''Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording)'' is the

cast album A cast recording is a recording of a stage musical that is intended to document the songs as they were performed in the show and experienced by the audience. An original cast recording or OCR, as the name implies, features the voices of the sho ...

to the 2015 musical ''

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

''. The musical is based on the 2004 biography of

Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...

written by

Ron Chernow Ronald Chernow (; born March 3, 1949) is an American writer, journalist, and biographer. He has written bestselling historical non-fiction biographies. Chernow won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize, 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Biography and the 2011 American ...

, with music, lyrics, and book by

Lin-Manuel Miranda Lin-Manuel Miranda (; born January 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, actor, singer, filmmaker, rapper, and librettist. He created the Broadway musicals '' In the Heights'' and ''Hamilton'', and the soundtracks for the animated films '' Moana' ...

. The recording features the original Broadway cast, which includes Miranda,

Leslie Odom Jr. Leslie Lloyd Odom Jr. (; born August 6, 1981) is an American actor, singer and songwriter. He made his acting debut on Broadway in 1998 and first gained recognition for his portrayal of Aaron Burr in the musical ''Hamilton'', which earned him ...

Phillipa Soo Phillipa Anne Soo ( ; born May 31, 1990) is an American actress and singer. Known for her leading roles on Broadway (theatre), Broadway primarily in musicals, she has received two Grammy Awards along with nominations for a Tony Awards, Tony Awar ...

Renée Elise Goldsberry Renée Elise Goldsberry (born January 2, 1971) is an American actress and singer. Known for her roles on stage and screen she has received a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, and a Grammy Award as well as a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award. S ...

, Christopher Jackson,

Daveed Diggs Daveed Daniele Diggs (born January 24, 1982) is an American actor, rapper, and singer-songwriter. He is the vocalist of the experimental hip hop group Clipping, and in 2015, he originated the dual roles of Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jeffer ...

Anthony Ramos Anthony Paul Ramos Martinez (born November 1, 1991) is an American actor and singer. After graduating in musical theater from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, he began performing in stage musicals. In 2015, he originated the dual role ...

Okieriete Onaodowan Okieriete "Oak" Onaodowan ( ) is an American actor and singer known for his work in musical theatre and television. On stage, he is known for originating the dual roles of Hercules Mulligan and James Madison in the 2015 Broadway musical ''Hamil ...

Jasmine Cephas Jones Jasmine Cephas Jones (; born July 21, 1989) is an American-British actress and singer who is best known for originating the dual roles of Peggy Schuyler and Maria Reynolds in the Broadway stage musical ''Hamilton''. Her work on ''Hamilton ...

, and

Jonathan Groff Jonathan Drew Groff (born March 26, 1985) is an American actor and singer. Known for his performances on stage and screen, he has received several awards including a Tony Award and a Grammy Award as well as a nomination for a Primetime Emmy Aw ...

, as well as ensemble members

Jon Rua Jon Rua (born Jonathan Rua) is an American actor, singer, and choreographer, best known for his roles in Broadway musicals such as ''Hamilton'', '' In the Heights'', '' The SpongeBob Musical'', and '' Hands on a Hardbody''. Rua was the choreog ...

Thayne Jasperson Thayne Jasperson (born Thayne Riley Jasperson, July 27, 1980) is an American actor and singer, best known for his role in the Broadway musical ''Hamilton''. Early life Jasperson was born to Nancy Jasperson in Provo, Utah before moving to Gree ...

, Sydney James Harcourt,

Ephraim Sykes Ephraim Manessah Sykes (born July 17, 1985, in St. Petersburg, Florida) is an American actor and singer. Sykes played the role of George Eacker in the original Broadway cast of the musical ''Hamilton (musical), Hamilton''. In 2017, Sykes originat ...

Ariana DeBose Ariana DeBose (; born January 25, 1991) is an American actress and singer. She has received List of awards and nominations received by Ariana DeBose, various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe ...

, and

Sasha Hutchings Sasha Hutchings (born December 21, 1988) is an American actress, dancer, and singer. She is best known for her role as an understudy and ensemble member in the original Broadway cast of ''Hamilton.'' Hutchings has also appeared in the Broadway p ...

