"Hero" is a song by Indonesian
pop rock band
Noah
Noah ''Nukh''; am, ኖህ, ''Noḥ''; ar, نُوح '; grc, Νῶε ''Nôe'' () is the tenth and last of the pre-Flood patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5– ...
from their 2014 album ''
Second Chance''. It was written by Noah's vocalist
Ariel and Indonesian musician
Giring Ganesha. It is the first song by Noah that has English lyrics. To record the song, Noah worked with British record producer
Steve Lillywhite to produce it. The song was released as the
lead single of ''Second Chance'' on 6 August 2014.
Writing and recording
"Hero" had been written before Noah changed their name from Peterpan. In 2008, Peterpan performed it during a concert in London, England. Its melody is written by the band's vocalist,
Ariel. But since Ariel never wrote a song with English lyrics before, Ariel got help from then-
Nidji
Nidji is an Indonesian rock band based in Jakarta. Formed in February 2002, Nidji's name comes from the Japanese word ''niji'' (虹), meaning "rainbow". The band's music can be classified under the alternative pop genre, and the band has cited C ...
vocalist
Giring Ganesha to write the lyrics, because Nidji had written several English songs.
"Hero" as recorded for the ''
Second Chance'' album was produced by British record producer
Steve Lillywhite. When Noah via
Musica Studio's asked to collaborate with Lillywhite, "Hero" was one of the songs they sent to him. Lillywhite considered "Hero" as the song that made him realise Noah's potential. While working with Lillywhite, Noah did some experimentation such as using three layers of voice filter to make Ariel's voice cleaner, putting the drums at the corridor and relocating the voice recording location at the studio's corner.
Music
When introduced in June 2014, "Hero" was said to sound
Britpop-like, while Steve Lillywhite considered it a
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
song.
On this song, according to Steve Lillywhite, Ariel's voice sounds more manly compared to his softer voice on other songs. Ariel said that his voice is similar to his voice back when he was singing English songs in cafe.
Release and promotion
"Hero" was introduced during a sharing session in June 2014.
"Hero" was released as a single on 6 August 2014 via simultaneous airplay in 174 radios in Indonesia. This airplay was done at 18.08 local time with help from Indonesian Music Director Association. Then, it was released on
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
on then next day.
Reception
"Hero" won the Best Pop Duo/Group and was nominated for Best Pop Producer/Music Arranger on
18th Annual Anugerah Musik Indonesia
The 18th Annual Anugerah Musik Indonesia was held on September 22, 2015, at the Ecovention in Pademangan, North Jakarta. The show was broadcast live on RCTI and was hosted by Arie Untung.
The show was a collaboration between Anugerah Musik Indone ...
on 22 September 2015.
Music video
The music video for "Hero" was directed by Brazilian director Felipe P. Soares.
The shooting was done at Rumah Akar,
Kota Tua
Kota Tua Jakarta (Indonesian for "Jakarta Old Town"), officially known as Kota Tua, is a neighborhood comprising the original downtown area of Jakarta, Indonesia. It is also known as (Dutch for "Old Batavia"), ("Lower City", contrasting it wit ...
, Jakarta. The video stars Fathir Muchtar portraying a man protecting his family while the band members are performing the song. The music video was released on
Musica Studio's YouTube channel on 22 September 2014, the same day as the day Ariel received full release from prison.
Release history
References
{{Authority control
2014 singles
2014 songs
Noah (band) songs
Song recordings produced by Steve Lillywhite
English-language Indonesian songs