The Story Behind “Here’s To You, America”

Like many great songs, “Here’s to You, America” started with an engaging riff, brought to life at some unassuming moment in the vicinity of 1991. The song’s foundational musical figure was the hopeful progeny of my naive, excitable mind, my fumbling fingers, and the warm embrace of what I remember to be a $125, used, orphan, Crate Electra in the “Les Paul Standard” style. That guitar gave voice to a 9-volt Marshall mini-amp that had more screaming shred and forever sustain than a hot-shot kid on a rail-ridin’ skateboard. Cheap distortion.

Over the many ensuing years and iterations, and with the initial help of Chris Landers, and much more recently, Byron Sletten, this song was coaxed, coddled and coerced into a musically audacious patriotic rock anthem, in the hope of filling the overlooked void in the musically-audacious-patriotic-rock-anthem genre. To that end, just recently, I rewrote the title and lyrics that now pay subtle homage to some of our beloved traditional patriotic songs.

When you play this song (quite loudly, I hope), you might think of our country’s founders — men, women and children who risked their families, their fortunes, and their very lives by telling King George III that they were ending his rule in “their land,” and they’d rather die than live under his or any other monarch’s thumb. (Now THAT’S audacious!) This, of course, pissed the king off (wait for it) royally.

So much work went into this song, it would be a shame for you not to play it at least once. Crank it up and listen to its thunderous drums that sound like blazing cannon blasts from some big-boy American artillery of yesteryear. Listen for the orchestral strikes and tasty flourishes graced by soaring vocals and energetic choral-backup reinforcements. Let your ears feast on this proclamation of unabashed love of country. Let your heart pulse with unapologetic pride for all the good things — and the history-changing GREAT things — we’ve done for this world, tempered by the honest admission that we are far, far from being without considerable fault.

For all the principles this country has stood for throughout the centuries in which our vigilant defense of democracy has endured, here’s to you, America!

Now VOTE!

The lyrics and music to “Here’s To You, America” were conceived and written by Michael Ankelman. “Here’s To You, America” was produced and recorded by Byron Sletten and Michael Ankelman, directing AI and other digital production tools.

Released June 30, 2026