. The recording achieved the largest first week sales for a digital cast album and is the highest-charting cast album since 1963. It was the highest-selling Broadway cast album of 2015 and peaked at number one on the

Rap Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...

chart, the first cast album to ever do so. After being certified Diamond by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

in 2023, ''Hamilton'' became the best-selling cast album of all time. It is also considered one of the best ever musicals. In 2025, the album was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the

National Recording Registry The National Recording Registry is a list of sound recordings that "are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant, and inform or reflect life in the United States." The registry was established by the National Recording Preservation ...

Commercial performance

The cast album for the musical premiered in September 2015 on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

's website. Its digital release on September 25, 2015, debuted on numerous charts and was released in stores as a two-disc set on October 16, 2015. It debuted at number one on the Top Broadway Albums chart, as well as number 3 on

Top Rap Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...

. Hamilton's debut was the second-biggest first week sales of a Broadway cast album, just behind the

for the musical ''Rent''. It debuted at number 12 on the overall ''Billboard'' 200 chart for sales, with over 2.1 million streams combined from digital service providers, the largest streaming debut for a cast album ever. Following the 70th Tony Awards in 2016, the album re-peaked at number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, making it one of only three cast recordings to reach the top 10 in the last 50 years. The album reached a new peak of number two in July 2020, following the release of the live stage film of the Broadway production on July 3, 2020. This made ''Hamilton'' the highest charting cast album since ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and ...

'' in 1969. This peak also came on the album's 250th consecutive week on the ''Billboard'' 200. The album was the highest-selling Broadway cast album of 2015 and peaked at number one on the Top Rap Albums chart, the first cast album to ever do so. It achieved the largest first week sales for a digital cast album and was the highest-charting cast album debut since 1963. It sold 169,000 copies in 2015, and a further 739,000 copies in 2016, making it the fifth best-selling album of 2016. It was certified 6x Multiplatinum by the

on April 4, 2019, making it the best-selling cast recording of all time. That record was extended when the album was certified 7× platinum on September 16, 2020. As of July 2020 the album has sold 1.97 million pure copies. On June 26, 2023, it became the first cast album to receive a Diamond certification.

Critical reception

''Hamilton'' was met with critical acclaim. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' called the album an "eye-popping debut", giving it a 5-out-of-5 star review and listing it at number 2 on the magazine's 50 Best Albums of 2015. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' gave it a 4.5-out-of-5 star rating, listing it at number 8 on the magazine's Top 50 Albums of 2015.

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

wrote in ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

'', "I can attest that the intrinsic intellectual interest [

] powers up here is so impressive it's exciting".

Track listing

Interpolations * "My Shot" contains elements of "Shook Ones Pt. II" written by Albert Johnson and Kejuan Waliek Muchita; " Going Back to Cali" written by Osteen Harvey Jr.,

Roger Troutman Roger Lynch Troutman Jr. (November 29, 1951 – April 25, 1999), also known simply as Roger, was an American singer, musician, songwriter, and record producer. He was the founder of the band Zapp who helped spearhead the funk movement and infl ...

and Christopher Wallace; and "

You've Got to Be Carefully Taught "You've Got to Be Carefully Taught" (sometimes "You've Got to Be Taught" or "Carefully Taught") is a show tune from the 1949 Rodgers and Hammerstein musical '' South Pacific''. ''South Pacific'' received scrutiny for its commentary regarding re ...

" from ''

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

'', music by

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...

and lyrics by

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...

. * "Right Hand Man" contains elements of " The Modern Major General" from ''

The Pirates of Penzance ''The Pirates of Penzance; or, The Slave of Duty'' is a comic opera in two acts, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, W. S. Gilbert. Its official premiere was at the Fifth Avenue Theatre in New York City on 3 ...

'' written by

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...

and

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

. * "Ten Duel Commandments" contains elements of " Ten Crack Commandments" written by Christopher E. Martin, Christopher Wallace, and Khary Kimani Turner. * "Meet Me Inside" contains elements of "

Party Up (Up in Here) "Party Up (Up in Here)" is a song by American rapper DMX, released as the second single from his third album '' ... And Then There Was X'' (1999) and was his most successful single (in the US). There are three versions of the song: an explicit ...

" written by Kasseem Dean and

Earl Simmons Earl Simmons (December 18, 1970 – April 9, 2021), known professionally as DMX, was an American rapper and actor. The recipient of various accolades, he won an American Music Award, a ''Billboard'' Music Award, and was nominated for six Gramm ...

