Chad Gray, the voice of MUDVAYNE and HELLYEAH, has released a music video for his cover of "Beautiful", Christina Aguilera's 2002 hit written by Linda Perry. The track starts slow and fragile before building into a full-blown heavy anthem, with Gray switching between clean singing and his trademark scream.
Gray says he connected with the song's message of self-acceptance years ago, and that the bond only grew as he got sober and worked on himself. He admits nobody "had me covering a pop song in 2026 on their bingo card," but explains that he rewrote the bridge and added "the scream, big drums, and big guitars" to make it his own, hoping that "some of the metal family can hear it and find their own self-love."
The songwriter herself has given the cover her blessing. Linda Perry called Gray's heavy version "a must-listen," adding that it "made me smile" and that his "passionate and fearless vocals get a thumbs up."
The release caps a busy year for Gray. With MUDVAYNE off the road in 2026, he launched his first-ever solo run, the "30 Years Of Madness" tour, playing MUDVAYNE and HELLYEAH songs across 29 dates, including Louder Than Life and Aftershock. The trek wasn't without bumps: in early October he scrapped two California shows over vocal problems before returning to the stage in Las Vegas.
Next up, Gray is booked for Australia's Good Things Festival in December, alongside LIMP BIZKIT, SPIRITBOX and MINISTRY, and for Welcome To Rockville and Sonic Temple in 2027.