Sebastián Yatra Says the 'Amazing' Lin-Manuel Miranda 'Really Let Me Be Myself' on Song for 'Encanto'

Yatra sings track "Dos Oruguitas" ("Two Caterpillars" in English) on the new Disney film inspired by his native Colombia

Sebastián Yatra might be wrapping up his tour with Enrique Iglesias and Ricky Martin and relishing in the success of being Latin Grammy-nominated, but he's also stoked for fans to listen to his new song "Dos Oruguitas" from Disney's Encanto.

Recording the track, written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, was a "beautiful experience" for Yatra, he tells PEOPLE as he debuts the song ahead of the film's release.

"It was one of my funnest experiences so far as a singer, working with Lin-Manuel and his whole team at Disney," Yatra, 27, tells PEOPLE about the track written by Miranda. "It's a very interesting process with them, it's not like singing a regular song where you go into the studio as a recording artist and you just do the song."

He adds, "You're singing it at the same time as you're watching the movie. And you're making sure that whatever emotions happening in the movie, you're finding a way to convey it. So there's so much magic in every single word, in every single silence and intention you put into your voice, what you're thinking about."

Sebastian Yatra
Valero Rioja

Yatra says that working with Miranda — even if he joined via Zoom from Poland — allowed him to have a deeper appreciation for the Hamilton star.

"It really lets me have a deeper look into Lin-Manuel's wonderful mind and the whole team at Disney," he says. "How they make emotions happen with lyrics and an animated movie happening all at the same time. It's crazy."

Yatra says the "amazing" Miranda, 41, hand-picked him to join the film's soundtrack after listening to his song "Adiós," which was nominated for a Latin Grammy.

"He really let me be myself within the song and the movie and also show a little bit of that storytelling way I have of singing, which is what he was looking for," he says. "He really loved the way I told that story [in 'Adiós.']"

Sebastian Yatra, Lin Manuel Miranda
Rodin Eckenroth/Getty; Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty

The song — literally about two caterpillars — is really about two souls in love.

"It's a way of giving a specific name to two souls that are connected and they're in love. And they live the miracle of love," Yatra says. "And no matter what hardships they go through death, separation, distance, anything they go through, they're always going to be connected and they're always going to find a way back to each other."

Being featured on the film's soundtrack also allows Yatra to pay tribute to his roots as a Colombiano. Yatra grew up in the U.S. but was born in Colombia and spent some of his childhood there.

Sebastian Yatra
Valero Rioja

"Colombia is magic. It's a miracle, this place where all colors come to life. There's so much love being shared in every place you go, the mountains, you just breathe the cleanest air and you have the most amazing food and you meet all sorts of crazy wonderful people that can teach you about many things you didn't even know existed," says Yatra. "So the fact that Disney decided to make a movie inspired on our country, on our land, this Encanto is just something that I'm always going to be grateful for."

Even though he was raised outside of the country, he says Colombia has "received me not as an outsider but one more of the community and 100% Colombian."

For Yatra, "Dos Oruguitas" comes in "the perfect moment" in his career and he understands that singing the track is a "big responsibility" for representation.

"Encanto is going to be a movie that puts Colombia straight in the heart of people all over the world that maybe didn't even know about Colombia too much," Yatra says. "So I just feel so honored about that."

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