Inside the 'Hamilton' cast album that is 'breaking ground'

NEW YORK (AP) — Most Broadway cast albums are not the kind of things you typically blast in your car with the windows rolled down. But most shows aren't like "Hamilton." The groundbreaking, biographical hip-hop show about the life of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton has taken Broadway by storm, and a two-disc CD out this month promises to spread the word further. "I'm just so proud to be part of this thing and hopefully it gives some kids hope that musical theater can be anything," said Anthony Ramos, who plays John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in the show. "All the rules have been broken." Written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the musical tells the true story of an orphan immigrant from the Caribbean who rises to the highest ranks of American society, told by a young African-American and Latino cast. It's got a terrifically varied score, ranging from pop ballads to sexy R&B to rap battles, with lyrical nods to Gilbert and Sullivan, Jason Robert Brown, "South Pacific" and the Notorious B.I.G. As a signal of how important the album is considered, Atlantic Records tapped Questlove and Black Thought, founding members of the hip-hop/soul group The Roots, to help produce it.