Miley Cyrus Releases An Emotional New Song

If you're a fan of film, you've likely heard of — and have spent the past few months anticipating — Freeheld, the new drama starring Julianne Moore and Ellen Page as a lesbian couple who are faced with terrible tragedy and discrimination but refuse to give up their fight for what's right. It looks to be an incredibly moving and intense movie, particularly because it's based on the true story of Laurel Hester and Stacie Andree, and turns out, the soundtrack is just as touching. The trailer featured a snippet of a Miley Cyrus gay rights anthem called "Hands Of Love" which was penned by Linda Perry especially for Freeheld, and now Cyrus has released the entire song for us to listen to, think about, and enjoy.

Given that Cyrus herself recently came out as both bisexual and gender fluid, it seems fitting that she would bring such heart-wrenching authenticity to the track, and frankly, I'm incredibly impressed. It's Cyrus at her best: vulnerable, restrained, and completely without the artifice which we've become used to with her public performances and appearances in recent years. It's a refreshing change, and completely adds to both the pain and the triumph of Freeheld. So what is it all about? Let's take a look at the lyrics.

When the white flag sails, covered in streaks of lightThere'll be an endless sea, of us rising upAnd the preacher man, and the preacher's sonStand on and on, just like everyone

"Hands of Love" starts off strong. Here, Cyrus alludes to what feels like an inevitably victory in the end. While white flags generally stand for surrender in some form, they can also be a sign of peace, and Cyrus is singing about a dream she has of a day when all of us, no matter what walk of life we come from, will stand together as human beings who are equal in every way.

Me longing to be free, I'll let you fade awayWe shed some many dreams, don't let them fade away

Here, Cyrus could be alluding do the pain of loss that she wants to be free from, but knowing that in moving on, she's likely to let the painful memory go from her completely. The line about shedding dreams seems to be an acceptance of the idea that we have to pick our battles and that we can't win every one, anyway. However, Cyrus isn't ready to give up and she doesn't want to accept anything less than everything.

In the hands of love, we carry homeStronger than we startedWe're ashamed of the trail behind usWeakest is the blindedWho we are comes alive, yeahWho we are comes to life

The chorus is a strong one, and one that's repeated several times (like all choruses are, I know) throughout the song for maximum effect. Cyrus is singing about the power of love to heal wounds and to be the ultimate provider of strength. Fighting a never-ending battle isn't easy, but it's possible if you have love, and in the end, you'll come out "stronger than [you] started", which is a fantastic message. When referring to "weakest is the blindest", the most logical interpretation, at least to me, is that Cyrus believes those who can't see the truth — that we are all good and equal and worthy of love — are blinded, and therefore weak, because they can never truly understand love. But those who have love will "come alive".

When the water spills, the glass will breakIt drips like tears, rubbing up your faceAnd the hands will crawl, for the dance of warBut the saints of joy, their bickering will soar

This is a bit more figurative and not as easy to dissect. This seems to me again to be a Cyrus call to battle. It's all going to start and once it does, you won't be able to stop it. Once someone makes the move to break the glass, so to speak, everything is going to come pouring out, and while there will be a war between those who want equality and those who are against it, at the end, those in the right will come out victorious, and there's no better message than that, is there?

Listen to Miley Cyrus' "Hands Of Love" below — you won't be sorry: