16-year-old girl delivers remarkable performance on a difficult topic


Cover Girl.
Tell me what it is you’re covering up,
Tell me what it is you’re hiding from.
You don’t have to be ashamed.
You know you’re not the one to blame.
I want to know what you’re going to do,
I want to see what he did to you – every cut and every bruise.
It’s time to blow his cover … girl.


ORANGE PARK – Each word of her song is dripping with passion and purpose. So young to be so poignant, LeeAnn Purvis delivered an emotional reminder of the darkness of domestic violence in her newly-released video, “Cover Girl.”
Purvis, who just turned 16, doesn’t just sing in the video that was filmed in Green Cove Springs. There is an emotion and pain that can be felt.
In “Cover Girl,” Purvis implores a woman of abuse not to cover her bruises and shame, eventually telling her it’s time to “blow his cover … girl.” The song will be featured in her upcoming album, “Finding Myself” which will be released in the fall.
“I feel like this is my favorite just because I really am on the teenager and I am finding myself,” Purvis said. “And it's been pretty exciting.”
By the time one of her students finished singing “Cover Girl” four years ago, music teacher and director Marie Hardway of Orange Park already had a plan for a video. She knew where she wanted to shoot the video, and she knew who she wanted to sing the song.
She also knew the timing was critical.
She wanted to use Ronnie’s Wings and Oyster Bar in Green Cove Springs as a backdrop. There also were scenes from Spring Park and an ending where the victim, a model named Hannah Moran, is reporting the abuse to Officer Brad Camp of the Green Cove Springs Police Department.
“They contacted the police department and requested to hire an off-duty officer for the music video and our off-duty coordinator put the email out to the entire police department,” Camp said. “I just happen to be the first one to reply to the email to get the position. When I got there, they played the song for me I thought a very powerful song with a good message. I'm definitely happy to be involved with it. I'm very impressed with it.”
Hardway waited two years to play the song, which was written by another of Hardway’s students, Brooke Eden, to Purvis. But since she was 14 at the time, she knew Purvis was too young to sing about such a difficult subject.
They filmed the video a year ago and waited another year to release it because Tyler Farr released a song also called “Cover Girl” that dealt with domestic violence.
“I waited until Purvis was a little older before I gave it to her because that's was a heavy subject for a 14-year-old,” Hardway said. “But and then once I played it for her, she was on board. she's like yes, so I contacted Brooke to make sure everything was cool with her recording it. (Eden) even gave her some tips on how to sing it.
“We recorded it last year, but there was another song that was released at the same name on the same subject. So we held it off for a year so people wouldn't get them confused.”
Hardway said Moran also was convincing in her portrayal of a victim of abuse. So much of the interaction between Moran and Purvis when far beyond the script, and it made the project more believable, Hardway said.
“I want to point out there was one point in the video where you can see LeeAnn,” Hardway said. “She was kneeling down beside Hannah and you can see her shoulders you can feel like she's getting ready to cry. And that was 100% real.
“This was the most emotional we've done a lot of music videos for my students. When we turned off the cameras and we just had to walk away. It was so emotional when she did that. When she reached out and took the sunglasses off of Hannah's face, that was powerful. You can tell him to do it but you can't make them feel it.”
It’s out now on YouTube. And it is powerful.
“When I heard the song, I said, ‘I’m making this video.’ It's not something you just show up, sing and it’s done. There was a lot. (Hardway) had all the ideas for what we specifically wanted to do. A lot went into it for all of us. I'm sure we were all stressed out.”
Purvis lives in nearby Callahan. While she’s still trying to find her identity in the music business, her biggest ambition is to take the stage at the Grand Ole Opry someday. Until then, she’s content with perfecting her stage presence in smaller venues, including the Community Stage at the Clay County Agricultural Fair.
But she’s not committed to a specific genre yet.
“I like to do my own thing and make my own decisions,” Purvis said. “I love all kinds of genres of music. This next album that I have coming out in the fall, I would say it has a lot of different genres of music, different types of music that I like. Country and gospel are where I started and it's where I came from.”
“Cover Girl” is a reason to believe LeeAnn Purvis will be successful on any career path.

To report domestic abuse, call the Clay County Sheriff’s Office’s 911 emergency number or contact the Quigley House’s 24-hour hotline at (904) 284-0061.