Remembering Naya Rivera: From Valerie to Songbird; Classics covered by the Glee star & made her own mark with

It was on July 8, when Naya Rivera and her four-year-old son, Josey Hollis Dorsey, went on a boating trip to Lake Piru and hours later, only Josey was found on the rented boat. After an extensive search, Naya's body was found and identified, as revealed by Ventura County Sheriff’s Office. Rivera's family, friends and her millions of fans are grieving the irreplaceable loss by celebrating her inimitable talent. Moreover, it's her work as Santana Lopez in Glee that will forever be cherished.

"The character you played was groundbreaking for tons of closeted queer girls (like me at the time) and open queer girls, and your ambition and accomplishments were inspiring to Latina women all over the world," Demi Lovato summed it up perfectly in her tribute to Rivera on Instagram. Santana started off as a regular 'mean girls' character who ended up being one of the major fan-favourites by the end of the series. Her coming out story, filled with struggles and self-doubt, inspired millions and mind you, Santana Lopez was also a force to be reckoned. Moreover, it's the late actress' musical gift that will be remembered the most.

Here are eight Glee covers by Naya Rivera that prove what a versatile talent she was and will forever be:

Rumor Has It/Someone Like You

It's hard to replicate Adele's genius vocals but with this experimental mashup of Rumor Has It and Someone Like You, Naya, along with Amber Riley (Glee's Mercedes Jones) absolutely owned it. "Sometimes it lasts in love, but sometimes it hurts instead," when crooned by Rivera still gives us goosebumps, especially, since it was in the prime of Santana coming in terms with her sexuality.

Valerie

A definite crowd favourite, the spotlight shined bright on New Directions' Santana Lopez as she was finally given that well-deserved solo song at the Regionals with Valerie. While Naya's dance moves almost stole the show, her raspiness gave a new spin to Amy Whinehouse's classic tune.

Songbird

Kehlani said it best when she tweeted, "The reason Songbird by Fleetwood Mac is one of my favorite songs ever is because of the Glee soundtrack version. She transformed it. Rest easy, Naya Rivera. God, cover and hold her loved ones!" In her love declaration to Brittany Pierce, Santana sings her heart out and leaves us in tears. That was Naya's magical/musical spell.

Back To Black

Adding her own twist to another Amy Whinehouse classic, Naya's high notes in this Glee cover leaves you absolutely shattered. Her charismatic personality on stage comes blazing through in this performance.

Smooth Criminal

In Santana's pursuit of tailgating competition, she encounters Warbler's leader Sebastian Smythe (Grant Gustin) and gives us one of the most epic duet covers to Michael Jackson's hit number, Smooth Criminal. The back and forth between the duo along with 2 Cellos adding their violin magic into the mix is the perfect recipe for a memorable cover.

If I Die Young

The heartbreaking cover was extremely emotional as it featured in Cory Monteith's (Glee's Finn Hudson) tribute episode. The raw emotion felt by Santana was exactly what Naya felt for her dearly departed friend and what we got in return was the performance to last a lifetime.

Don't Rain on My Parade

While it's Lea Michelle's (Glee's Rachel Berry) rendition that became the more popular one, Naya didn't imitate and rather showed off her vocal prowess with her own version of Barbra Streisand's famous musical number. The ease with which Rivera is able to belt out the high notes needs to be seen.

River Deep, Mountain High

"My favorite duet partner," Amber wrote in her tribute post to Naya and we have to agree. Some of the best Glee covers features the Santana-Mercedes combo and River Deep, Mountain High is just one such classic example of the two powerhouses giving it their all.

"She played by her own rules and was in a class of her own. She had a brashness about her that I couldn’t help but be enchanted by. I also always loved her voice and savored every chance I got to hear her sing. I think she had more talent than we would have ever been able to see," it's Darren Criss' (Glee's Blaine Anderson) parting words to his dear friend on Instagram that truly explains just what her family, friends and the world has lost.

Naya Rivera's legacy was her undeniable talent and Santana Lopez will forever be the history lesson.

Rest in love, Naya Rivera.