Lin-Manuel Miranda is on a mission to help the devastated island of Puerto Rico. And he’s recruited some of the biggest names in entertainment to assist his efforts.
Tonight, the Hamilton creator released a benefit record titled “Almost Like Praying,” which features a star-studded lineup including Jennifer Lopez, Fat Joe, Camila Cabello, Marc Anthony, Luis Fonsi, Gina Rodriguez, and Gloria Estefan.
Miranda, whose parents moved from New York to Puerto Rico, recently spoke about the track on CNN.
"It's a love letter to Puerto Rico," he said. "I had the idea at 3 in the morning. ... The initial demo was me singing in a bathroom. […] To every artist, I've said, 'Can you help out on this song?' And they said yes. Without even hearing the song, everyone's joined in.”
The song is a remake of the West Side Story number “Maria,” and includes the name of every city and town in Puerto Rico. You can download “Almost Like Praying” here or stream it below via Spotify. Proceeds from the track will go toward HispanicFederation.org to help the victims of Hurricane Maria.
“I know there's a tendency for fatigue because we've just been through two hurricanes. And we can't be fatigued when it comes to our fellow Americans," Miranda told CNN. “[…] Food is scarce, water is scarce and everyone is doing everything they can to alleviate that as quickly as possible […] We are doing what Hamilton did, we're jumping up and down and screaming for support.”
