Alexander Hamilton, founding father and renowned lawyer, was an exceptional writer and litigator in his time. In recent years, the broadway musical Hamilton, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, swept the nation under the direction of Thomas Kail. Upon listening to some of the songs, I found myself relating to a number of them and thinking, “Yeah. That’s law school.” Before we dive into these though, a few notes are in order.
These songs can also apply to other jobs and paths of study, so please feel free to continue even if you’re not a law student! Also, these songs are fairly male-centered by their nature, but do not be mislead for there are many amazing women in the legal field! Also, please be aware that many of these songs due involve coarse language.
Now, without further ado, here are 10 Hamilton songs for law students.
1. My Shot
We’ve all come far. We survived our time as undergraduate degrees (and everything else we may have endured up to this point). Now, here we are, on our path to become lawyers, advocates, volunteers, judges, justices, or whatever it is we aim to become in the legal field. We have our shot, and we’re not throwing it away now.
2. Right Hand Man
This song speaks on two accounts: 1) The way many of us will start out, under the wing of a senior attorney or judge. It will be our job to assist that higher-up individual in a number of ways as we begin the non-university portions of our legal careers; 2) As students, we all either have or will have a mentor or other experienced figure to look up to, much like Hamilton looks up to Mr.Washington. That figure may even be a fire-starter for much of our career.
3. History Has its Eyes On You
As law students, we are being watched. Whether it be by our professors, our fellow classmates, future or current colleagues, or potential employers, someone is watching. We have every duty and right to seize upon that and show the best of ourselves.
4. Dear Theodosia
Dear Theodosia is a testament to two fathers and their love for their children, declaring, “We’ll bleed and fight for you, We’ll make it right for you.” Law students, whether it be for our client or the children we have or may have, must be prepared to fight for someone else. We are their advocate and, at times, a protector in law and in life.
5. Non-Stop
The rapid pace of studying, whirling through page after page, letter after letter. The life of a lawyer (and a law student) can and will often seem continuous, the work fast-paced and unending. There may indeed be times when we’re “writing at night like [we’re] running out of time.” Probably because we actually are running out of time.
This song also highlights issues that may come up for us law students. Namely, arrogance and tunnel vision. There may come points where either we may think ourselves higher and mightier than (or even intellectually superior to) our peers or we focus so much at a legal task at hand that we forget all else.
6. Cabinet Battle #1
Because sometimes interpreters of law are critical of one another. Even Supreme Court Justices can be seething...
7. The Room Where It Happens
Many of us have, for years, watched the world happen around us. Now we’re on the path to get us to the point where we make the world happen. Negotiation is a tool we’ve always had to wield, but now we get to wield it in the room where it happens, whether it be closing on a contract or advocating a policy.
8. Election of 1800
This may seem specific to public policy or interest with its focus on politics, but we can actually draw our attention elsewhere. This song makes a point of how one opinion, one testimony, can make all the difference in the result of an election or, for our purposes, a case. Finding that one source, reference, case, expert, or even phrase that is key to the entire project is significant in 1800 and in 2017.
9. Hurricane
Referring back somewhat to Non-Stop, I choose this song for both the chaos endured and the solution that gets Hamilton out of it (not the Reynolds pamphlet specifically, but the writing). Television often shows off lawyers yelling and debating in a courtroom or having a dramatic sit-down discussion. This, as we’re told and we come to find out, leaves out the part about the amount of writing that lawyers have to do. From drafting accurate case illustrations to formulating on-point analyses, we are almost always writing our way through problems. This can get fairly hectic, like we’re being tossed around a scholastic hurricane just waiting for that eye of the storm.
10. One Last Time
This one’s for that moment when all we can do is step back and bask in the work we’ve done. Of course, we have to be able to recognize when that moment arrives, and accept with grace. Take a breath. You’ve done it.
