Time for Three: An Essay Against Bullying

Raise your hand if you or someone you know has been bullied at school for being different. OK. Next question. Who here has benefited from a public school arts education program or teacher?

If the camera were turned on us, you'd have seen us raise our hands just now.

We're a band that grew up with a passion for classical music. Yeah, it wasn't considered cool. But we had some pretty influential teachers and role models who inspired and encouraged us to stick with it.

Fast forward to ... today. We make a living making music and we just made our first music video. Did we want to "look cool" or do we want to inspire kids like us? It was hardly a tough decision.

We put together an amazing crew to make our first music video come to life. Leading the charge was the very experienced Brian Lazzaro who's directed music videos for Pink, Rilo Kiley, Rooney ... and the list goes on. We were so thrilled to work with him.

The music video we made follows a young boy who is passionate about playing the violin but is bullied at school for not fitting in. He goes to one of our concerts with other kids from the orchestra and is inspired by our show. A chance encounter with us backstage and a few encouraging words give him the confidence to sign up for the school talent competition. After overcoming his stage fright and channeling the support he received from his teachers and the band, he gives a performance of our song and brings the house down.

The soundtrack to the music video is an original arrangement of the Kanye West song 'Stronger' combined with Daft Punk's 'Nightvision.' The arrangement was created by our incredibly talented producer Steve Hackman and co-arranged by Zach DePue, Nick Kendall, and Ranaan Meyer (that's us!).

From getting the soundtrack ready, to creating the t-shirts, to casting our lead, to flying to LA, to shooting the music video, it was the experience of a lifetime. This video is for you guys. Be strong. Stick with it. We did, and we are stronger for it.