When movies need a pop anthem to signify overcoming hurdles, here are the songs they usually turn to and the song they should start using ASAP.
Welcome to Mood Music, where pop songs change whats on the screen.
Say youre making a movie and you need to prove your characters are inspiring. Maybe theres a training montage or a college graduation or a scene where the kid with the broken leg finally climbs a mountain. In most cases, you can just slap "Eye of the Tiger" on the soundtrack and wait for your Oscar.
But what if your characters are inspiring AND sensitive? What if they not only overcome their hurdles, but also demonstrate their rich, deep spirits while doing so? Do you think an arena rock anthem is going to work? DO YOU? Then you, sir or madam, are not very sensitive. Here are some songs that have been movingly inspiring for years... as well as a gem that should be on the shortlist for your next soundtrack.
The Veteran: "Dreams" by The Cranberries Look, yall, I cant lie... I love this song. I love the wall of jangly guitars and the zesty drum swells and the way Dolores ORiordan, that less-polarizing answer to Sinead OConnor, unleashes her Irish wail. Its all so buoyant, and if the lyrics are more about falling in love than, like, using poetry to end a war, then lets not worry about it. Whatever its about, "Dreams" will always sound grand. Im even more disposed to like this song because I was a teenager in the mid-90s, when it was in every movie, television show, trailer, and Olympics package you could find. Youve Got Mail, Boys on the Side, and even Mission: Impossible put it to work, and this clip from The Next Karate Kid encapsulates its power: Hilary Swank is a woman! Overcoming the misogyny of the karate world! She trains to "Dreams" because she has such deep reserves of wisdom!
Of course,"Dreams" lost its place at the movies after it was used in this amazing scene from 2011s Sound of My Voice, in which Brit Marling plays Maggie, a cult leader trying to convince her followers that shes a prophet from the future:
This scene exposes how easy it is to let a song like "Dreams" take the place of legitimate feeling. Maggie insists the tune is an unknown anthem from the future---as though shes saying something unique with it instead of just recycling what its been signifying for years. Some of her followers happily nod along, but when one of them finally calls her on her b.s., its easy to wonder which person WE are. How many times have we have mindlessly accepted a pretty message without wondering where it came from? After it becomes a symbol of empty sentiment, "Dreams" cant work the same way anymore.
The Incumbent: "Firework" by Katy Perry Despite my affection for many Katy Perry songs, I have never loved "Firework." Its not that I dont enjoy the melody. Its just that to my ears, she sounds really out of tune in the chorus. But obviously, many people disagree with me, since the world has embraced it as the ideal anthem for self-actualization. When all those animals in Madagascar 3 have to work together in the circus, which song do you think sends them through sky? Or how about when Marion Cotillard has to stay connected to her old life as a marine park performer, even though a killer whale has bitten off her legs? Which track do you think sends her to glory? And despite my reservations, even I will admit that the "eye! eye! eye!" part is pretty damn uplifting. Guttural shouts are primally satisfying.
The Future Star: "We Got the Power" by Loreen. Katy Perrys new album Prism is released this week, so with any luck, shell have another anthem on there. In the meantime, though, lets turn our attention to "We Got the Power" by Loreen, a Swedish diva who has sadly not made a dent in the American market. A lot of people in Europe have already heard this song, since Loreen performed it during this years Eurovision contest, but think of all the American movies that could introduce it to the Yanks! The military beat is delicious, and the growing number of voices hollering "we got the power" makes it seem like an entire nation is accepting Loreens insistence that we can accomplish anything if we believe in love. Cant you see a group of twentysomethings walking purposefully across a field while this song is playing? Maybe theyre facing down a bully or standing up to crooked cops. Whatever theyre doing, this song will make it clear that they (1) cant be stopped and (2) have some Real Feelings about their mission.
Mark Blankenship is a pop music expert. Follow him on Twitter for more.
Most recent headlines
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
23/10/2025
The new solution is industry's first multi-channel receiver available for L3Harris's resilient tactical high-frequency data waveforms....
23/10/2025
NEW YORK During a high-profile session at NAB Show New York, new survey data was shared that revealed significant public concern over artificial intelligence (A...
23/10/2025
BELLEVUE, Wash. and NEW YORK Fox Weather has tapped T-Mobile as its preferred communications provider and said all of its reporters will be equipped with SuperM...
23/10/2025
RASTATT, Germany Broadcast and media workflow technology vendor Lawo has tapped Mike Wright as VP of sales, North America....
23/10/2025
MONTREAL European cultural broadcaster ARTE has selected Grass Valley LDX 135 cameras and Creative Grading solution as part of its move from SDI/1080i to a nati...
23/10/2025
CINCINNATI The E.W. Scripps Company has named Daniel Parsons as its new chief information security officer, effective Oct. 20....
23/10/2025
ALAMEDA, Calif. Northern Michigan broadcaster WWTV recently completed a major IP-based upgrade that connects its new Traverse City studio with its control room ...
23/10/2025
A deadline is looming for a new carriage deal between Verizon's Fios TV and Nexstar, with both Verizon and the pay TV-backed American Television Alliance bl...
23/10/2025
NEW YORK During a high-profile session at NAB Show New York, new survey data was shared that revealed significant public concern over artificial intelligence (A...
