Kelly Clarkson's cover of 'Breathe Me' will have you in your feelings
She’s done it again!
On Tuesday’s episode of Kelly Clarkson’s eponymous talk show, the pop star-turned-host took the stage to put on yet another compelling performance for her "Kellyoke" segment — and this time she picked a heartbreaking tune that’s bound to leave listeners weeping.
But that’s only partly due to the message in Sia’s 2004 hit, “Breathe Me,” which centers on the pain and hopelessness one feels in their darkest moment. The other reason for the tears lies in Clarkson’s haunting delivery.
On a dark stage, accompanied only by musical director Jason Halbert, Clarkson set the tone with the opening lyrics: “Help, I have done it again / I have been here many times before / Hurt myself again today / And the worst part is there's no-one else to blame.”
The 39-year-old carried the tune from that quiet intro to a powerful chorus, all the way to a soft and sad conclusion, and she carried her audience’s emotions along the way.
“What’s amazing about Kelly is her mad respect to music,” one fan wrote in the comments that followed a clip of the performance on YouTube. “She never (over sings) a piece. She never tried to beat the original. She respects every story of every song and sings it with so much passion and love. Such a queen!”
Related: Kelly Clarkson took a Prince classic and whipped it into something her fans can't help but love.
One noted, “Kelly's vocals are not only the best ever, but the way that she can make you feel something when she sings is what makes her an incredible artist and person.”
While another simply added, “My god …. This song and her voice … heaven.”
Clarkson may be too humble to sing her own praises, but like those fans, she hasn’t been shy about sharing her love for Sia’s song.
In 2012, the hit-maker sang “Breathe Me” during a stop on the Australian leg of her Stronger Tour, and at the time, she said, “This is one of my favorite songs probably ever. It’s just one of those songs you can put on repeat over and over again. And it’s such a spiritual-sounding song, and I love it."
Maybe that’s why it keeps popping up again and again in pop culture.
Related: Kelly Clarkson performed her much-awaited cover of Olivia Rodrigo's hit.
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As another YouTube commenter mentioned, the track was used to set the tone for the final scene of the 2005 series finale of HBO’s “Six Feet Under,” and it "still triggers the same emotions...”
In addition to that, “Breathe Me” has appeared in dozens of films, television shows and promos — from “The Hills” to “The Simpsons” to “Orange Is the New Black.”