Less than a week after telling Donald Trump he was “going straight to hell” for his response to the crisis in Puerto Rico, Lin-Manuel Miranda has a new charity single aimed at helping the island. Miranda is joined on the bilingual song, “Almost Like Praying,” by an impressive roster of Latin artists, from well-known stars like Jennifer Lopez and Gloria Estefan to Miranda’s own Hamilton collaborators Anthony Ramos and Alex Lacamoire.
The song’s title and chorus are taken from West Side Story—specifically, a line from “Maria,” the song that shares the same name as the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico. Miranda told USA Today that the Leonard Bernstein–Stephen Sondheim song is his favorite one from the musical and that he hoped to remove some of the “negative connotation” that the name will carry in the wake of the storm. “Almost Like Praying” also names all 78 of the towns in Puerto Rico.
Other artists who lend their talents to the track include Marc Anthony, Ruben Blades, Camila Cabello, Pedro Capo, Dessa, Fat Joe, Luis Fonsi, Juan Luis Guerra, John Leguizamo, Rita Moreno, Ednita Nazario, Joell Ortiz, Gina Rodriguez, Gilberto Santa Rosa, PJ Sin Suela, Tommy Torres, and Ana Villafañe. They recorded the song in a week, according to Miranda, and word-of-mouth played a significant role: Miranda also told USA Today that Estefan became involved after Rita Moreno gave her a call.
Despite the somber subject, “Almost Like Praying” is upbeat and has the added bonus of Jane the Virgin’s Gina Rodriguez rapping, which is something we didn’t know we needed but now clearly do. Proceeds from the song will go toward Puerto Rico relief efforts through the Hispanic Federation’s Unidos Disaster Relief Fund, the same organization where Miranda’s father, Luis, served as founding president.
