- Wild Horses – Birdy, Sam Feldt
- Brave – Sara Bareilles
- Brave Honest Beautiful – Fifth Harmony, Meghan Trainor
- Brave – Moriah Peters
- Brave the Dark – Bird Passengers
- Touch the Sky – Julie Fowlis
- Into the Open Air – Julie Fowlis
- Siúil A Rún – Lisa Kelly
- Girl Named Freedom – Lisa Kelly
- The Lark in the Clear Air – Loreena McKennitt
- To the Sky – Owl City
- Skylines – Glades
- Fairytale – Alexander Rybak
- Catch the Wind – Donovan
- Babel – Mumford & Sons
- Home – Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeroes
- After the Storm – Mumford & Sons
- Dirty Paws – Of Monsters and Men
- I See Fire – Ed Sheeran
- 9 Crimes – Damien Rice
- Thirteen Sad Farewells – Stu Larsen
- Follow the Sun – Xavier Rudd
- Blue Skies – Noah and the Whale
- Sons and Daughters – Allman Brown, Liz Lawrence
- Daughters – John Mayer
- Daughters – Lissie
- His Daughter – Molly Kate Kestner
- Warrior Daughter – Wildwood Kin
- Beer Hands – Private Island
- The Monster – Eminem, Rihanna
- Touch the Sky – Hillsong United
- Noble Maiden Fair – Brave Soundtrack
- Learn Me Right – Karoline Sem Larm
- The Merry Sisters of Fate – Lúnasa
- He Mo Leannan (Hey my Love) – Mary Jane Lamond
- Under Pressure – Queen, David Bowie
- The Apple Tree – Nina Nesbitt
- Lon-dubh (Blackbird) – Julie Fowlis
- Tha Mo Ghaol Air Aird a’ Chuan – Julie Fowlis
- Hug air a’ Bhonaid Mhoir – Julie Fowlis
- Tunes Set – Julie Fowlis
- Pride – Amy Macdonald
- The Whole of the Moon – The Waterboys
- Way in the World – Nina Nesbitt
- Don’t Stop Believing – Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Scottish Fiddle Jig – The Scottish Bagpipes Highland Pipes
Brave
We start our movie list with our fiery haired heroine, Merida from Disney’s Brave. As the daughter of King Fergus and Queen Elinor, there is a certain life that Merida can look forward to. The life of a royal princess and future Queen of the Scottish lords. This means she must marry and she must behave herself. She’s supposed to learn from her mother and not bring her weapons to the dinner table. But Merida wasn’t born the perfect little princess and she believes her destiny lies on a different path from the one she was born with. What I love about Brave is that it’s the story of a tumultuous relationship between mother and daughter, not about a Princess falling in love with a Prince. This movie breaks from Disney Princess movie tradition and sets a precedent for Disney Princesses to come. It’s ain’t all about the man and given her choice among the sons of the Scottish lords vying for her hand…can you blame her? Respect, Merida! Respect.
Braveheart
Staying in the borders of Scotland, the next movie on our Merida Inspo list is Braveheart, a natural follow-up movie to Brave! I mean…if you’ve never seen Braveheart then you’ve been living in a cave or you are like…6 years old and if it’s the latter, this blog is a little old for ya, kid! If it’s the former, welcome back to the world…go watch Braveheart! “They may take our lives, but they’ll never take…our FREEDOM!” No matter how you feel about the decline of Mel Gibson, that moment is still pure movie magic!!
Highlander
Ok, the premise of Highlander and ensuing spin offs and sequels is intense. There are Immortals…they fight to the death and of course “there can only be one.” Connor MacLeod, our main character, is one such Immortal as is his and his mentor (hey Sean Connery.) This movie did very poorly when it came out in 1986, but has gained a cult following. And obviously became popular enough to garner Highlander II: The Quickening, Highlander III: The Sorcerer, Highlander: Endgame, Highlander: The Source, and not only a TV series, but an animated TV series as well! Dive in, but beware the Highlander current will sweep you away (or maybe not. I’ve personally never felt the need to watch any of the sequels.)
Hunger Games
Bad ass chicks who shoot bow and arrows stick together! Katniss and Merida have plenty in common. Mommy issues? Check. Mad archery skills? Check. A destiny that calls them where they don’t want to go? Double check! This movie has plenty of those Brave vibes and you have to be brave to make it through the Hunger Games…see what I did there!
Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Ok, it’s not Scotland, but there’s archery and sweeping country side and that’s about where the comparison between Brave and LOTR ends, but the Lord of the Rings trilogy basically belongs on every list…so, here it is!
Brigadoon
Brigadoon has absolutely nothing in common with the above list of more action oriented movie, other than the Scottish thing…to tie it back to Brave. But it’s a classic Hollywood musical starring Gene Kelly, Cyd Charisse and Van Johnson and is an absolute treasure, hence it’s addition to this list! Brigadoon is a disappearing town in the Highlands of Scotland that appears once every 100 years. One that Gene Kelly and Van Johnson happen upon when they are on holiday shooting grouse or whatever it is you shoot in Scotland. And guess which day they happen upon the usually wild and empty space where Brigadoon usually isn’t…yep, that 100th day. Gene meets Cyd and falls in love, obviously. But Gene and Van have lots of questions about this disappearing paradise, especially after a native tries to leave and gets shot in the process. Mystery abounds, love is in the air and there’s lots of singing!!
The Decoy Bride
This one is a bit of a fringe choice and unless you are a big fan of the 10th Doctor and have actively searched out all you can find of David Tennant, you might not know anything about it. But this rom-com has 2 things going for it that are directly relevant to Brave. #1: It takes place on the island of Hegg, which “lies half-drowned and wind-battered, the furthermost drop of the outermost spray of the curling wave of the Outer Hebrides.” And #2: The Decoy Bride stars Kelly Macdonald, none other than the voice of Merida herself. It’s a simply adorable romantic comedy and on sick days, it is my go to feel better movie these days! Give it a watch, why don’t ya?!
Nerd in the City Beautiful 