Two years after graduating from Middle Tennessee State University’s commercial songwriting program, alum Kelty Greye is hearing her music in one of Hollywood’s biggest summer films. Greye’s cinematic cover of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle” is featured in DC Studios’ new Supergirl film—a milestone that fulfills a lifelong dream and showcases the growing impact of MTSU’s College of Media and Entertainment.
“I got an email in mid-April from a music supervisor asking if they could use my cover in a film,” Greye recalled. “They didn’t mention what film. I assumed it might be for a small indie film.”
Instead, the request turned out to be anything but small.
“An hour later, my agency emailed me a draft of the proposal under a working title labeled Warner Brothers and DC Studios, and I thought it had to be a joke,” she said. “After a minute of Googling, I realized it was for the new Supergirl movie, and I was in complete shock.”
According to a recent piece in Rolling Stone, DC Studios co-chair James Gunn specifically wanted her version of “The Middle” for the movie.
For Greye, the placement represents much more than another career achievement.
“This means everything to me,” she said. “I used to walk to the movie theater after class in high school to see the latest superhero movie. My number one life goal since I was 8 years old has been to be involved in the production of a movie.”
As a young musician, she immersed herself in film music, teaching herself composer John Williams’ scores by ear on the violin and listening to soundtracks on her iPod. Seeing her own name appear alongside Williams in the film’s credits, she said, felt “surreal and magical.”
Ironically, the recording that ultimately found its way into a major studio film began in a much smaller setting. After her sync licensing agency paired her with producer Scott Feldman, known professionally as KidMotel, the pair selected “The Middle” from a list of songs available to cover.
Greye, a longtime fan of the emo genre, immediately gravitated toward the Jimmy Eat World hit. Because she wanted to create something uniquely her own, she and Feldman slowed the song down and transformed it into a cinematic, string-filled arrangement.
“I’ve been playing violin for 20 years, and I love a chance to make something cinematic with strings,” Greye said. “I actually first recorded it in my bedroom in 2023 while I was studying at MTSU.”
That hands-on experience was nothing new for the recent graduate. Greye credits MTSU’s commercial songwriting program with preparing her for nearly every aspect of her career.
“The program prepared me in every single way,” she said. “I couldn’t have done any of this without my time at MTSU.”
She said she regularly applies lessons from commercial songwriting professor Bess Rogers’ music for TV and film course when creating music for sync opportunities, and that professor John Ouellette’s entertainment IP law classes gave her the confidence to understand contracts and navigate conversations with agents.
“Kelty was clearly interested in pursuing sync licensing as part of her music career, and she absorbed every bit of information like a sponge,” Rogers said. “I was always impressed by how she applied what we discussed in class to the songs she was writing and performing.”
For aspiring songwriters, Greye encourages students to remain curious and persistent.
“Watch TV and movies and study them,” she said. “Listen to what’s happening in the scenes. Study the artists you love. Write good songs, bad songs, half-finished songs. Create because you love it, and don’t be too hard on yourself if you hit a bump in the road. Dream big, but don’t get discouraged when things don’t happen the way you expect them to.”
To learn more about MTSU’s commercial songwriting concentration and other MTSU music programs, visit mtsu.edu/wearemusic.
