Earlier this week Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve and several Reno arts and culture partners helped to release a new song, “Heartbeat to Heartbeat, Eye to Eye (From Reno with Love),” and corresponding video intended to raise the community’s spirits during the COVID-19 pandemic. The video has already racked up more than 12,000 views on YouTube since its release on Tuesday.
The effort is a collaboration between the City of Reno, Artown, Reno Philharmonic, Eric Henry Andersen and Bryon Evans films, all inspired by “Lift Up Lou” and a challenge from Louisville, Kentucky Mayor Greg Fischer. Several other cities have also responded to the challenge, including Atlanta, Austin, Charleston, Chicago, Detroit, Louisville, Nashville and Oklahoma City.
“This amazing song and video show that, even though our lives have changed dramatically since March, our arts and culture scene is still very much alive in Reno,” Schieve said. “The arts have strengthened Reno’s economy, driven tourism, sparked creativity and innovation, and have promoted local business. I am so very proud to once again raise the profile of Reno’s incredible local arts and culture scene. I want to thank all the talented musicians and artists who found a way to collaborate from a distance and bring our city even closer together. We truly are #BigArtsLittleCity!”
A virtual who’s-who of Reno musicians participated in writing and performing the song, including Eric Henry Andersen, Tyler Stafford, Dave Berry, Kate Cotter, Khalilah Smith Cage, Shaughn Richardson, Tristan Selzler, Jeff Depaoli and Zachary Teran, Khalilah Smith Cage, Cliff Porter, Kyle Rea, Tim Snider, Reno Jazz Syndicate and nearly 50 other musicians and artists from the Reno area.
According to a news release, all proceeds from the song will benefit Artown’s “From Reno with Love Artist Fund,” created to assist performing artists adversely affected economically by COVID-19. For more information, or to contribute to the From Reno with Love Artist Fund, visit artown.org.
