High Dive Heart – “Misfit” (video) (premiere)

As much as the word has been derided (and I personally disagree strongly with said derision, but that’s a story for another time), High Dive Heart perfectly embodies the spirit of “poptimism”. There’s the auditory side: hand-claps and slick harmonies over a tightly-produced piano and guitar backdrop, as with their newest single “Misfit.” There’s the visual side: “Misfit’s” video stars a kid living his superhero fantasy helping people accept themselves as they are, with colorful sketches and editing to boot. And, thankfully, there’s the real-life side: all proceeds from “Misfit” off iTunes and Spotify will go straight to the Bully Project, an organization dedicated to stamping out bullying in schools nationwide. I’m going to silence the cynic in me on this one: if “Misfit” is any indication, poptimism is thankfully alive and well.

“We want to tell everyone who feels like they don’t fit in that being different is beautiful and they should embrace what makes them unique,” says High Dive Heart’s Jason Reeves. “All of us are misfits in some way and we should have each other’s backs.”

HDH VS. MTR (Part 1) releases late summer. Before then, stream the video to “Misfit” below.