23/10/2025
BELLEVUE, Wash. and NEW YORK Fox Weather has tapped T-Mobile has as its preferred communications provider and announced that all Fox Weather reporters are being...
23/10/2025
PBS will use generative AI from Amazon Web Services to provide enhanced search results to viewers on the PBS App and PBS LearningMedia platforms, the network an...
23/10/2025
Back to All News
The Resurrected' Marks First Chinese-Language Series to L...
23/10/2025
RT is today publishing a statistical summary from the Register of External Activities for the second quarter of 2025.
The RT Register of External Activities ...
23/10/2025
Series three of the award winning, hit comedy entertainment series The 2 Johnnies Late Night Lock In is back on your screens, celebrating the very best of all t...
23/10/2025
Performances by Michael Flatley, Andy Irvine, Cuckoo's Nest, Foster and Allen and more
Friday 24 October, 8pm on RT One and RT Player
Fleadh Cheoil re...
23/10/2025
The nights grow longer and the shadows get bolder with Vampire The Masquerade: B...
22/10/2025
Prime Video Inks Deal To Present NFL Black Friday Game Worldwide By SVG Staff
Wednesday, October 22, 2025 - 10:06 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story ...
22/10/2025
NBA Tip-Off: ESPN Goes 1080p HDR End-to-End, Flipping HDR Switch on REMI and REM...
22/10/2025
FloSports Empowers Division II, III Athletic Departments With Turnkey Production...
22/10/2025
Wall Street Video Summit Debuts, Bringing Together 200 Financial Enterprise Vide...
22/10/2025
Dueling Pianos: International Chopin Piano Competition Is as Competitive as a Ba...
22/10/2025
In 1995, a young Colombian artist released an album that would change Latin pop ...
22/10/2025
Over the past few months, a photovoltaic system has been installed on a three-he...
22/10/2025
The Orion spacecraft for NASA's Artemis II mission is stacked on the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kenn...
22/10/2025
L3Harris' Hybrid SATCOM is resilient by design, offering path diversity that eliminates vulnerabilities by routing data across the best available networks i...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C. Organizers of NAB Show New York said they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countries along with 260 exhibitor...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Masque Sound, a leading theatrical sound reinforcement, installation and design company, supplied an extensive gear package of professional-grade equipment for ...
22/10/2025
Lightware, a global leader in signal management and AV connectivity solutions, is seeing strong market momentum for the UCX-3x3-TPX-RX20, a compact transmitter-...
22/10/2025
MELVILLE, N.Y. Chyron has released PAINT 10.2, the latest update for its telestration platform, adding support for SMPTE ST 2110 IP workflows, expanding brandin...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON Run3TV today said NBCUniversal is joining as an investor in the ATSC 3.0 Framework Authority, which develops the Run3TV NextGen TV application platfo...
22/10/2025
ATLANTA swXtch.io will feature two new networking solutions extending the company's reach across more cloud and on-prem workflows at NAB Show New York, set ...
22/10/2025
The Warner Bros. Discoverys HBO Max streaming services has increased prices for all its streaming tiers effectively immediately for new customers. Existing cust...
22/10/2025
LOS ANGELES OpenDrives has signed a new distribution partnership deal with Versatile Distribution Services (VDS) to strengthen its channel and streamline how it...
22/10/2025
WASHINGTON, D.C The organizers of The 2025 NAB Show New York have announced that they are expecting more than 12,000 registered attendees from about 100 countr...
22/10/2025
Samora Pinderhughes Brings Immersive Sound to Berklee's Signature Series The artist and composer, who's worked with Herbie Hancock, Robert Glasper, Co...
22/10/2025
BMI Day at Berklee Celebrates Composer Fil Eisler and Awards Scholarship to Stud...
22/10/2025
October 22nd, 2025 TRIBECA ANNOUNCES STAR-STUDDED LINEUP OF MEMBERSHIP EVENTS F...
22/10/2025
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF cooperate in drone defense Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF partner to deliver a comprehensive drone defense solution combining Rohde & S...
22/10/2025
European Broadcaster Upgrades To Grass Valley's NativeIP LDX 135 Cameras And...
22/10/2025
Everyone Gets a Better Deal on Verizon with New FOX One Perk The $15 FOX One streaming service perk is yet another way Verizon continues to add savings for cu...
22/10/2025
First Look Hidden Assets Series 3
Premieres on 9th November 9:30pm on RT One & RT Player
WATCH HERE Promo Link: Hidden Assets Series 3 | RT
The Crimin...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Although AES Show Is on Its Own, Audio Will Be a Major Part o...
21/10/2025
NAB New York 2025: Business of Broadcast and Media,' Future of Content'...
21/10/2025
SVG All-Stars: Ethan Folz, Senior Director, Digital Operations and Quality of Ex...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: Livestream Offers Graphic Overlays, Predictive Gaming, Ancil...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: At the Front Bench With Producer Frank DiGraci and Director ...
21/10/2025
NBA on NBC/Peacock: NBC Sports, NEP Build Ultra-Flexible Production Plan That Se...
When movies need a pop anthem to signify overcoming hurdles, here are the songs they usually turn to and the song they should start using ASAP. 
