{"id":973828,"date":"2019-12-03T07:04:49","date_gmt":"2019-12-03T14:04:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=920238"},"modified":"2019-12-03T07:04:49","modified_gmt":"2019-12-03T14:04:49","slug":"so-how-was-your-decade-lin-manuel-miranda","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kfmu\/music-news\/so-how-was-your-decade-lin-manuel-miranda\/","title":{"rendered":"So, How Was Your Decade, Lin-Manuel Miranda?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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So, How Was Your Decade is a series in which many of the 2010s\u2019 most important musicians answer our questionnaire about the people, places and things that shaped their decade. We\u2019ll be rolling these pieces out throughout December. First up: the man behind Broadway\u2019s hip hop-influenced masterpiece. <\/em><\/p>\n

Lin-Manuel Miranda<\/a> began the 2010s as a darling of the theater world and will end it as a darling of, well, pop culture as a whole. Miranda\u2019s first hit, In the Heights<\/i>, premiered on Broadway in 2008 and he spent the ensuing years working as a performer, composer and lyricist on a variety of theatrical projects (Bring It On: The Musical<\/i>, a West Side Story<\/i> revival, Merrily We Roll Along<\/i>). All the while, though, he was plotting his next show, Hamilton<\/a><\/i>, a hip-hop musical about Alexander Hamilton that would premiere on Broadway in 2015 and become the rare Broadway show to transform into a genuine cultural phenomenon.<\/p>\n

Hamilton <\/i>won an astounding 11 Tony Awards, spawned a star-studded remix album (The Hamilton Mixtape<\/i>) and song series (Miranda\u2019s \u201cHamildrops\u201d) and embarked on a world tour that\u2019s still rolling along. Miranda became a star in his own right, garnering additional accolades for his work on the Moana <\/i>soundtrack, penning music for Star Wars: The Force Awakens<\/i>,<\/i> hosting Saturday Night Live<\/i> <\/i>and starring in Mary Poppins Returns<\/i>. He also became a staunch activist on behalf of Puerto Rico, advocating for debt relief, and donating and raising funds for rebuilding efforts after hurricanes Maria and Irma. The one thing Miranda managed not to do this decade was complete his EGOT. He\u2019s only one measly Oscar away, though, so it shouldn\u2019t take long at all. Miranda tells us about the people, places and things that shaped his decade.<\/p>\n

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My favorite album of the 2010s was:<\/strong> Beyonc\u00e9\u2019s Four<\/em>, just because it has one of my favorite songs of all time, \u201cCountdown.\u201d I think the surprise drop for the self-titled was the most innovative thing about the 2010s; it changed the way we exist. It was always let everyone in the world know you have an album coming, and Beyonc\u00e9 upended it in one move. She basically blew up the system.<\/p>\n

My favorite song of the 2010s was:<\/strong> I will refer you to \u201cCountdown.\u201d<\/p>\n

The artist who had the best decade was:<\/strong> Donald Glover had a hell of a decade. Donald Glover has what we call a \u201cFosse year\u201d in that he was being recognized for different talents in different things, all at the same time. Write the best TV show, drop the best single, and also be an incredible actor.<\/p>\n

The craziest thing that happened to me in the 2010s was:<\/strong> Honestly, it\u2019s the Hamilton <\/em>wave that keeps cresting. I thought we\u2019d do well with school groups [and] maybe run one or two years. Everything else has been gravy.<\/p>\n

My least favorite trend in music this decade was:<\/strong> As soon as I say something, it\u2019ll be someone\u2019s nostalgic favorite in 10 years, so I\u2019d rather not [Laughs<\/em>].<\/p>\n

The TV show I couldn\u2019t stop streaming in the 2010s was:<\/strong> It\u2019s not really a 2010s show, but I\u2019m a big West Wing <\/em>streamer, it was just sort of on for most of the decade. It\u2019s like TV caffeine for me, the crackle of the dialogue \u2014 I feel energized after watching it.<\/p>\n

The best new slang term of the decade was:<\/strong> Probably saying that something \u201cslaps.\u201d It\u2019s very accurate and descriptive to how I feel when a piece of music whacks me over the head and doesn\u2019t leave me alone.<\/p>\n

The best live show I saw in the 2010s was:<\/strong> This just barely makes it into the decade, but I would have to say my wedding. We hired incredible Latin musicians, and imagine your favorite concert but everyone around you is someone you love.<\/p>\n

The most surprising encounter I had with a fellow artist this decade was:<\/strong> Literally any backstage moment at Hamilton<\/em>. Alex Trebek, to Bernie Sanders, Donald Glover twice, Supreme Court justices. It was like an ongoing Mad Libs.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Something cool I did this decade that nobody noticed was:<\/strong> I got to write a song with John Kander of Kander and Ebb [\u201cCheering for Me Now\u201d]. He\u2019s really fast and I\u2019m pretty fast, and we just did it side-by-side\u2026 it was pretty incredible and I\u2019m really proud of what we made.<\/p>\n