There are dozens of individual moving parts that makes Hamilton the technical masterpiece that it is, but arguably the biggest is the emphasis on hip-hop and rap in the musical's song structure. Since its debut in 2015, the musical has achieved unprecedented success, appealing to both Broadway fanatics as well as people unfamiliar to the world of theater. For years after its premiere, it was only accessible to a small circle of people able to attend the Broadway production, but that's changed as a result of a filmed version of the musical that was released on Disney+.
Revolving around the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton, the musical weaves together his rise through the budding political circuit as well as the story of America's founding to shed a light on America's potential future. The show's writer and composer, Lin-Manuel Miranda, received the inspiration for the musical while reading a book on Hamilton's life by Ron Chernow. In the process of adapting the novel into a stage musical, Miranda had the idea to cast most of the central characters as actors of color, a commentary on the irreplaceable contribution of immigrants and minorities to America's birth.
With so many Black faces within the show, it would only make sense to represent those cultures within the framework of the musical. Hamilton does this in a very distinct and purposeful way — weaving Hip-Hop itself into the narrative through song.
Rap Emphasizes The Show's Themes Of Storytelling And Time
A key thematic focus of Hamilton is how history will view those with a key place in it, something that is expressly discussed in the song "History Has Its Eyes On You." Throughout the entire musical, several characters (including George Washington, Aaron Burr, and even Alexander Hamilton himself) wonder about the legacy that they will leave behind in regards to how future generations will view them, and what it is that they can do with the time they have on Earth. This is reinforced in how the show uses music to represent certain characters' qualities and traits: Hamilton is constantly rapping, with a flow that's demonstrably quicker than those in his inner circle. This is to show that Hamilton is looking to the future; his ideas and viewpoints on governance are more advanced than his compatriots.
On the flip side of this, Hamilton, and lots of other characters in the musical, rap because their lives are unfortunately cut short. Alexander Hamilton, John Laurens, Phillip Hamilton, and several other historical figures presented in the musical die relatively young, which is why in the context of the musical, they're forced to rap, which is at its most basic level the practice of quickly spitting out dense lines of information. Rapping in the show becomes a race against death, something Hamilton frequently lives in fear of because of his close proximity to it all his life. Interestingly enough, Eliza Schuyler is one of the only characters in the musical who doesn't specifically communicate through rap; she outlasts everyone and lives a full-life in the end.
It Brings Excitement To Potentially Boring Subject Matter
While the Revolutionary War and the birth of America are, in broad strokes, hugely exciting events, certain details and the meticulous specifics of these events don't exactly get everyone's blood pumping. In the aftermath of the bloody war fought to free the colonists from the tyranny of King Certain, most of the process of establishing a government was done in sit-down meetings and impassioned essays. These actions within the musical, such as Hamilton's incessant letter writing or the monotony of congressional meetings may not have been exciting visuals by themselves, but the writers, actors, and composers were able to lean on the inherently dynamic quality of rap music to make these events more enticing.
Specifically, the cabinet meeting discussions between Jefferson and Hamilton are some of the most compelling interactions in the entire show, precisely because of the lyrical skill on display between Lin-Manuel Miranda and Daveed Diggs (who is already part of the rap group clipping in his spare time). Not only are the Cabinet Battles entertaining to listen to, but the lyrics are focused enough that they reveal intimate details of both characters during them, as well as their viewpoints on the governance of America. This isn't an easy task to accomplish, and a lesser work might simply have relied on heavy-handed exposition instead.
It Emphasizes A Diverse Retelling Of America's Founding
While based on the actual life of Alexander Hamilton and the real events that led to the founding of America, the musical takes obvious liberties with the material. The most blatant of these is the casting of actors of color in nearly every major role, something that the show doesn't directly call attention to as part of the narrative. This is a subtle way of highlighting the fact that immigrants and people of color were always a part of the story of America, even if their contributions weren't always seen. While a frequent criticism of the show is the white-washing of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade and Hamilton's part in it, the show feels less like a piece of informative historical theater and more like diversified wish fulfillment: in an idealistic alternate universe, this is what the founding fathers would actually look and sound like.
To capitalize on this, rap music is the lifeblood of the musical's DNA. Most musicals lean into traditional Broadway musical styles, but Hamilton emphasizes the diversity on display by complimenting it with a musical style created from the ground up by people of color. It helps to root the entire musical in a culture that feels lived in and authentic. On top of this, the same way that Hamilton focuses its narrative on the founding fathers of America, its musical stylings focus on the founding fathers of rap music. Specific Hip-Hop artists are emulated by certain characters in the musical, including Eric B and Rakim, The Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z, and many others. As much as Hamilton is a celebration of the ingenuity of minorities in America, it's also a celebration of the culture that they create, and a celebration of rap music itself.