Kris Rodgers Writes First-Ever Chant For Portland Hearts of Pine

"From the forest to the tide. We are the Hearts, the Hearts of Pine."

Photo Courtesy of Kris Rodgers

Portland Hearts of Pine has its first chant, and more are on the way.

The initial song was written by Kris Rodgers, a professional musician who grew up 30 minutes outside Portland, ME. 

Rodgers played soccer as a child, featuring for the Maine Olympic Development team and a travel/premiere team called Maine Metro FC. He considered playing in college but decided to pivot to music full-time.

His passion for soccer didn’t die though. He’s an avid Arsenal supporter and has attended New England Revolution games since 1996.

As you can imagine, Rodgers was beyond excited when he heard that Portland was awarded a USL League One team.

“It's huge,” Rodgers said. “Where I grew up in Maine we had three TV channels so watching professional soccer was out of the question. I only knew of maybe 2-3 professional players in my favorite sport. It was next to impossible for a 10-year-old kid to find anything on soccer at that time. 

“Things are different these days with streaming and of course we all still support the Revs but it means so much to have a team that is purely Portland, purely Maine. Purely us.”

Rodgers immediately began thinking of ways to aid with the Hearts’ launch. 

He started by becoming a board member for the supporters’ group Dirigo Union. He then looked to lean into his musical talent.

Rodgers is the lead singer of Kris Rodgers & The Dirty Gems, a rock band currently with Steven Van Zandt's Wicked Cool Records. They recently released a couple of singles with the great Michael Des Barres.

As a member of the Dirigo Union, Rogers got an early preview of the crest. He loved the name and design, which led to him scribbling down some lyrics. 

“I was still really excited from the crest reveal that it just kind of spilled out of me,” Rodgers said. “I walk in town every day and know the streets and the other locals well. I think being so close to the meaning behind the team really helped with the lyrics coming out naturally.”

Rodgers wanted to write a chant to represent all of Maine. As such, his favorite line from the song is, "From the forest to the tide/We are the Hearts, the Hearts of Pine."

“It encompasses the entire state,” Rodgers said. “It means us all. Together.”

Apr. 27 was a memorable day for soccer fans in Maine as over 1,000 people packed Brick South to see the official launch of the Hearts of Pine branding. 

It was especially notable for Rodgers because his song was part of the event. He credits his good friend Donald Thibodeau, a Dirigo Union Co-Chair, for helping make the moment happen.

“The song was sent out to the Dirigo Union members the night before the public reveal party, and during the event the chant was played and a bunch of people sang along,” Rodgers recalled. “It was a nice moment to see it out there in the world taking on a life of its own! As a songwriter/soccer fan it doesn't get much better than that!”

This isn’t Rodgers’ first foray into writing music for a professional soccer team as he created a song for the New England Revolution in 2017. While the song did get some airtime on Sirius XM, it never made its way to Foxboro.

But Rodgers will have the opportunity to hear soccer fans sing a song he wrote when the Hearts of Pine kick off in 2025.

He, and other supporters, are also brainstorming more ways to make game day at Fitzpatrick Stadium as positive as possible.

“We've got a bunch of chants in the works,” Rodgers said. “The Dirigo Union is working hard coming up with, recording and testing out new chants for the HoP. It's actually one of the few things we can really jump into this early in the game and it's been a blast. 

“Just today one of our members, Joel Costigan (who also coaches varsity at Deering High School), came by my home studio and we recorded a chant he wrote. We have a Discord where our members submit chant ideas and we catalog them.”

Rodgers is looking to get the community as involved as possible, including possibly working with Kennedy Park players to create chants. 

The best way to get involved is by joining the Dirigo Union, a supporters’ group that accepts everyone.

“We want the Hearts of Pine games to be a massive party in the stands that represents all of Maine's diverse community,” Rodgers said. “Shameless plug, but if anyone reading this wants to join the Dirigo Union we'd love to have you! We're doing a lot here in Maine with chants but also within the community promoting soccer and inclusivity. Join us out at dirigounion.com!”

You can find out more about the Dirigo Union by visiting their website. You can learn more about Kris Rodgers and the Dirty Gems by going to their website.