Gratitude Entertainment, a new production company that ties together the worlds of entertainment and charity, has just released an EP for THE HORNET’S NEST, with the entire soundtrack slated to be released later this year. The soundtrack propels THE HORNET’S NEST movie (to be released this month), noted for its unprecedented immersive coverage of the Afghanistan war front by an award-winning father/son news team. Gratitude Entertainment assembled an outstanding cast of musicians for the soundtrack, including Wynonna Judd, her husband/producer Cactus Moser, Pete Scobell, Kid Rock, Mycle Wastman, Keni Thomas, Phil Vandel, and Donavon Frankenreiter. Gratitude Entertainment is the brainchild of CEO and Creative Director M. Blake Meeker and COO Christine Kolenik. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Gratitude’s album will go to help military families and veteran charities around the country.
Songs of Courage and Friendship
“We are thrilled to have assembled such a creative cast of musicians and are keenly aware of the importance of the message for THE HORNET’S NEST film,” says Gratitude’s Meeker. “Both Christine (Kolenik) and I feel that as the soundtrack is being completed, the mission is only just beginning, to get involved with more charities, to support more initiatives.” Adds Kolenik, “The overall themes throughout each song on the soundtrack is about courage, brotherhood, hope, faith, and perseverance. Each song tells a unique story from a different prospective of war, life and death.”
Soundtrack’s Beginnings
Gratitude’s soundtrack for THE HORNET’S NEST began when the film’s producers (Christian Tureaud and David Salzberg) contacted Meeker and Kolenik to come on board as co-executive producers and music supervisor.
“As time went on, Christine and I approached them with having THE HORNET’S NEST soundtrack be our premiere project for Gratitude,” says Meeker. “Politicks was already involved because Mike Trella (the film’s composer) and his band contributed the first songs, including the title track and theme of the movie, “Chariots.” We had three songs from them. Next to come on board was Wynonna and Cactus, then the rest of the artists quickly followed. Asked for their favorite song on the soundtrack, both Meeker and Kolenik didn’t hesitate to highlight “Chariots” by Politicks. “The whole soundtrack is amazing, but “Chariots” is poignant because in the film the troops refer to the medivac helicopters as their chariots,” states Meeker. Adds Kolenik, “The song really captures the essence of the emotions at a key moment in the film.”
Gratitude Entertainment Begins
Mike Meeker and Christine Kolenik wanted to create a new business model to unite entertainment with charitable causes. “We wanted to bridge the gap between entertainment people who want to get involved in charity and the charity itself, says Kolenik. “People in the entertainment industry want to help, they just need to be pointed in the right direction. With Gratitude, we can make that connection through entertainment. We believe in the innate ability of human kind to want to help each other, and when presented with a fun, exciting and engaging platform, it becomes easier to make a difference. It’s also an easy and effective way for audiences to enjoy giving back.”
About Gratitude Entertainment, LLC:
Gratitude Entertainment is a Los Angeles based production company that specializes in producing film soundtracks, music compilations, events, promotions, and auctions that benefit specific charitable initiatives creating social impact in the communities we serve. www.gratitudeentertainment.com
