Was “Epic II” released as a standalone single?

No - it arrived with the final character-drop when the full Original Broadway Cast album went live on July 26, 2019.

Who sings “Epic II” on the Broadway album?

Reeve Carney as Orpheus on the 2019 Broadway cast album; Damon Daunno sang it on the 2017 live Off-Broadway recording.

Where does “Epic II” sit in the show’s plot?

Act I, just before “Chant,” reframing Hades’s power and insecurity to set up the conflict.

Are there notable covers or other versions?

A key counterpart is “Epic II (Live)” on the 2017 Off-Broadway cast recording; international productions include localized versions within their translations.

Epic II Lyrics – Hadestown

Q: Did the album win any major awards?

Yes - the cast recording won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

Epic II Lyrics

Orpheus

[ORPHEUS]
King of diamonds, king of spades
Hades was king of a kingdom of dirt
Miners of mines, diggers of graves
They bowed down to Hades who gave them work

And they bowed down to Hades who made them sweat
Who paid them their wages and set them about
Digging and dredging and dragging the depths of the earth
To turn its insides out, singing:
La la la la la la la…

King of mortar, kings of bricks
The river Styx was a river of stones
And Hades laid them high and thick
With a million hands that were not his own

And a million feet that fell in line
That stepped in time with Hades’ step
And a million minds that were just one mind
Like stones in a row,
And stone by stone,
Row by row,
The river rose up, singing:
La la la la la la la…

Last Update: August, 31st 2025

Song Overview

Epic II lyrics by Reeve Carney — Reeve Carney is singing the 'Epic II' lyrics in the Broadway cast recording video.

“Epic II” sits at the fulcrum of Hadestown, the moment Orpheus sharpens his story into something Hades can’t ignore. On the Hadestown (Original Broadway Cast Recording), it’s Track 11, performed by Reeve Carney and released digitally on July 26, 2019 via Sing It Again Records, with the complete album later winning the Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album.

Review & Highlights

Scene from Epic II by Reeve Carney — Scene from 'Epic II'.

Creation History

The “Epic” sequence began life in Anaïs Mitchell’s 2010 concept album and was re-shaped through Off-Broadway and London before Broadway in 2019. The OBC album’s producers include Todd Sickafoose, David Lai, Anaïs Mitchell, and Mara Isaacs, with the final digital rollout culminating July 26, 2019 after a staggered series of “character drops.”

Why it lands: “Epic II” is Orpheus’s second try at the tale - more focused, less dreamy. The arrangement leans folk-jazz with Americana grit, the tempo pulsing steadily while the melody climbs and retreats like a pickaxe swing. You hear the factory world closing in, and you hear a boy refusing to let the song die. The word “lyrics” matters here because the story is the whole weapon: he’s rewriting the room with them.

Storyline: Orpheus retells Hades’s rise as king of resources - oil, coal, stone - and the paranoia that gnaws at him when Persephone returns to the sunlit world. The image of a wall and pounding machinery swallows the old love song, setting up the next number, “Chant.” You can feel the stakes tightening; these lyrics double as a warning and a mirror.

Verse 1

Verse 1. Orpheus frames Hades as “king of silver, king of gold,” then pivots to the sickness of hoarding - the underworld as a mine that mines itself.

Chorus

Chorus. The refrain disintegrates into la-la-la machinery - the workers’ chorus becomes gears, drowning out memory.

Exchange/Bridge

Exchange/Bridge. Orpheus sketches the jealous winter: Persephone is gone; Hades fears she prefers the sun.

Final Build

Final Build. The wall rises higher; the hammer falls; and the audience is shoved into “Chant,” where industry has a beat of its own.

Song Meaning and Annotations

Reeve Carney performing Epic II — Performance in the music video.

The heart of the number is obsession: what happens when love turns into ownership. Mitchell yokes myth to modern extractive economies and lets Orpheus thread a counter-melody through it.

“Hades is the god of the Underworld and wealth in mythology, not specifically death...”

That framing matters - the villain here isn’t mortality; it’s control.

Instrumentation keeps the fuse burning low - piano, trombone, strings, a rhythm section that suggests conveyor belts.

“It makes sense to link Hades with the oil business because oil is underground...”

The metaphor is blunt on purpose: the king of the underworld becomes the CEO of everything buried and bought.

The emotional arc starts steady and gathers dread. Verse by verse, Orpheus describes a winter tighter than the calendar - the long off-season of trust.

