TLC's Waterfalls was written in the 1990s specifically for people who lived in large cities and had the potential of getting caught up in the danger of drugs and sex. Featuring a catchy song that flows a certain rhythm, the music video portrays an interesting message about avoiding things that give pleasure but are dangerous or immoral. This message is given in the chorus, "Don't go chasing waterfalls, please stick to the rivers and lakes that you're used to.” The rivers and lakes are referring to the safe things in life, while waterfalls are referring to the flashy things in life.

            A house in an urban setting is shown with a young boy storming out the front door. He signals back into the house for his mother to leave him alone. As the mother looks out the window after her son, looks of worry and sadness are evident on her face.  “A lonely mother gazing out of her window staring at a son that she just can't touch,” may also be referring to “sun that she just can’t touch.” All she can do is uselessly watch both of them from a window.  This illustrates how much her son means to her, he is equivalent to her sun. The boy is next shown walking towards a gang of older boys. They smile at him, but there is something mischievous in their eyes from the glances they share as he approaches. He attempts to make a drug deal, but they knock him cold to the ground and rob him of his money and drugs. A spirit version of his mother is shown. The music fades to a background noise, tuning the watcher into focusing on the spirit mother’s grief as she kneels over her son’s body. With its quick plot and tragic ending, the scene effectively portrays how ignoring TLC’s message will cause grief to loved ones.

            The women are shown again, and they seem regretful. They waltz around on the water, giving their warning to stay away from immoral things. “Don't go chasing waterfalls,
please stick to the rivers and the lakes that you're used to.”  They demonstrate their advice by staying on a calm body of water, and in return the women are rewarded with the luxury of being godlike.

            The next scene is of a man and woman having unprotected sex. The man later makes his way over to the mirror to see his health deteriorating. "His health is fading and he doesn't know why. Three letters took him to his final resting place." It soon becomes evident that the man has caught an STD from his partner. The reference to the three letters is "HIV"; TLC was a large advocate of preventing the spread of HIV and AIDs.  The scene is left off with the infected man and woman's pictures fading, symbolizing their deaths. This scene is another example of the repercussions of chasing immoral things.

            Waterfalls are a metaphor for the ostentatious things in life. They are often described as beautiful and interesting. What one doesn't usually perceive is the truth behind waterfalls; they are dangerous. One second they are flowing swiftly and everything looks clear, and then there is an unexpected, deadly drop. It might be fun on the way down, but the end result is death. Throughout their music video TLC effectively demonstrates their message, to avoid dangerous things, by showing the repercussions of chasing the flashy life.