*When I think of an anthem, I think about songs that symbolize inspiration and that help

captivate important beliefs such as within the Himno Nacional Mexicano or the Star Spangled
Banner. The following songs remind me of the everyday values that I highlighted on unit 1. I
would personally use these songs to advocate for these values.*

1. How Far We’ve Come- Matchbox 20

○ Value: Achievement
■ But I believe the world is burning to the ground/ Oh well, I guess we're
gonna find out/ Let's see how far we've come
● This song reminds me of achievement because there are goals that
we set for ourselves (“Let’s see how far we’ve come”). When I
think about achievement, I think about perseverance. Although
there may be obstacles along the way (“...the world is burning to
the ground”), there is nothing that one can’t do to overcome such
ordeals.
2. Somewhere Over the Rainbow- Israel “IZ” Thomas Jack Remix
○ Value: Adventure
■ I see skies of blue, clouds of white/ The brightness of day, the dark, say
goodnight/ And I think to myself/ Oh, what a wonderful world
● This remix version of the classic song by IZ makes me feel like I
am consumed by wanderlust. When I hear this song, I close my
eyes and imagine that I am in a paradise. I love adventure and this
song motivates me to visit new places because the world is
wonderful.
3. Dynamite- BTS
○ Value: Creativity
■ This is getting heavy, can you hear the bass boom? I'm ready (Woo-hoo)/
Life is sweet as honey, yeah, this beat cha-ching like money, huh/ Disco
overload, I'm into that, I'm good to go/ I'm diamond, you know I glow up
● This is a recent song by the K-pop boy group BTS. Whenever I
listen to it, I feel like I can do anything and make meaning of
whatever I am feeling, which in turn materializes into creativity. I
either feel like dancing, singing or drawing. I even imagine myself
being in the music video for this song.
4. You Can’t Take Me- Bryan Adams
○ Value: Determination
■ If you can't catch a wave then you're never gonna ride it/ You can't come
uninvited/ Never gonna give in, never gonna give it up, no
● Whenever I feel like I need a push to not give up on something, I
listen to this song. This song is part of the soundtrack for the movie
 Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. As this song is heard in the movie,
Spirit is determined to find his way back home with his family and
be free again. In order to be successful, one has to try. I will “never
give in” to defeat, and so this song is part of my anthem playlist.
5. Through Heaven’s Eyes- Brian Stokes Mitchell
○ Value: Faith
■ So how can you see what your life is worth/ Or where your value lies?/
You can never see through the eyes of man/ You must look at your life/
Look at your life through heaven's eyes
● A major part of my life is my faith and religion. At times I feel that
life is unjust and horrible, and so I find myself wanting to look for
a safe haven far away from reality. Yet, I have to face the real
world and accept that there will be trials and tribulations. It may be
unpleasant, but at the end of the day I am alive and I should be
grateful. I should look at my life as if I am already in heaven so
that I can live to the fullest (“Look at your life through heaven’s
eyes”).
6. El Latido de mi Corazón- Luis Angel Gómez Jaramillo
○ Value: Family-orientedness
■ ¡Ay, mi familia!, ¡oiga mi gente!/ Canten a coro nuestra canción/ Amor
verdadero nos une por siempre/ En el latido de mi corazón
● My favorite Pixar movie is Coco for many reasons, but the main
one is that, for the most part, it is representative of my culture. As
a Mexican-American, family is very important to me. This song
encompasses that feeling, and I truly believe it deserves to be in
my anthem playlist because I would not hesitate to sing this song
to the world to express what it means to be family. The love my
family and I have for each other “will live on forever/ In every beat
of my proud corazón.” In many ways the word “family” not only
refers to my blood relatives, but also my friends and people that I
will cherish in my heart until the day I die, and even longer.
7. L.A. Devotee- Panic! At the Disco
○ Value: Fun
■ Swimming pools under desert skies...Just another LA Devotee
● This song just makes me want to dance and forget about all my
troubles. I love listening to this song with my sisters and our best
friend who is like a brother to us. I always have the most fun with
them. Suffice to say, we all love listening to this song.
8. Here Comes the Sun- The Beatles
○ Value: Happiness
 ■ Here comes the sun, doo da doo doo/ Here comes the sun, and I say/ It's
all right
● Smile. That is what this song makes me do. There is something
about this song that makes me feel warm inside and feel like
everything is going to be alright. In addition, the song is very
calming to the mind.
