Being one of the few songs on the album not written by Lauper, “True Colors” is still a signature song for the American singer. Lauper came up with “a very, very creative departure from” what songwriters Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly had originally written and presented to her.

The song became Lauper’s second and final #1 in the US in late 1986. It also was a huge hit internationally, reaching the top 20 in eight other countries including a #12 peak in the UK.

“True Colors” has been covered by many artists including The Weeknd and Phil Collins, who had success with it overseas. The song has also been found in mainstream pop culture many times, from late 80s Kodak commercials to the 2016 film Trolls where it is sung by Justin Timberlake and Anna Kendrick.

Lauper had a friend who’d recently died of AIDS in mind while singing “True Colors”, and over time the song has grown to become an anthem for the LGBT-community. In 2015 Cyndi Lauper opened a shelter for homeless gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth. The shelter was named after this song.

The True Colors Residence, named after her 1986 hit “True Colors,” will be located on West 154th St. near Frederick Douglass Blvd. in Harlem. The residence, the first permanent housing facility of its kind in the city, was conceived by the singer, her manager and the West End Intergenerational Residence, a non-profit focused on providing housing for homeless families and the elderly.