Lin Manuel Miranda Essay

On the 16th of January in the year 1980, a future inspiration was born. Lin-Manuel Miranda is a 38 year old man, known for not only his skills as a composer and playwright, but also for using those skills to inspire others to learn more about the world around them. His mother was a psychologist and his father was a consultant to the mayor of New York, so Miranda knew what hard work means. Puerto Rican man born in the city of New York brought the past into the present with his world renowned musical Hamilton, a hip-hop styled musical about the first Treasury Secretary of the United States of America. When he first came up with the idea it resulted in him being laughed at by even Barack Obama, but more than half a decade

later the man invited Mr. Miranda to the White House to sing songs from the musical that had become a sensation. Lin-Manuel Miranda had written down a lyrical line which goes as follows: “History obliterates in every picture it paints” (Hamilton: The Revolution). In light of that very line, to be able discuss the early life of Miranda, how he came to be the man known today, the achievements he has reached and the legacy he has built would be considered an honour by many (Hamilton: The Revolution).

Lin-Manuel Miranda was born to Puerto Rican parents, Luz Towns and Luis A.

Miranda. He grew up in a Latino neighbourhood called Inwood, but always spent at least one month a year at his grandparents’ home in Vegas Alta, Puerto Rico (thefamouspeople.com). He and his sister grew up in a family that might break out in song at any moment, due to the fact that their house had a musical atmosphere throughout the year. His parents adored theatre as much as they did music, and encouraged both children in practicing piano and passed on their adoration of Broadway on to their children (thefamouspeople.com).

Miranda had said it before: “History is so subjective. The teller of it determines it” (brainyquotes.com). To be told of a person’s past would make it clearer how they came to be the person they are today. The first musical Miranda a saw on Broadway was Les Misérables when he was seven, which stayed with him forever. Even though his family wasn’t always able to see live performances, Miranda was still able to listen to cast recordings and sing along. (brainyquotes.com)

Miranda had gone to school at Hunter College Elementary School and Hunter College High School, later majoring in Theatre Studies at Wesleyan University. It was one of his teachers who asked him to first write a musical, fanning a spark into the flame that would be his career as a playwright and lyricist

(slate.com).
In Lin-Manuel Miranda’s university years, he created a comedy group called Freestyle Love Supreme that would also involve hip-hop music, and jotted down the first draft of what would be the beginning of his fame- the Broadway musical In The Heights, which would be set in Washington Heights, and in a neighbourhood very similar to his own.
Once done with his education, Miranda jumped headfirst into the world of acting and performance art. He would perform at festivals with Freestyle Love Supreme and could be seen in many films and television shows. Around that time he was also improving In the Heights, trying to make it as good as possible.
It was at that point that Miranda had to stop and look around him. His life was going well, but he was not sure what he should do next. His old high school, Hunter College High School, wanted him to teach English as a substitute teacher, later offering him a part-time job there. He wanted to pursue his career as a writer, but was having mixed feelings as to what would be more practical. He wrote a letter to his father, who had dreams of his son becoming a lawyer, but surprisingly received a reply telling him to follow his heart and attempt to reach his goal. His father knew what his son really wanted, and felt that after all his son has proved about his passion for the arts, it would be wrong to hold him back. He looked up to his father and trusted him, so taking his father’s advice, Mr. Miranda picked up a pen and kept writing.

After all the hard work and brainstorming Miranda had to do, it was a relief when it all paid off.

In The Heights was a huge success, becoming a hit Broadway performance in 2008 and running for almost two years. It won four Tony Awards, and an award for Best Musical. In addition to that, he also won a Grammy for Best Musical Show Album in 2009. Not only that, but in the same year he also received an honorary degree from Yeshiva University in Washington Heights, Manhattan, and became the youngest person ever to receive it. He also met up with his high school crush, Vanessa Nadal, and eventually married her.

Miranda truly does represent the lyrics he writes, especially the famous line: “There’s a million things I haven’t done, but just you wait” (Hamilton: The Revolution). Lin-Manuel Miranda was on vacation and reading Ron Chernow’s biography on Alexander Hamilton when the idea to make a musical out of it was born. Not many people thought he would succeed, but that very musical won was awarded in 2016 the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, and received 11 out of the 16 Tony Awards it had been nominated for (Hamilton: The

Revolution).
This may come as a surprise, but Lin-Manuel Miranda was still working nonstop. He contributed and helped in writing songs for the Disney film Moana, which brought in his first Academy Award nomination. He has also received other nominations, including a Producers Guild Award nomination in 2017 for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Original Song in a Motion Picture in the same year.
Just when one might think Miranda would finally be able to take a breath after all this work, melancholy struck. In 2017, Hurricane Maria caused tragedy and destruction in Puerto Rico. Miranda was devastated, and noticed that his Twitter was overflowing with people, including his family, asking about specific towns, and whether everyone was safe. He was looking through all the towns everyone was most concerned about when he was struck with inspiration. Puerto Rico needed help, and he wanted to help his home, so he began asking for favours. He would text his some of the Puerto Rican singers he was friends with, asking if they were interested in helping with a project of his. He would use social media to contact the singers he was not as close to, formally requesting their assistance.
The project began, made up of 22 Latino artists and one song to sing. The song was titled “Almost Like Praying” and was put together in a way so that names of all 78 towns in Puerto Rico would be sung. All the money received was used to help build Puerto Rico back up again. The charity single took only about two weeks to make but moved the hearts of many. It ended up being very successful, and the money was a big help to those in Puerto Rico.