HERØINE

When you think of Nashville, you think of music. The two are completely fused at this point, they can only go hand-in-hand. While Nashville is typically known for its country and southern rock influences, the city has recently become a breeding ground for up and coming pop stars. Maybe it had something to do with the residents getting sick of the country labels. Maybe it was the influx of hundreds of thousands of adults under 28 moving in over the last five years. Who knows, maybe it was just Taylor Swift's transition to a more upbeat and modern style. Whatever the reason, it seems like young pop artists are popping up all over town. While this is exciting news for all of us who aren't into the whole country scene, it's also very sad. Why? The vast majority of these "artists" just don't really have it. Whether they can't really sing as well as they thought, their writing is poor, or they just have little to no production value; they just aren't very good. In case you missed it, the key word there was majority. This is where Heroine comes in.

Before every film at the Nashville Film Festival, they showed a super-cut of many of the competition highlights. The cut was masterful, but the song playing in the background is what truly got my attention. You can see the video below.

I was literally walking around the festival for the rest of the day dancing around and chanting "I'm gonna hunt you down" to myself. It was days before I got it out of my head. The synth melodies that lay beneath the aggressive lyrics provide a beat that will keep you dancing all the way through. Pair that with some rhythm guitar and some unique sounds scattered throughout, and you already have a hit; no lyrics required. Fortunately for us, Heroine turned the beat into much more than it ever could have been.

Coming in hard and never letting up, Heroine (Mackenzie Robert) gives us a unique kind of vocal performance that we won't soon forget. With an immense amount of control, we're able to see a level of anger and aggression that drives home the themes of the lyrics and sticks with us long after the song was over.

The more I went and listened to the song, the more I realized that everyone involved in the project really gave their all in order to turn in an incredible finished project. I figured the song must have taken a village, but it only took three ridiculously talented individuals. Written and produced by Robert, Zander Koble (also known by his stage handle Alistair), and Evan Sieling, this jam was produced and recorded entirely in Nashville.

The best news of all? The song was officially released on April 23, so now it can be enjoyed by all. While this is the only single so far for Heroine, I'm confident that we will hear more over the course of 2016 and beyond. The song is now available for purchase on iTunes and for play on Spotify. Go ahead and try to listen just once. I dare you. - Movie Pilot