This week on Hear Us Out, we’re honored to host a true musical polymath: Bill Sherman, the Grammy-, Tony-, and Emmy-winning composer, arranger, and music director. Best known for his work on Hamilton, In the Heights, and Sesame Street, Bill has created soundtracks that resonated across generations—and today, he brings us into his creative world.
A Journey Through Sound & Storytelling
Bill Sherman’s path is anything but ordinary. After graduating from Wesleyan University, he teamed up with his college roommate, Lin-Manuel Miranda, to form the hip-hop improv group Freestyle Love Supreme. Their friendship and artistic chemistry extended into Broadway: Bill helped orchestrate In the Heights, earning him a Tony Award for Best Orchestrations in 2008.
He didn’t stop there. As a producer on the Hamilton original cast album, he added a Grammy Award to his accolades. All the while, he was building an entirely different musical world as the Music Director for Sesame Street.
Awards That Reflect a Multifaceted Career
Bill’s award shelf is impressive—and deserved:
Tony Award for Best Orchestrations (In the Heights)
Multiple Grammy Awards, including for In the Heights and Hamilton
Daytime Emmy Awards for original songs on Sesame Street, like “What I Am”, “The Power of Yet”, and “A Song About Songs” (the latter featuring Sia!)
Creativity, Collaboration & Responsibility
In our conversation, Bill opens up about how he balances so many musical worlds, and why collaboration is core to his process. He reflects on:
Working with Broadway legends: He’s brought familiar voices into Sesame Street by recruiting composers from the theater world.
Creating for children: Bill doesn’t dumb anything down. He believes that kids’ ears are extra sophisticated—and that respect for their intelligence fuels his songwriting.
His sense of purpose: For him, Sesame Street is more than entertainment. It’s a platform to teach, heal, and inspire. He talked on Today about his “responsibility to children” to use music to uplift.