Titans Cheerleader Heidi makes a musical gold rush from San Fran to Nashville

Singer/songwriter Heidi has always had a passion for performing onstage ever since she was a wee tot preparing for a talent show. Heidi recalls, “I remember I was in first grade, and my dad helped me paint some little red shoes with red sparkles, and I practiced for weeks for ‘Somewhere over the Rainbow.’ First grade, and it was the only thing I could think about. Since as long as I can remember, I have always wanted to perform.”

So starting with her homemade ruby slippers, Heidi’s performance passion began. And after years of cheer, dance, and performing in her home state of California, Heidi decided to take a chance on the other side of the musical rainbow, and she is traveling down her own yellow brick road this year to pursue her dreams in the Nashville music scene. Last season, Heidi was a rookie with the 49ers Gold Rush, and that season helped her gain the wherewithal to journey to Nashville, where this season she is a rookie, again, with the Tennessee Titans Cheerleaders. It is like the legendary winds of Candlestick picked her up from her home state and sailed Heidi over the rainbow to the Oz-like bright lights of Nashville. And like Dorothy, Heidi’s trip included some perilous adventures, with helpful people along the way, but without the systematic character flaws of Dorothy’s companions. Heidi shared with UltimateCheereaders what she loves about Nashville and the Titans entire organization, what, and whom, she misses from California, and some “Toto, we are not in California anymore” type moments from her new life in Nashville.

Heidi was born and raised in California, growing up mainly in the Bay Area. The dance portion of Heidi’s performing began with school cheer/dance groups. “I actually started dancing through cheer,” Heidi explains, “I made the cheer team on my high school when I was a freshman. We were more of a pom squad, so we did a lot of actual dance, along with just cheer. So that was probably my biggest first dance experience, it was cheerleading through high school and college.”

For college, Heidi moved south to attend the University of San Diego, where she received a degree in Communications Studies, and was part of their Spirit dance team. After college, Heidi remained in San Diego, until eventually moving back up north near home. That move connected Heidi to both her high school dance past and her NFL cheer future. “Before I tried out for an NFL team, I hadn’t really thought about it,” Heidi explains. “When I moved back home to the San Jose/San Francisco area, I was coaching my old high school team. I just kept thinking, ‘Gosh, I miss being on the field so much!’, because it had been a few years since I had performed or done anything with dance. And I kept thinking, ‘Man, I hope one of the girls gets sick so I can take her spot, and run out and perform with them!’ (laughs) I started thinking about, someone at my age and career level, what the dance opportunities really are. And what I came to was, really, the only thing is a pro dance or a pro cheerleader.”

And through Heidi’s high school coaching duties, she was able to learn more about NFL cheer. Heidi recalls, “I happened to meet some of the 49ers Gold Rush at one of our fund raising events for my high school cheer team, the one that I was coaching, and they started telling me about the team, and what is was like, what try-outs were like. And I just thought, ‘What do I have to lose? I really want this, why not? Just give it a shot.’ So I did and I just put it all out there, and I ended up making it. It’s been amazing. And that was really a stepping stone I think for me to come here. Things worked out in just the right way where I ended up in the city (Nashville) where I really feel like I am supposed to be.”

So the process was that Heidi tried out for the Titans Cheerleaders before she moved to Nashville. “I wanted to move to Nashville for a while, and it just seemed like the right time and the right opportunity,” Heidi says. “So I saw that the Titans were having auditions and it just worked out for me, it was amazing.” And being on the squad provided a foundation for Heidi’s new life in Nashville as Heidi explains, “It was great knowing that when I moved here I had an activity to do and I had friends, so it is a great way to transition.”

Was it a bonding experience for Heidi with her new teammates at their calendar shoot in Florida? “Definitely, because we were all together in one hotel and we did everything together,” responds Heidi. “And we were all going the same (process) as far as trying to get into our best shape. I remember I worked out with Anne and Yalea every morning just trying to get into the best shape possible for our shoot. And all of that is really bonding going through those experiences together.”

Does Heidi like the finished product of her photo from the calendar shoot? “I LOVE IT,” Heidi exclaims! Heidi was photographed on a yacht as the sun was setting. “Erick (Anderson, calendar photographer) is amazing; I think all of the girls would agree. He is really able to just make you feel comfortable and get that best shot out of you. I LOVE IT! I am SO excited. The calendar is amazing; every photo is great in it.”

And a new experience for Heidi was the Titans Calendar release party, where each of the Cheerleaders walks the runway in swimsuit and their little black dress of choice. The calendar release party for Heidi provided some initial anxiety, but turned into a blast. “I think walking down a runway in your bathing suit is always stressful,” Heidi laughs. “But once I did it, it was a lot of fun, and I almost felt like it went by so fast that I didn’t have enough time on stage, whereas practicing, it felt like I was up there WAY too long. So it was stressful but it ended up being so much fun! And that was something that the Niners didn’t do, having that experience where they kind of celebrate our calendar release. That’s really amazing.”

Heidi joining the Titans Cheerleaders, and the organization as a whole, has been a big bonus part of her move. “I absolutely love the Tennessee Titans,” Heidi says. “I feel like the level of commitment from all of the team members, (that) we are all very unified in that. And I feel like the Titans, as an organization, and especially with our Director (Stacie Kinder), are very, very supportive of the team, and all of the girls individually. I just feel so blessed that there is really such a strong structure here that really supports all of us. Not every organization has that. Our director is so committed to us and to making this team great, and that is something that I really noticed and respect. So that has been an amazing experience being on the team.”

So does TTC rookie Heidi, who cheered all the way through to the NFC Championship game last year with the Gold Rush, feel like a rookie again this year with the Titans? “I think we are at a point now that we are one unified squad, but I am always going to be that rookie,” Heidi responds. “I am still learning what the team is all about.”

But there are advantages to having experienced one season of NFL cheerleading before for Heidi. “In the sense that I know more what is expected of me, whereas last year I didn’t as much,” Heidi describes. “I feel like coming into this squad, I know what is expected of a rookie and how a team member should really act. So in that sense I feel like I am more knowledgeable, but as far as what we do as a team, I am still definitely a rookie. So it is definitely a learning experience still.”

So the Nashville cheerleading part is working out brilliantly, but the reason Heidi moved there was to sing, write, and be on stage. As far as her own musical influences, Heidi ponders, “I grew up listening to a lot of R & B and pop, so I really took a lot from Whitney Houston, some of her first CDs. And some Martina McBride. I love Miranda Lambert’s sound too, she is very edgy. Kelly Clarkson, I love. But it is more like every song that I have liked, I took a little bit from that, and every artist that I have liked, I have tried to learn something from them. So it is like they are each my vocal teacher.”

And just like her Cheerleader experience, so far, her Nashville music experience has exceeded expectations. “I was choir in high school, and then I also danced in high school and college,” Heidi says. “And so any opportunity that I have had to be in front of a crowd, I have taken that. But it has been here that I have gotten a lot more experience singing on stage, which is really great. Sometimes I will sit in with artists that are playing on Broadway (Nashville’s live music strip), and I have done a few co-writes since I have been here, and I feel great about that because I have only been here for a few months. So I have already found people I can write with, which is really great.”

So what is Heidi’s goal in her Nashville journey, something like a record deal from the folks down at Music Row? “Yeah, that is what I am here for’” Heidi answers. “My eventual goal is to write my music and hopefully get a record deal, and take it from there.”

So the move has fostered Heidi’s love of Nashville, but she retains her love for California, including, to paraphrase Tony Bennett, leaving a bit of her heart in San Francisco. Asked about what she misses most about California, Heidi says, “I miss the people, like my own friends, and someone special that I left there.” But don’t things like Skype make it easier to be away? “It is, but it isn’t,” Heidi answers. “You’re still not there. I do really miss my friends that I left.”

And Heidi has had those, “We are not in California anymore” moments, including experiencing her first summer in the South. “Well, the humidity was crazy,’ Heidi says. “That took a lot to get used to, because at home, I was running five or six miles, and then here I would run half a mile and I would seriously be like (pretending to wheeze, out of breath-ly), ‘Oh my gosh, I am getting asthma.’ It took a lot to get used to, but it hasn’t been too bad, I love the heat. So I liked that part.”

Also, it did not take long for Heidi to learn about Southern hospitality. In fact, she experienced it during her long move at the start of the cheer season. When told that Nashville has been ranked as the nation’s friendliest, most helpful city, Heidi says, “I believe it! Actually during my move here, I had three days to pack up all of my stuff from California and drive here, and when I arrived in Memphis, my transmission actually broke down, and I was on a time crunch. I had to be here the next day to sign our cheerleader contract. So my car is completely broken down I have no way to get to Nashville to sign the contract, I have no way to tow my car; I don’t have anything. I happened to post on Facebook, ‘Oh no, my transmission broke down, great…’ And someone responded that was an acquaintance, he ended up driving from Nashville to Memphis, picked us up, took all of our stuff, and drove us to Nashville. We’re close now, but at the time, he didn’t owe me anything, and he just did it to be kind. I just could not believe it! I had not even moved here, and already, Southern hospitality. It was crazy!”

And sometimes more subtle interactions show Heidi that life is a little different in Tennessee. “I have noticed in a lot of different situations, people definitely go out of their way to make you feel welcome,” Heidi describes. “Everyone always says ‘Hi!’ when they pass you on the street, it is very noticeable. In California, that doesn’t always happen (laughs). In California, it is more like, once you reach a certain distance, you either need to say hi or you need to look away, because it is awkward. So most of the time, I think people just kind of pretend that you are not there. But in Tennessee people go out of their way to say,’HI!’”

So Heidi’s presence on the Titans Cheerleaders is part of an overall squad of talented women that represent the entire country, with a wide range of experiences that match their geographical variability. In previous seasons, Bri from Oregon, via the Charger Girls, represented the West Coast on the Titans Cheerleaders, and now Heidi brings her passion for performing and her Gold Rush experience to the TTC. Heidi is happily experiencing each step of the path to follow her dream, with smiles that eclipse the lights shining nightly in Nashville’s Broadway. And even though once in a while she may click those lil ruby slippers together when she feels like there is no place like home, Heidi will move ahead to see if there is a pot of gold singles somewhere over that rainbow that brought her to Nashville.

We thank Heidi so much for sharing her experience with UltimateCheerleaders prior to the first home game at LP Field! It is always so kind of them to give up their place in hair and make-up line to answer questions, and equally kind that Director of Cheerleading Stacey Kinder is so supportive. And there are more photos of the Heidi game between the Titans-New England at this link.