Sara Bareilles says it's a 'dream' that her song 'Brave' became a Pride anthem almost a decade after its release

• Sara Bareilles discussed how her song 'Brave' became an LGBTQ+ anthem on "The Tonight Show" Friday.
• She said it's "the dream" as a singer-songwriter to have a song "take on a life of its own."

Sara Bareilles discussed how her 2013 song "Brave" became an anthem for the LGBTQ+ community in an appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" Friday.

The singer-songwriter, who currently stars in the Peacock musical comedy "Girls5eva," talked with Fallon about the origins of the song.

"It's like the dream, as a songwriter, to have a song kind of take on a life of its own," she said. "I wrote it as a love letter to a dear friend of mine who was struggling with coming out, and then over the years, the song has kind of taken on a few different lives of its own and been embraced by all kinds of communities, especially the LGBTQ+ community.

Bareilles shared she has many stories and letters from people who told her "Brave" was part of their coming-out story, adding that the long-term response to the song is "so meaningful."

Billboard also included "Brave" in its round-up of the best LGBTQ+ anthems of all time, with the tune clocking in at number 51 on the list.

Bareilles also shared how she got involved with the Peacock comedy "Girls5eva," which follows a one-hit-wonder girl group from the 1990s who attempt to reunite. She noted she had never met Tina Fey, the show's executive producer, before joining the cast — the closest she ever got was standing next to Fey in line for the bathroom at a charity.

"I didn't have the cojones to say anything at that point," she said. "But I was like, 'Oh my God, I'm next to Tina Fey.'"

Bareilles told Fallon that Fey later saw her perform in "Waitress," the musical Bareilles wrote and briefly starred in, according to Playbill, and set up a meeting. She said she was not "graceful or cool or sophisticated at all" on her first call with Fey and show creator Meredith Scardino, but gained confidence after her boyfriend told her to trust Fey's vision.

"I was struggling with insecurities about to sort of meet the challenge of it, and really out of my depth," she said about her lack of television experience. "And he's like, 'If Tina Fey believes that you can do this, why don't you just trust her? Like, if you can't find it in yourself, just trust that one of your heroes is not going to put you in a position to fail.' And that was really good advice."

"Girls5eva" also stars Renée Elise Goldsberry, Busy Philipps, and Paula Pell. Seasons one and two are now streaming on Peacock.