Encanto, the Disney animated wonder arriving on November 24, boasts a set of songs written by the award-winning composer Lin-Manuel Miranda. The Puerto Rican songwriter became a household name after his musical Hamilton exploded on Broadway. Since then, he has more than made his mark in film and television, previously collaborating with Disney on Moana, bringing his musical In The Heights to the big screen, and now introducing Jonathan Larson’s Tick, Tick… Boom! musical to Netflix.
The songs on Encanto‘s soundtrack, which is now available for purchase and streaming, are a perfect blend of Miranda’s signature sound and music inspired by traditional Colombian instruments. The film, which follows Mirabel Madrigal (Stephanie Beatriz, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and every member of her magical family as they work to save the miracle that powers their home, allows for plenty of diversity as each song incorporates the identity of the character singing it.
Miranda spoke to Screen Rant about exploring each member of the Madrigal family’s soundscape, adding authentic Colombian flavor, and choosing the character whose sound he found most surprising.
Screen Rant: I love how every character has their own distinct sound, and yet they all come together as a united front just like the family does. Can you talk about the journey of finding the right sound for each character?
Lin-Manuel Miranda: That’s the most exciting part of it, right? We really set this mission for ourselves with this film of wanting to capture the complexity of an intergenerational Latino family all living under one roof. I grew up in one of those; I know how complicated and how deep it gets, how we see ourselves versus how our family sees us, and those dynamics.
For me, the fun of writing any score is figuring out the pulse of the character, which leads you to the rhythm of the character. And then when those characters interact, what does that mash-up sound like?
To pick an example, I think about Luisa [Jessica Darrow]: I think I was inspired just by the character design of her. I saw a drawing of her before I wrote that song, and she’s so badass that I just wanted to write her like a really cool, Colombian, reggaeton-inspired tune… and then just find all the ways to mess it up. And that beautiful bridge in the middle where there’s pink clouds and unicorns, and just the contrast of what she presents to her family versus how she’s feeling on the inside, was really exciting.
Then with writing her sister, Isabela [Diane Guerrero], it’s a moment of real empowerment. I just thought of all of my favorite rock en español songs from the 90s. Like, I’m trying to get to brunette Shakira. “¿Dónde Están los Ladrones?” Paulina Rubio and Robi Rosa… There was a time where the best rock music was in Spanish, and I had never really written a rock song like that. And so, writing that for her was fun. And the end, I get to mash those themes together when those sisters come together. That’s always the fun: building the puzzle pieces and seeing what the mosaic is at the end.
I love you know how much of Colombia you can really feel in the film. I know you went on a research trip. What did you take away most, sonically, from that experience and your research?
Lin-Manuel Miranda: Yeah, it’s rhythms and instruments. And what’s fun is that, because we share a heritage, it’s like going to visit your distant cousins and seeing where they resemble you and where they look different. “Okay, we’ll swap out a cuatro for a tiple.” I was just really inspired by different forms.
And I don’t think there’s ever been a Disney hero ‘I want’ song that is in a bambuco style with a waltz time, but that was very inspired by some of the music we heard when we were down there. And then getting Colombian musicians and making sure that we follow through in the songwriting with the authenticity of how it’s playing.
Writing accordion-centric music was also just a total joy. I knew I wanted Mirabel’s instrument to be the accordion. She doesn’t get a gift, but she can play the hell out of an accordion. And that was also really both an exciting character discovery and musical discovery.
Finally, which member of la familia Madrigal did you feel most connected to? Whose songs do you want to sing the most?
Lin-Manuel Miranda: Well, that’s really tough [for] me, because I got to sing all of them. I will say that Dolores was the most fun surprise, in terms of how she sounded. The fact that she has super hearing made me make her really quiet, and also weirdly have more to say than anybody else. She’s like, “taka takata…” And then Adassa, who plays her, has such an incredible voice. She’s such an incredible singer that then we got to have fun and play with that.
That was the most exciting surprise of just like, “Oh, Dolores came to play!” And again, it was in my house and in my own brain, but it was still exciting when she showed up.
Encanto will be released in theaters on November 24th and on Disney+ on December 24th, with the soundtrack currently available now.
Key Release Dates
- Encanto (2021)Release date: Nov 24, 2021
About The Author
