We’re officially in the thick of fall, which means my playlist is once again overflowing with Tyler Childers staples, and naturally, my TikTok For You page has taken it upon itself to feed me every throwback video it can find of the 35-year-old Kentucky native.
But hey, I’m certainly not complaining. And what kind of person would I be if I didn’t share the wealth? With that being said, the latest gem TikTok has dug up for me is a major blast from the past featuring Childers singing a song by none other than… Adele.
By now everybody and their mother has covered the British singer’s standout hit, “Rolling In The Deep,” but I can assure you, there’s nothing quite like Childers’ unique rendition at an open mic night back in 2011. The now 15-year-old performance is apparently from The V Club in Huntington, West Virginia, just a couple of months before he released his debut album Bottles and Bibles.
Fresh-faced and armed with nothing but his acoustic guitar, Childers delivers a performance that is so distinctively him, singing over the chatter of the room. Rather than attempting to replicate Adele’s signature deep, soulful vocals, he puts his own stripped-down spin on the track, making it sound like something that could’ve easily found a home alongside early Childers staples like “Junction City Queen” and “Coal.”
In the full video, Childers also performs Son House’s 1965 blues tune, “Grinnin’ in Your Face,” before transitioning into the more modern 2010 hit from Adele’s sophomore album, 21.
And Lord only knows how many unsuspecting bar patrons in that room still remember witnessing a young Childers perform, completely unaware that they were watching a future country music star in the earliest days of his career.
To transport yourself back in time, check out the full cover below: