True Colors (Cyndi Lauper song)

Did You Know?

• The song was first offered to Anne Murray, who passed on recording it.
• Kasey Chambers' 2003 recording became the theme song for the Rugby World Cup and peaked at number four in Australia.

Music video

The music video, directed by Patricia Birch, received heavy rotation on MTV. Lauper sings on a dark soundstage beside a drum, holding a black flower. A young girl on a beach takes the flower and sees two women drinking tea on a boat. Lauper appears in a jeweled headdress with a shell, then lies on a white sheet as a long-haired man pulls it; they kiss. She walks on the beach in a newspaper skirt past schoolchildren. The video ends with Lauper leaning over a pool of water, then beating the drum four times.

Legacy

After her friend Gregory Natal died of HIV/AIDS, Cyndi Lauper felt a deep connection to "True Colors," which went on to become a beloved gay anthem. She later started the True Colors Fund to help homeless LGBT youth. Lauper sang the song in 2022 when President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act, and in 2025 Billboard named it the ninth-greatest LGBTQ+ anthem ever. It was also used in a 1999 promo for PBS Kids.

Phil Collins version

Phil Collins recorded a cover for his greatest hits album ...Hits, released in Japan on October 5, 1998, and in the UK on October 26. Produced by Babyface, who also provided backing vocals, the track peaked at number 12 on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100, number two on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number 26 on the UK Singles Chart. It reached the top 40 in Austria, Canada, France, Germany, and Hungary. A live rehearsal version appeared on his 2004 compilation Love Songs: A Compilation... Old and New. Personnel included Collins on vocals and drums, Michael Thompson on guitar, Greg Phillinganes on piano, and Sheila E. on percussion.

Other versions

Sarina Paris recorded the song for her 2001 self-titled debut album, which reached number 167 on the Billboard 200. Jenna Ushkowitz performed it on Glee in 2009; the version charted on the Billboard Hot 100 and reached number 15 in Ireland. In 2012, Artists Against Bullying, a group of seven Canadian musicians including Lights and Pierre Bouvier, released a cover during Bullying Awareness Week, with proceeds to Kids Help Phone; it entered the Canadian Singles Top 100 at number 10. Wonder Girls covered it for MTV Iggy's 2012 Cover the World campaign. Justin Timberlake and Anna Kendrick covered it for the 2016 film Trolls; their version was certified platinum in Brazil and New Zealand and gold in the UK. For BBC Children in Need in 2019, 1,399 children sang the song from nine UK towns.