We all sang TLC’s “Waterfalls” a million times back in the ‘90s, but you ain’t never heard it Dolly Parton style. Amber Riley is here to change that with her brilliant Musical Genre Challenge performance. When the BBC put the Glee star up to singing “Waterfalls” in a country style, no one quite knew what to expect. But Riley showed off her amazing ability as a musical chameleon to turn the 1995 R&B smash hit into an old-time hoedown.
As the band laid down a vintage country groove, Riley channeled some Dolly Parton to create a genius interpretation of the hit. The Californian singer’s exaggerated Southern accent immediately doubled over the other guests, but after recovering everyone was just blown away by her vocal chops. The Music Man readers may recall that Riley cut her teeth on Broadway and R&B tunes, but clearly she can deliver her magic in any style she puts her mind to.
The BBC uploaded Riley’s challenge to YouTube on January 2, 2023, and it’s since been viewed more than a million times. Fans were wowed by Riley’s skills, and added comments such as “Riley has one of the most, if not the most versatile voice in the business. She does gospel, R&B, Broadway, soul, pop and now country like a chameleon changes colors” and “I think Riley is just like Kelly Clarkson where you don’t want either of them to cover your song because they’ll do it so much better than you.”
Riley is a real expert at bringing her own flavour to old school R&B and soul numbers. One of the most iconic Amber Riley moments came when she teamed up with Patti LaBelle and Lil’ Kim to rock Dancing With the Stars with “Lady Marmalade.” When Riley and LaBelle sing together, they pump out some major chemistry and, of course, create some mighty vocal firepower. You can tell they’re really building off each other’s energy to bring things to the next level.
TLC released “Waterfalls” in May 1995 as the third single from the band’s second studio album CrazySexyCool. TLC singer Lisa Lopes wrote the song with Marqueze Etheridge and Organized Noize, and the latter also produced the song.
Any The Music Man readers who were around back in the 1990s will recall that “Waterfalls” was an international hit for TLC. The song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks, and also topped the charts in Switzerland, New Zealand, and Zimbabwe. “Waterfalls” has since become an R&B classic and one of TLC’s signature songs.