"Hero" is a mid-tempo ballad in common time and the key of E, written by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff, with Carey credited as lyricist. It features piano, guitar and organ. Carey and Afanasieff wrote it for the soundtrack of the 1992 film Hero, though the song used in the film was Luther Vandross's "Heart of a Hero". Carey had first offered it to Gloria Estefan, but Sony executive Tommy Mottola persuaded her to keep it, and she changed some lyrics to suit her personality.
Carey recorded it on 31 August 1993 for her album Music Box, and it was released as the album's second single by Columbia Records on 18 October 1993. Early reviews were mixed, but later assessments improved. It reached the top five in Canada, France, Ireland, New Zealand and Norway, the top ten in Australia and the United Kingdom, and became her eighth US Billboard Hot 100 number one. It ended 1994 at number 5 on the year-end chart and won two ASCAP Rhythm & Soul awards, an ASCAP Pop award and a BMI Pop Songwriter Award. Regarded as her signature song, it has been performed on the Music Box Tour and at Live 8, re-recorded in 2001 for the "Never Too Far/Hero Medley", and covered by many artists.
