Synopsis

The video is built around The Verve Pipe performing "Hero," with Brian Vander Ark at the center and the band presented in a stylized studio setting. Performance footage is intercut with atmospheric shots involving a female figure, giving the clip a provocative late-1990s MTV edge. Rather than depicting a conventional superhero narrative, the video supports the song's uneasy satire of celebrity, ego, and the desire to be admired despite the singer's admission that he is no real hero.

Factoids & Trivia

• "Hero" was released in 1999 as the lead single from the band's self-titled album, following the major success of "The Freshmen."

• The song takes a self-deprecating look at fame and hero worship. Its central idea is that public attention can feel rewarding even when the person receiving it does not believe he deserves admiration.

• "Hero" reached No. 17 on the US Alternative Songs chart and No. 38 on the US Mainstream Rock chart.

• The video was in rotation on MTV2 in late summer 1999 and appeared in contemporary music-video playlists on MTV and other outlets.

• Actress Juli Ashton is credited with appearing in the music video.

• The song was nominated for Outstanding National Single at the Detroit Music Awards in 2000.

• After "Hero," the band released "Television" as a follow-up single, but that track did not receive a music video and had considerably less impact.