Maren Morris: Artist, Icon, Hero

Tragedy struck on Sunday, October 1st at the Route 91 Harvest Festival, injuring over 500 people and killing more than 50. Marren Morris, having played just one day before the incident, was deeply affected by the events. She then decided to release a song in which all of its proceeds would go to the Music City Cares Fund, that helps victims and victims' families financially after the event. 

The song was written two years prior, following the church shooting in South Carolina. After the Las Vegas shooting, Morris said 

• Maren Morris PerformingRick Diamond/Getty Images"Dear Hate," was a prayer of belief in the power of healing and hope in the face of obscene violence. "I've had the song in my pocket for the last few years and I never knew when to release it, I wanted to be precious with it because it is such a sensitive subject. It's just insane how relevant the message still is today. "

She released the song shortly after the tragedy, knowing the song would promote peace and the strength of love. She stated, 

• "But I also think this is a time when as artists and fans and music lovers in general, we can band together and not stop going to shows, going to festivals, going to concerts. The biggest thing we can do besides donating money and donating blood is not being afraid to still enjoy live music."

The song reached 500,000 views on youtube just 24 hours after it was released. Morris continues, "The song is really not partisan, it's just about bringing love and kindness to the world," says the singer. "I'm staring at all the facets of hatred, the horrific things that have happened throughout history. In the last couple of years, especially, it just feels like we've been bashed over the head with horrible headlines."

Maren is open about her opinion on gun violence, and she opes this song can bring awareness to this growing issue, 

• "I think there always needs to be conversations about that," she says. "I can't really speak on everything because I know they're still confirming so many details, but I do feel more awake, and I hope that the rest of the world is too because there's clearly a problem. While we are still mourning and in shock right now, those questions are all being asked, which I do think is a slight silver lining through everything. I hope that we take action to figure out how to prevent this from ever happening again."

Morris showing support for Children for CancerTaken from Maren Morris's FacebookSo far, approximately $25.6 million has been received with the intent on helping the victims. Much of that is thanks to Morris and her beautiful song, and her generosity is helping others affected by the incident, and thus, her heroism is something that deserves to be noted.