Kelly Clarkson's Enchanting "I'll Be" Edwin McCain Cover Is Your New Wedding Song
Is there any song Clarkson can't perform perfectly?
During the June 4 episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show, host Kelly Clarkson transported her viewers back to 1998 with a breathtaking performance of a wedding song staple.
With My Band, Y'all providing the backing music, the Coach alum of The Voice triumphantly sang the Edwin McCain pop radio classic "I'll Be" in a way that's never been done before. While at first listen, her version sounds faithful to the original, the slight inflections and runs she incorporates give the song a low-key country music feel.
Clarkson also sings it in a higher key than McCain's original version, which gives her take on "I'll Be" a completely different vibe. Listeners can feel the gravity in Clarkson's voice as she sings about lost love.
From the first line of "The strands in your eyes" until the soaring final chorus, Clarkson never wavers as she puts her whole heart into the performance. Of course, it wouldn't be a Kellyoke without Clarkson showing why she's a singular vocal talent. That final high note on the bridge? Spiritual.
It's a gorgeous rendition, and fans who are both Clarkson fans and Dawson's Creek viewers back in the day have been waiting for her to tackle this song. No surprise, she didn't disappoint.
Watch for yourself in the video, above.
What to know about "I'll Be" by Edwin McCain
Released in 1998 as the lead single off McCain's studio album, Grind Me in the Gears, "I'll Be" became an instant hit on pop radio.
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The song reached number-five on the Billboard Hot 100 and has become a popular song to perform on competitive singing shows — Mitchell Lee famously sang "I'll Be" during The Voice Season 13 Knockouts.
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In an interview with Song Facts, McCain explained that the song "was this admission of failure and this prayer that I could be a better person, wrapped up as sort of the end of a relationship kind of thought. And it was something that I said to a girl that I'd been going out with. I knew that she was waiting, and I always said to her, 'Don't ever look back on this in any other way than I'll be your biggest fan.' You know, 'I'll always be a fan.'"
