brass leading the backing music. The heavier chorus packs a punch, darkening up the carnival feel. Weird, and great.
  • Born Joy Dead ‘Hey Blood’
    My first reaction was, WOAH. This is great. The first few moments remind me of Monster by Kanye, but as the track progresses, it grows into something so special. It swings, it rocks, it rolls. I love the wailing guitars and the syncopated rhythm SO much. The new project of former Hungry Kids of Hungary bassist Ben Dalton, I am excited about Born Joy Dead.
  • Total Giovanni, Human Animal
    I wasn’t sure about this one at first but it really grew on me. A great blend of crunchy guitars and super spacey bleeps and bloops, this is cool. I particularly dig the FUNKY bass washed-over guitars (which remind me of Pink Floyd’s Learning To Fly), topped with distinctly Beck-esque vocals, this is probably what Talking Heads would sound like if they released something today.
  • Mont Oliver, White Sheets
    I wrote about Mont Oliver last week too, but they’ve just released another new one ‘White Sheets’, and I love it, so i’m writing about it here as well. This one’s packed with hip hop elements, from the lagging beat, the gangsta-style string backing riffs and the tampered vocal licks. It all opens up into a soulful space, with sensual rhythms and a serious groove. Fuck yeah.
  • Late Night Hysterics, Limerick
    Another slow-burner for today, I love the beautiful organ-style ambient opening. The vocals are light, nearly nasal but not, and packed with emotion and intimacy. The track picks up halfway through, gaining momentum with a swift rhythm and big chords, with a full synth build later on. A really interesting tune from the West Australian indie band.
  • Cosmo’s Midnight, Snare (ft. Wild Eyed Boy)
    Cosmo’s Midnight are back, and they’ve got a gorgeous new track for you. Gentle and catchy, Snare is the thing of balmy sunsets and summer escapes. An intricate soundscape with gorgeous electronic and melodic layers, this gets me so excited for the forthcoming EP.
  • Chiefs & Nick Acquroff, Inside Out
    Oh man, this is so smooth from the first moments. The vocals are rich, harmonised and demand your full attention. Combine that with the driving synth and the strong beat, the rhythm builds up and drops into a space that I don’t want to leave. I just want to listen to this track over and over again. I LOVE electronic with soul/R&B aspects, and this is exactly that.
  • Mark Ronson, Uptown Funk ft. Bruno Mars
    You’ve probably heard this song by now. Our first glimpse into Mark Ronson’s star-studded new album, set to drop in January, this track is a MOTHER of a funk track. I don’t usually like Bruno Mars, but he exudes Michael Jackson in all the right ways on this one. Those brass sections? So good!
  • Bernaccia, Manifest (ft. Ellen Chetcuti)
    Ominous whistles and brooding guitars lead this track, before seductive swing vocals lead the melody. I love how this track glides way under the radar, maintaining a mysterious feel throughout. Chetcuti’s unsweetened, husky vocals are the perfect complement to the main melody. Deep drums and a great fuzzed-up backing section, I’m digging this track from the Newcastle (UK) four-piece.