. * "Cabinet Battle #1" contains elements of " The Message" written by Clifton Nathaniel Chase, Edward G. Fletcher, Melvin Glover, and

Sylvia Robinson Sylvia Robinson (née Vanterpool; May 29, 1935 – September 29, 2011), known mononymously as Sylvia, was an American singer and record producer. Robinson achieved success as a performer on two R&B chart toppers: as half of Mickey & Sylv ...

. * "Say No to This" contains elements of "Nobody Needs to Know" from ''

The Last Five Years ''The Last Five Years'' is a musical written by Jason Robert Brown. It premiered at Chicago's Northlight Theatre in 2001 and was then produced Off-Broadway in March 2002. Since then it has had numerous productions both in the United States an ...

'', music and lyrics by

Jason Robert Brown Jason Robert Brown (born June 20, 1970) is an American musical theatre composer, lyricist, and playwright. Brown's music sensibility fuses pop-rock stylings with theatrical lyrics. He is the recipient of three Tony Awards for his work on ''Parad ...

. * "Cabinet Battle #2" contains elements of " Juicy (It's All Good)" written by

Sean Combs Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969), better known by his stage name Diddy, and formerly Puff Daddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, record producer, and record executive. Born in Harlem and raised in Mount Vernon, New York, Mount Ve ...

James Mtume James Forman (January 3, 1946 – January 9, 2022), known professionally as Mtume or James Mtume, was an American jazz and R&B musician, songwriter, record producer, activist, and radio personality. He came to prominence as a jazz musician, wo ...

Jean-Claude Olivier Jean-Claude Olivier (28 February 1945 – 12 January 2013), often referred to simply as "JCO", was a French motorcycle racer and president of Yamaha Motor France S.A. from 1992 to 2010. He helped launch the careers of many famous French riders i ...

, and Wallace. * "Blow Us All Away" contains elements of "Ten Crack Commandments" written by Martin, Wallace, and Turner; and "Shook Ones Pt. II" written by Johnson and Muchita. * "The World Was Wide Enough" contains elements of "Ten Crack Commandments" written by Martin, Wallace, and Turner. Notes * Lin-Manuel Miranda made a conscious decision to exclude one scene in the performance from the cast album, "Tomorrow There'll Be More of Us", also known as Laurens' Interlude.

Personnel

Cast *

–

Eliza Hamilton Elizabeth Hamilton (née Schuyler ; August 9, 1757 – November 9, 1854) was an American socialite and philanthropist. She was the wife of American Founding Father Alexander Hamilton and was a passionate champion and defender of Hamilton's ...

–

Aaron Burr Aaron Burr Jr. (February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836) was an American politician, businessman, lawyer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third vice president of the United States from 1801 to 1805 d ...

– Angelica Schuyler * Christopher Jackson –

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

–

Marquis de Lafayette Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette (; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette (), was a French military officer and politician who volunteered to join the Conti ...

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (, 1743July 4, 1826) was an American Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was the primary author of the United States Declaration of Indepe ...

–

Hercules Mulligan Hercules Mulligan (September 25, 1740March 4, 1825) was an Irish-American tailor and spy during the American Revolutionary War, as well as a member of the Sons of Liberty. Early life Born in Coleraine in the north of Ireland to Hugh and Sarah ...

James Madison James Madison (June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison was popularly acclaimed as the ...

–

John Laurens John Laurens (October 28, 1754 – August 27, 1782) was an American soldier and statesman from South Carolina during the American Revolutionary War, best known for his efforts to help recruit slaves to fight for their freedom as U.S. soldiers. ...

Philip Hamilton Philip Hamilton (January 22, 1782 – November 24, 1801) was the eldest child of Alexander Hamilton (the first United States Secretary of the Treasury, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury) and Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton. He died at age 19, fatally ...

–

Peggy Schuyler Margarita "Peggy" Schuyler Van Rensselaer (September 19, 1758 – March 14, 1801) was the third daughter of Continental Army General Philip Schuyler. She was the wife of Stephen Van Rensselaer III, sister of Angelica Schuyler Church, Philip Je ...

Maria Reynolds Maria Reynolds (née Lewis; March 30, 1768 – March 25, 1828) was the wife of James Reynolds, and was Alexander Hamilton's mistress between 1791 and 1792. She became the object of much scrutiny after the release of the Reynolds Pamphlet and cen ...

