Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Almost Like Praying keeps the focus on Puerto Rico

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s new benefit song for Puerto Rico “Almost Like Praying” will make sure Puerto Rico is never forgotten.

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s new song “Almost Like Praying” is a true rallying cry for Puerto Rico.

While Miranda was waiting to hear from family after Hurricane Maria hit, he set out to do something to help. He reached out to other Latinx artists like Gloria Estefan, Jennifer Lopez, Gina Rodriguez, Luis Fonsi, Marc Anthony, Rita Moreno, and more to collaborate on a song.

And, of course, they all said yes.

The result was the primarily-Spanish “Almost Like Praying,” which names every town in Puerto Rico, so they’d never be forgotten again. Because Hurricane Maria shared the same name as his favorite song from West Side Story, Miranda had to incorporate that into the song too.

“Almost Like Praying” is an amazing song. But more than that, it’s keeping Puerto Rico in the spotlight, and all the proceeds will go to the Hispanic Federation.

And Puerto Rico needs to stay in the spotlight. This week, FEMA took down information from its website about how much of Puerto Rico was still without power or access to drinking water. But the fact, is, Puerto Rico still needs help. According to the Washington Post, fewer than one in eight Puerto Ricans have electricity and just over half have water. Sources say that it’ll take months for most people to get power back.

Through all this, Miranda has been a voice for Puerto Rico. Back in 2016, Miranda wrote an op-ed in the New York Times and spoke to Congress asking for help with Puerto Rico’s $72 billion debt. Most recently, Miranda tweeted that President Trump was “going straight to hell” after Trump said that Puerto Ricans wanted everything done for them and slammed San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz.

Trump, of course, has been widely criticized for not doing enough to help Puerto Rico, for not acting quickly enough, and for his divisive comments and tweets. He did visit Puerto Rico this week, but was again criticized for saying Puerto Rico was throwing the country’s budget out of whack, saying this wasn’t a real catastrophe like Hurricane Katrina, and throwing rolls of paper towels to people.

Next: Lin-Manuel Miranda reveals title of mega-collaboration for Hurricane Relief

Puerto Rico is getting aid, but it still needs more help. Now Miranda has put out an amazing song to keep everyone talking.