
Lin-Manuel Miranda has gone on record, saying he never knew the music from Disney’s Encanto would be so popular. But after watching his promo for a new “medication” aimed at curbing fans’ obsession with non-stop singing of songs from the film, we think maybe he did know.
Lin-Manuel Miranda, the lyrical brains behind some of the most powerful and memorable music from recent blockbuster films like Disney’s Moana, Mary Poppins Returns, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, is also the melodic muse behind the music from Disney’s 60th animated feature film, Encanto, which debuted at theaters on November 24 and rolled out onto the Disney+ streaming platform on December 25.
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Songs from the soundtrack became immediate fan favorites, especially “We Don’t Talk about Bruno,” sung by the cast of Encanto, and “Surface Pressure,” sung by actress Jessica Darrow who lends her voice to Luisa Madrigal in the film.
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Both songs were immediate internet sensations as fans of all ages used the songs as background music to their videos, put their spin on the songs, or simply sang the songs themselves for all the world to appreciate.
Miranda says he’s shocked. In an interview with PEOPLE Magazine, Miranda says he was really shocked that his “Bruno” ballad took off as it did.
“I’m surprised it’s ‘Bruno,'” he said of the song’s impressive success on the charts. “I feel like this is my ‘Send in the Clowns,’ which was the late Stephen Sondheim’s biggest hit and probably the most random of an incredible career and life-making music. But I’ll take it!”
Miranda has also said he never thought “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” would be the most popular of the Encanto songs because, in his experience, it’s never the songs sung by the group that really win over the fans.
Even the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show has gotten into the humor of Encanto‘s music–calling on the same lyrical mind that created the songs fans can’t get out of their heads to, well, help fans get the songs out of their heads.
Jimmy Kimmel hosted Lin-Manuel Miranda on his show, Jimmy Kimmel Live! earlier this week. The pair talked about Miranda’s Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, which was neither “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” or “Surface Pressure,” and about the music from Disney’s 60th animated feature film.
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The audience erupted in laughter, however, when Kimmel played a clip featuring Lin-Manuel Miranda as the “Head of Research at Bruno Pharmaceuticals.” In the bit, which is actually the promo for a “medication” called “Encantix,” Miranda attempts to sell consumers on the new treatment aimed at curing fans’ obsession with singing songs like “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” on repeat.
The clip is called “Are Encanto Songs Ruining Your Life? Lin-Manuel Miranda Can Help!”
“Are you one of millions of Americans who can’t get enough of Encanto?” reads the description for the clip on YouTube. Do you have an uncontrollable urge to sing and dance to its irresistibly catchy songs? Lin-Manuel Miranda offers hope.”
In one scene from the ad, a mother shares talks about the problem in her household (as her kids sing the lyrics to “We Don’t Talk about Bruno” and her husband moves to the rhythm of the song in the background), saying that her kids used to listen to the song “two, maybe three HUNDRED times a day,” but she says thanks to the new Encantix pill, it’s down to “a solid 125.”
Miranda explains that Encantix (the brand name for the drug “earblokinase”) is the first pill of its kind to not be taken by mouth, but rather it is to be placed in the ear–one pill in each ear. Encantix gives users a break “from the sonic delights of national treasure Lin-Manuel Miranda.”
In fine print read aloud by a voice-over, the ad says that the Encantix pill “is not intended for use to curb Hamilton, Moana, or any other Disney musicals,” referencing other projects by Lin-Manuel Miranda.
The disclaimer from the ad urges users to call their doctors if they “can’t stop talking about Bruno for more than four hours.” It also warns them that “Encantix may cause explosive jazz hands,” after which Miranda’s hands explode.
If you’re interested in Encantix, know that it must be safe. After all, it’s from the makers of “Frozac.”