How does a bastard, orphan son of a whore
And a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot in the Caribbean
By providence, impoverished, in squalor, grow up to be a hero and a scholar?
The 10 dollar
Founding father without a father
Got a lot farther by working a lot harder, by being a lot smarter
By being a self-starter, by 14 they placed him in charge of a trading charter
And everyday while slaves were being slaughtered and carted away
Across the waves, he struggled and kept his guard up
Inside he was longing for something to be a part of
The brother was ready to beg, steal, borrow or barter
Then a hurricane came, and devastation reigned
Our man saw his future drip, dripping down the drain
Put a pencil to his temple, connected it to his brain
And he wrote his first refrain, a testament to his pain
Well the word got around, they said
"This kid is insane, man!"
Took up a collection just to send him to the mainland
"Get your education, don′t forget from whence you came
And the world's gonna know your name. What′s your name man?"
Alexander Hamilton
My name is Alexander Hamilton
And there's a million thing I haven't done
But just you wait, just you wait
When he was 10, his father split, full of it, debt ridden
2 years later, see Alex and his mother bed-ridden
Half-dead, sitting in their own sick, the scent thick
And Alex got better but his mother went quick
Moved in with a cousin, the cousin committed suicide
Left him with nothing but ruined pride, something new inside
A voice saying, "Alex you gotta fend for yourself"
He started retreating and reading every treatise on the shelf
There woulda been nothing left to do for someone less astute
He woulda been dead and destitute without a cent of restutition
Started working, clerking for his late mother′s landlord
Trading sugar cane and rum and all the things he can′t afford
Scanning for every book he can get his hands on
Planning for the future, see him now as he stands on
The bow of a ship headed for a new land
In New York you can be a new man
(In New York you can be a new man) Just you wait
(In New York you can be a new man) Just you wait
In New York you can be a new man
In New York (New York)
Just you wait!
Alexander Hamilton (Alexander Hamilton), we're waiting in the wings for you (waiting in the wings for you)
You could never back down, you never learned to take your time
Oh, Alexander Hamilton (Alexander Hamilton), when America sings for you
Will they know what you overcame?
Will they know you rewrote the game?
The world will never be same, oh
The ship is in the harbor now, see if you can spot him
Another immigrant coming up from the bottom
His enemies destroyed his rep, America forgot him
We fought with him
Me? I died for him
Me? I trusted him
Me? I loved him
And me? I′m the damn fool that shot him
There's a million thing I haven′t done
But just you wait
What's your name man?
Alexander Hamilton!