9. Earth Song- Michael Jackson
○ Value: Health
■ Hey, what about yesterday (What about us)/ What about the seas (What
about us)/ The heavens are falling down (What about us)/I can't even
breathe
● Our health (humans), the well-being of mother nature, and all
living creatures are important. How can people be healthy if our
environment is treated like a dumpster? The time for change is
now. I believe that this song balances sorrowful and assertive
emotions for a call to action. The melody is slow and melodic at
first but then transitions to a powerful beat that leaves the listener
astounded. This song preaches a value I cherish and I can’t help
saying, “Amen to that!”
10. I Wanna Dance With Somebody- Whitney Houston
○ Value: Love
■ Yeah, I wanna dance with somebody/ With somebody who loves me
● The reason this song could be a personal anthem for me is a bit
more personal and private, but in short this song gives more
meaning to love. In this song, love can be interpreted in many
ways. I interpret it as finding a soul mate. When I meet my
significant other, I want to dance the night away and be invested in
the relationship.
11. I’ll Be There For You- The Rembrandts
○ Value: Loyalty
■ I'll be there for you (When the rain starts to pour)/ I'll be there for you
(Like I've been there before)/ I'll be there for you ('Cause you're there for
me too)
● Friendships are important to me, and surprise, surprise my favorite
TV show is F.R.I.E.N.D.S. As a loyal friend, I want to
communicate to the people I love that I will be there for them and
that they can rely on me for anything.
12. The Champion- Carrie Underwood ft. Ludacris
 ○ Value: Making a Difference
■ Born champion, Luda/ The C is for the courage I possess through the
drama/ H is for the hurt but it's all for the honor/ A is for my attitude
working through the patience/ Money comes and goes so the M is for
motivation/ Gotta stay consistent, the P is to persevere/ The I is for
integrity, innovative career/ The O is optimistic, open and never shut/ And
the N is necessary 'cause I'm never giving up
● The lyrics convey most of the reason I would use this song as a
personal anthem in order to make a difference. It is powerful, it is
assertive, and the message is loud and clear. Everyone is a
champion. As a community and society, we should come together
to celebrate our successes and defend one another to lift each other
up, like a phoenix rising from the ashes.
13. Body Pop- Ken Waters
○ Value: Positivity
■ I won't stop 'till I drop/ I'mma make my body pop/ Fighting when it's hard
to breathe
● When I think about positivity, I think about finding love within
oneself. Self-love and confidence is really important to accept
ourselves and value ourselves when it seems like no one else will.
Body shaming and any other form of bullying is no joke. This song
takes a stance to the haters.
14. Himno a la Humildad- Marco Antonio Solís
○ Value: Selflessness
■ Virgen Morena, reina de la esperanza/ Hoy te cantamos el himno a la
humildad/ Eres la tierra donde la fe sembramos/ Y cosechamos siempre de
tu bondad
● Again, my faith is a major aspect of my life; it is who I am. My
religion has helped me become the person I am today. The
selflessness I have been taught has been passed on by my mother
and her devotion to our faith. “Hoy te cantamos el himno a la
humildad/ Today we sing the anthem of humility to you.” The
good I have within me, I feel, would not be possible without the
light in my life and my love for the Virgin Mary, God, and baby
Jesus.
15. Nevermind-BTS
○ Value: Success
■ I don’t give a sh*t I don’t give a f*ck/ Like I always said hundreds of time
every day, “Never mind me”/ I can have a taste of failure and frustration
and bow my head
 ● Success has many names and one of those names is hardship. It is
not easy to chase after a dream. Failure is difficult to accept but it
is an integral part of the process to triumph. “I can have a taste of
failure and frustration and bow my head.” In other words, I can
lose a battle, but I will not lose in the war towards victory.
Nevermind to defeat because I still have not given up. The lyrics
are a direct translation from the original Korean lyrics, so they may
sound like they don’t make sense.
16. Way Back Home- Conor Maynard (Sam Feldt edit)
○ Value: Support
■ Remember when I told you/ "No matter where I go/ I'll never leave your
side/ You will never be alone
● This song would be a personal anthem to me due to the message it
emphasizes. “You will never be alone” is something that should be
said to someone that needs a network of people in order to keep
them going and be able to push forward no matter what.
*Ranked Songs*
1. You Can’t Take Me by Bryan Adams
2. El Latido de mi Corazón by Luis Angel Gómez Jaramillo
3. Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel “IZ” Thomas Jack Remix