Theatre goers who saw the matinee performance of 'Hamilton' at the Richard Rodgers Theater yesterday were lucky enough to be treated to a live performance of the new 'Hamilton Mixtape' album ahead of its release. The likes of the Roots rapper Black Thought, Ja Rule and Ashanti all made appearances.

Lin-Manuel MirandaLin-Manuel Miranda's 'Hamilton' gets the mixtape treatment

Stars from the eagerly anticipated 'Hamilton Mixtape' appeared on stage before Lin-Manuel Miranda's 16-time Tony Award winning musical began on Broadway on Thursday (December 1st 2016), giving a mini-performance of the album one day before it dropped. It was also live streamed on YouTube.

Producer Questlove was co-hosting the event, his Roots pal Black Thought stepping in for tracks the likes of 'No John Trumbull' and 'My Shot' - the latter of which introduced rapper Joell Ortiz. Ashanti and Ja Rule also made an appearance for their song 'Helpless', while Regina Spektor sang 'Dear Theodosia' and Andra Day did 'Burn'.

'The Hamilton Mixtape' was produced by Questlove who also did the musical's Grammy winning Musical Theater album. It features a number of adapted songs from the show as well as a handful of original songs with a variety of collaborators including Kelly Clarkson, Sia, Common, Wiz Khalifa, Chance the Rapper, John Legend, Usher, Alicia Keys and even Jimmy Fallon.

More: Lin-Manuel Miranda talks Alexander Hamilton on 'Drunk History'

Creator Lin-Manuel Miranda is also on the album, but couldn't make it to the Broadway performance yesterday because he is filming for 'Mary Poppins' sequel 'Mary Poppins Returns' in London at the moment. He did, however, appear via video link to welcome theatre-goers and offer them the mixtape a day early. 'I so wish I could be there with you in person but I'm so thrilled that you are going to hear some songs from 'The Hamilton Mixtape' tonight', he told the audience. 'We've worked for over a year on this and I can't wait to bring it you.'

'The Hamilton Mixtape' is out today (December 2nd 2016).