“The Reynolds Pamphlet” was a 95-page document written by Alexander Hamilton in response to allegations of corruption. He refuted these allegations, but in doing so, he publicly confessed to carrying on a three-year affair with Maria Reynolds. It was one of the first political sex scandals in American political history, and had a huge impact on Hamilton’s political career.

The bass line in this song is the same from Washington’s introduction in “Right Hand Man” when he asked for assistance, just extra slow and angry. That song gave us Hamilton’s entrance into political relevancy and greatness, and here we see his fall. The bass line itself is influenced by Eminem’s “Lose Yourself,” so there’s a thematic condemnation here that Hamilton finally blew his shot.

Overall, “The Reynolds Pamphlet” sharply deviates from the rest of the musical by referencing the trap genre. While most of the songs in the musical are inflected by 90s era East Coast and West Coast rap, it has a darker, grimier, more industrial sound, with injections of multiple (sometimes distorted—one line is even auto-tuned!) voices not unlike the vigorous vocal sampling of trap records. For example, “Hypnotize” by Young Jeezy, and “Get Low” by Waka Flocka Flame:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ka9AIoRw-WU