Entertainment

Here's Where To Listen To "Hamildrops" Once They're Released

by Sophy Ziss
Kevin Winter/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images

You better watch out, you better not cry, you better not pout, and Lin-Manuel Miranda is telling you why: New music from Hamilton is coming, and soon. If you're already wondering where to listen to "Hamildrops" you aren't alone! Since the genius behind Hamilton announced the Hamildrops project on Twitter, fans are going bonkers bonkers. Why? In short, every month through December 2018, Miranda will share new Hamilton music. No, really. While a lot remains unclear — including when, where, and how the Hamildrops will arrive in 2018 — a little bit of deductive reasoning, dear Watson, will uncover the likeliest places fans can find Hamildrops online.

The only thing fans know for sure is that Miranda will post the first and only 2017 Hamildrop on Friday, Dec. 15. The track is called "Ben Franklin's Song," with lyrics by Miranda and musical accompaniment from indie faves The Decemberists. As Entertainment Weekly reports, Miranda described the lyrics as "Decemberists-y," adding that he wrote them awhile back but never got around to setting them to music. How fortunate that the actual Decemberists were available! Since Hamilton has fans of all ages, Miranda announced that there will be clean and explicit versions of "Ben Franklin's Song" made available once the track goes live at midnight. But how can fans actually listen to the first Hamildrop?

Will the Hamildrops be posted to Twitter? Maybe. It's far more likely that they'll debut on Spotify. All of Hamilton is available to stream on Spotify, as is the Hamilton Mixtape Vol. 1 that debuted in Dec. 2016. That might be because Miranda himself has love for the streaming service. He frequently uses Spotify to create playlists and share songs with fans, so why wouldn't that include the Hamildrop series? Spotify has a feature that allows users to subscribe to their favorite artists, so they'll get an email and a mobile notification when new music arrives. That would make it easy for fans to hear the new Hamilton song the second it's out. It would also help remind those too busy to keep an eye on Twitter stay in the loop.

While Spotify is an obvious contender, it likely won't get exclusive rights to the new Hamilton music. Miranda is all about accessibility to fans, and not everyone has Spotify or pays for a premium account. Apple Music is beloved by its users, comes automatically with an Apple device, and would allow fans to purchase the song as well. A subscription to Apple Music might be required, but they're less expensive than Spotify, and who isn't saving up for Hamilton tickets these days? While Apple Music and Spotify have the widest reach, one can't forget about Tidal. It might not maintain the popularity it experienced post-Lemonade, but it's still out there! Let's say Tidal is a dark horse contender for Hamildrops. Why not? As the saying goes, if you host it, fans will stream.

No matter where fans are able to listen to Hamildrops, they will make it happen. New music from Hamilton is not insignificant, and even after a full year of appreciating the musical's mixtape, it's thrilling to have new Hamilton-adjacent music to cling to. Tickets for the musical are expensive AF, even for the touring company, and an overwhelming majority of fans only have the option to listen to the soundtrack and follow the stars on social media. Releasing new Hamilton songs allows Miranda to keep his musical baby thriving, while treating fans to all-new goodies. The Hamildrops might not be the Hamilton Mixtape Vol. 2 that fans have clamored for, but it seems so much better than that

One new Hamilton song a month, every month, through December 2018? Fans definitely aren't going to throw away their shot at new Hamilton tracks.