Miley Cyrus has delivered a heartfelt anthem for the upcoming Avatar: Fire and Ash, though whether it captures the grand scale of Pandora remains up for debate.
Written alongside Mark Ronson and Andrew Wyatt, “Dream as One” arrives with deeply personal weight for Cyrus, who lost her Malibu home in the 2018 Woolsey Fire.
She’s described the track as “musical medicine,” transforming that trauma into something redemptive.
The production feels familiar territory for this trio. Wyatt and Ronson previously collaborated on Lady Gaga’s Joanne, and that same stripped-back, emotion-first approach surfaces here.
The arrangement centres on warm piano chords and steady percussion, building gradually rather than exploding. Cyrus’s voice carries the melody with restrained power, holding back from the belting runs she’s known for.
There’s vulnerability in the performance that works when you consider the subject matter – she sings about connection surviving through flames and ashes, which takes on literal meaning given her history.
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Lyrically, the song leans heavily on imagery of permanence and partnership. References to diamonds, hearts, and breathing together create a romantic throughline, though the metaphors stay broad rather than specific to James Cameron’s universe.
The chorus hook, “when we dream, we dream as one,” emphasises unity and shared experience, which aligns with the film’s reported themes of healing and love across communities.
Here’s where things get tricky: the song sounds pleasant but generic. Nothing about the sonic palette screams epic sci-fi fantasy.
The Weeknd’s “Nothing Is Lost” from The Way of Water had that cinematic sweep that made it feel inseparable from Pandora’s world.
This could soundtrack any romantic drama or inspirational sports film. The production stays safe, the structure conventional.
No soaring strings, no otherworldly production flourishes, no sense of alien wonder. Perhaps context will help.
Maybe hearing this over the film’s closing credits will land differently when emotions are running high after two-and-a-half hours of Na’vi drama.
For now though, “Dream as One” succeeds as a competent Miley Cyrus ballad but fails to transport listeners to another world.
It’s fine, forgettable, and surprisingly earthbound for a song about the most visually ambitious film franchise going.
The personal significance Cyrus brings matters, but great soundtrack songs need to serve two masters, the artist’s vision and the film’s identity. Right now, it only serves one.