" Never Too Far/Hero " is a mid-tempo ballad , drawing influence from pop and R&B music genres . The song was written and produced by Carey and Walter Afanasieff , Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Randy Jackson , and was released as the lead single from her second compilation album , '' Greatest Hits '' ( 2001 ) . It incorporates music from several musical instruments , including the piano , guitar and organ . According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Music Publishing , the song is set in common time with a moderate tempo of 62 beats per minute . It is composed in the key of C major with Carey 's vocal range spanning from the low-note of D3 to the high-note of Ab5 . The song 's chorus has a basic chord progression of Gsus2 – G – G/F – Em7 – G/D – C-G/B – Am7 . In an interview with Fred Bronson , Carey described her original feelings towards the song , prior to its release as a single : One person could say that ' hero ' is a schmaltzy piece of garbage , but another person can write to me a letter and say , ' I 've considered committing suicide everyday of my life for the last ten years until I heard that song and I realized after all I can be my own hero . ' And that , that 's an unexplainable feeling , like I 've done something with my life , y' know ? ... It meant something to someone . While " Hero " describes the hidden power inside each individual , " Never Too Far " encourages those who are doubtful over their very existence , and how through perseverance , one can see that nothing is ever ' too far away ' . Together combined , the single gives over a supportive message , for those who are either looking for meaning in life , or just doubting their own worth and ability . During a show on Carey 's The Adventures of Mimi Tour , she described the meaning " Hero " had to her and her fans : " I wrote a song a while back even before " One Sweet Day " and it was not my favorite song in the world , but I wrote it . Someone asked me to write a song and they told me the story , and you know it was kind of a moving concept or whatever . And I did it , and I was like you know it ’s not necessarily what I like per se , but after doing the song over and over again and having people coming up to and saying , thank you for writing ‘ Hero ’ because it saved my life or it saved my father ’s life or my brothers or sisters life , or something of that nature , I said I always have to sing that song when I ’m performing because if I do n’t , you never know who I ’m leaving out and you know what , in times of my life I ’ve had to turn to that song lyrically and flip it onto my own life and sing it to myself . So its from the ‘ Music Box ’ album , and it ’s called ‘ Hero ' , this is for you . " Elysa Gardner from '' USA Today '' called " Never Too Far/Hero " a " refreshing medley " and felt it would easily be accepted among Carey 's other popular and heartfelt inspirational ballads . The medley was only given a commercial release in the United States . Though " Hero " ( a single from Carey 's album '' Music Box '' ) had gone to number-one on the US '' Billboard '' Hot 100 , " Never Too Far " ( a single from '' Glitter '' ) had failed to chart . " Never Too Far/Hero Medley " performed marginally better , peaking at number eighty-one and remaining on the chart for three weeks , however still not delivering the kind of success Carey was accustomed to prior to '' Glitter '' . The charity single was released to help victims of the September 11 attacks , with all proceeds from the sales of the single going towards the Heroes Fund , a charity benefit for victims of the attacks and their families , police officers , and relief workers
September 11 attacks
September 11 attacks
Never Too Far/Hero Medley