–

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and King of Ireland, Ireland from 25 October 1760 until his death in 1820. The Acts of Union 1800 unified Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and ...

* Sydney James Harcourt – James Reynolds * Thayne Jasperson –

Samuel Seabury Samuel Seabury (November 30, 1729February 25, 1796) was the first American Episcopal bishop, the second Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, and the first Bishop of Connecticut. He was a leading Loyalis ...

– Charles Lee *

–

George Eacker George I. Eacker ( 1774 – January 4, 1804) was a New York lawyer. He is best known for having fatally shot Philip Hamilton, the eldest son of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, in a duel on November 23, 1801, in Weehawken, Ne ...

Ensemble vocals * Carleigh Bettiol * Andrew Chappelle *

* Alysha Deslorieux * Sydney James Harcourt * Neil Haskell * Sasha Hutchings * Thayne Jasperson * Stephanie Klemons * Morgan Marcell * Javier Muñoz * Emmy Raver-Lampman * Jon Rua * Austin Smith * Seth Stewart * Betsy Struxness * Ephraim Sykes * Voltaire Wade-Greene Production *

Alex Lacamoire Alex Lacamoire (born May 24, 1975) is a Cuban-American composer, arranger, conductor, musical director, music copyist, and orchestrator who has worked on many shows both on and off-Broadway. He is the recipient of multiple Tony and Grammy A ...

– production, orchestrations *

Bill Sherman Bill Sherman is an American composer, producer, arranger, and orchestrator. He is known for his work on ''In the Heights'', ''Hamilton'', and ''Sesame Street''. Sherman is also a member of Team Supreme that co-hosts the Questlove Supreme podcast ...

– production *

– production, executive production *

Ahmir Thompson Ahmir K. Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought) ...

Tariq Trotter Tariq Luqmaan Trotter (born October 3, 1973), better known as Black Thought, is an American rapper, singer, actor and the lead MC of the hip hop group The Roots, which he co-founded with drummer Questlove in Philadelphia. Regarded as "one of t ...

for

the Roots The Roots are an American Hip-hop, hip hop band formed in 1987 by singer Black Thought, Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and drummer Questlove, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''T ...

– production, executive production *

Craig Kallman Craig Kallman is an American entrepreneur and former DJ. He is currently the chairman and CEO of Atlantic Records. His career in music began in the 1980s as a DJ in Manhattan. He is the founder of the independent label Big Beat, which was establ ...

– associate production * Riggs Morales – associate production * Sean Patrick Flahaven – associate production *

Thomas Kail Thomas Kail (born January 20, 1977) is an American theatre director, television director and producer, known for directing the Off-Broadway and Broadway productions of Lin-Manuel Miranda's musicals '' In the Heights'' and ''Hamilton'', garneri ...

– associate production * Tyler Hartman – assistant engineering * Ron Robinson – assistant engineering * Ebonie Smith – assistant engineering * Tom Coyne – mastering * Michael Keller – music coordination * Michael Aarons – music coordination * Randy Cohen – synthesizer and drum programming * Nevin Steinberg – Broadway sound effects * Scott Wasserman –

Ableton Ableton AG is a German music software company that produces and distributes the production and performance program Ableton Live and a collection of related instruments and sample libraries, as well as their own hardware controller Ableton Push. ...

programming * Taylor Williams – associate synthesizer programming * Jeremy King – assistant synthesizer programming * Will Wells – drum samples and additional loop editing * Tim Latham – mixing * Derik Lee – recording * Emily Grishman – music copying * Katharine Edmonds – music copying Musicians * Alex Lacamoire – conducting, keyboard 1 * Kurt Crowley – keyboard 2, associate music direction * Jonathan Dinklage – concertmaster * Erin Benim Mayland – violin * Mario Gotoh – viola, violin * Anja Wood – cello * Andres Forero – drums * Benny Reiner – percussion, keyboard * Richard Hammond – bass, keyboard * Robin Macatangay – guitars, banjos Additional musicians for recording * Laura Sherman – harp *

Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson Ahmir K. Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American drummer, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thought) ...

– wood table on "Aaron Burr, Sir"

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications

Song certifications

Awards

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Cast recordings Theatre soundtracks Atlantic Records soundtracks 2015 soundtrack albums Hip-hop soundtracks Hamilton (musical) Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album Albums produced by Lin-Manuel Miranda United States National Recording Registry albums United States National Recording Registry recordings