“For half of the year with Persephone gone... jealousy fuels him and feeds him and fills him with doubt...”

The song turns from portrait to diagnosis; jealousy is the fuel, the factory, the noise.

Mitchell folds history into allegory. Labor, walls, surveillance - the show’s politics hum under the melody.

“This is one of the first... parallels between Hades/Orpheus that leads into the connection they share during ‘Epic III’.”

That connection is key: the tyrant and the troubadour both fear loss; only one tries to sing through it.

Shot of Epic II by Reeve Carney — Picture from 'Epic II' video.

Production-wise, the OBC recording puts Orpheus’s tenor up front with workers breathing at the edges, so when the chant begins, it feels inevitable.

“In mythology, the River Styx is an impassable river... In Hadestown, the River Styx is literally a protective wall.”

That reimagining - river into wall - clicks the song into the show’s larger architecture.

Listen for timbre shifts as the scene tips into pure rhythm.

“During this, the chorus begins making the sound of the machinery of Hadestown... they continue... as the song flows into ‘Chant’.”

The arrangement enacts the theme: a love song pressed into factory work.

Message, tone, production

Message. Art’s job isn’t to deny fear; it’s to out-sing it. Tone. Starts calm, turns foreboding, lands determined. Production. Folk roots, jazz voicings, Americana colors, Broadway muscle - the blend that defines Hadestown.

About metaphors and symbols

Metals and masonry aren’t decor - they’re psychology. Gold, oil, brick, Styx-as-stone; each one is a stand-in for a locked heart. Orpheus fights it with a melody sharpened like a tool, knowing the factory hum is coming for him next.

Key Facts

Artist: Reeve Carney (Original Broadway Cast)
Composer/Lyricist: Anaïs Mitchell
Producers: Todd Sickafoose, David Lai, Anaïs Mitchell, Mara Isaacs
Release Date: July 26, 2019
Album: Hadestown (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
Label/Publisher: Sing It Again Records; credits note the album as “Hadestown Broadway under exclusive license to Sing It Again, LLC.”
Length: 2:26
Genre: Showtunes, folk, jazz, Americana
Language: English
Track #: 11
Instruments (album band): piano/accordion, trombone/glockenspiel, drums/percussion, guitar, double bass, violin, cello
Orchestrations: Michael Chorney and Todd Sickafoose

Questions and Answers

Was “Epic II” released as a standalone single?: No - it arrived with the final “character drop” when the full OBC album went live on July 26, 2019.
Who sings “Epic II” on the Broadway album?: Reeve Carney as Orpheus. Earlier, Damon Daunno performed “Epic II (Live)” on the 2017 Off-Broadway live album.
Did the album win any major awards?: Yes - the cast recording won the 2020 Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album.
Where does “Epic II” sit in the show’s plot?: Act I, just before “Chant.” It reframes Hades’s power and insecurities, nudging the story toward confrontation.
Are there notable covers or other versions?: A key counterpart is “Epic II (Live)” on the 2017 Off-Broadway recording; international stagings (West End, South Korea, Australia) feature the number in translation within those productions.

Awards and Chart Positions

Album accolades. Hadestown (Original Broadway Cast Recording) won the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.

Tony context. The Broadway production took 8 Tony Awards in 2019, including Best Musical, Best Direction (Rachel Chavkin), Best Orchestrations (Michael Chorney and Todd Sickafoose), Best Lighting, and Best Sound.

Chart	Peak
US Cast Albums	1
US Billboard 200	49
US Independent Albums	4

How to Sing Epic II?

Range & placement. Orpheus is written for a tenor with strong head voice; production guides list a typical range around D3 to C5 (opt. Eb5). Treat “Epic II” as mid-high placement with gentle mix on the climbs.

Key & feel. Commonly played in F major/D minor; steady pulse that hints at machinery. Keep the rubato contained - let phrasing breathe without losing the tread.

Breath strategy. Each four-line block is a brick - stagger breath between lines 2 and 3 so the final thought lands unbroken.

Color & diction. Start storyteller-clear and warm; add edge as the wall rises. Clip consonants on the industrial imagery so the groove bites.

Additional Info

“Epic II” also appears on the 2017 Off-Broadway live album, sung by Damon Daunno, a useful study in how the number evolved before Broadway’s fuller orchestration.

Internationally, the show has spun out to London’s West End, South Korea, and Australia - proof that Orpheus’s stubborn song travels.

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