157. Gay Icons: The Goddess of Pop

Snarky Opener (0:00)

Do I believe in life after love? To be honest, I don't even know if I believe in love anymore.

Episode Introduction (0:25)

Hello, my LGBTQuties, and welcome back to another episode of A Jaded Gay. I'm Rob Loveless and, today, I am a non-jaded gay because I just found out that my one book is going to be published soon.

I got an offer from NineStar Press, which previously published my novel A Family Affair. So yeah, I'm really excited about that. I don't know yet when it's going to come out. I'm guessing within the next year. 

But I think I might have talked about the book a little bit in a podcast episode previously. It's called Besties in Crime.

It's basically like a Will & Grace type of dynamic that falls into like an Italian Guido mafia plot. So, it's a fun action comedy. I'm really excited about it.

I wrote it back during the pandemic. I think I finished it in early 2021, so I'm really excited to get it out there. And, yeah, stay tuned. I'll let you know more details.

And as it relates to Besties in Crime, there are a ton of pop culture references in it, and at least two references to this diva.

Cher (1:22)

Yes, today, since I am returning from my hiatus, I wanted this first episode back to be a little lighter and more fun, and I realized it's been a while since we did a gay icon episode.

Last November, we covered Madonna with Stefan Mreczkoko, who is the resident expert on all things Madonna, but that was more interview style.

And I think the last true gay icon career overview episode I did was in May 2023, when we covered Judy Garland.

So, I wanted to cover this icon who I love for a while now, but I had always put off the episode because I knew it was going to be long.

But with this hiatus, I had time to get to it, and I'm so glad I did, because this is going to be a really fun episode.

Yes, if you haven't guessed it, today, we are talking about none other than the one and only Cher.

And I'm sure you're all familiar with her distinct contralto voice, fierce fashion, and the auto tune in Believe, but that's just scratching the surface of her 60+ year career.

And truthfully, I just knew Cher's name growing up, because I think everyone does. And of course, I knew the song Believe.

But it wasn't until probably 2017 or 2018 that I kind of explored her discography a little bit more. And of course, it was mainly just the hits.

But in recent years, I've been fascinated by her career transformations and resiliency, and so it's no surprise that gay men love her.

So, I'm very excited to turn back time, see what I did there, and dive into her career with you all today. But first, you know the drill. Let's pull our tarot card.

Tarot (2:48)

So today we pulled the Knight of Wands in reverse. As you'll remember, Wands is tied to the element of fire. It's masculine energy, so it's very action-oriented.

And Wands represents our passion, creativity, and sometimes sexuality. And in the tarot, Knights are bringing us a direct message from their respective element.

It's the twelfth card in the suit of Wands. So, we add double digits together to get three, which is tied to creativity, collaboration, and community. So, a lot of creativity with this card.

And when we draw the Knight of Wands in reverse, it's telling us that we might be feeling self-doubt or hesitating on taking action.

There may be a fire lit inside us to take action towards something we're passionate about, but we're letting that energy build up inside us instead of taking action.

Maybe we're facing creative restlessness and aren't sure what to do with all the energy we have. And when we feel restless, we may act impulsively or try to get everything done at once.

So, the Knight of Wands in reverse is encouraging us to slow down so we can listen to our intuition and understand how to best channel our energy into something productive that we're passionate about.

Cher’s Early Life and Musical Beginnings (3:48)

And with that in mind, let's dive into the Goddess of Pop.

And I just want to preface up front, I know there are some cultural sensitivities to some Cher songs in the past.

You know, a few song titles and their contents haven't aged well since the time they came out almost 50 years ago. So, I do want to be mindful of that.

I am going to mention those song names as it relates to her career, but I purposely want to try not to repeat the names as much as possible.

So, they will be touched upon, but I do obviously want to acknowledge there are some cultural sensitivities around that. But with that in mind, let's get into the episode.

So, Cher was born Cherilyn Sarkisian on May 20, 1946, in El Centro, California. Her father was a truck driver with Armenian American heritage, and her mother was a model and actress of Irish, English, German, and Cherokee descent.

Her parents were divorced when she was young, and Cher was primarily raised by her mother. As a child, she was dyslexic and struggled in school, but was drawn to performing from an early age.

In fact, she would perform songs for students at lunch and surprise them when she wore a midriff-bearing top. Gasp, scandal.

At 16, she dropped out of school and moved to Los Angeles, where she worked as a dancer in clubs along the Sunset Strip.

In 1962, she met Sonny Bono, and the two became close friends and eventually lovers. At the time, Sonny was working for record producer Phil Sector and introduced the two.

As a result, Cher provided backing vocals on many singles, including the Righteous Brothers' You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' and the Ronettes' Be My Baby.

Spector produced Cher's first single, Ringo, I Love You, which Cher recorded under the name Bonnie Jo Mason.

And Sonny wanted to launch Cher as a solo artist, but she encouraged him to join her in performing due to her stage fright.

So, he did and sang the harmonies. And during these performances, Cher would disguise her stage fright by looking directly at Sonny.

Sonny & Cher (5:28)

And Sonny and Cher officially debuted as a duo in 1964 under the name Caesar and Cleo, releasing a few singles with limited success.

And on October 27, 1964, the two held an unofficial wedding ceremony in a hotel room in Tijuana, Mexico.

In 1965, they rebranded as Sonny and Cher and broke through with the hit, I Got You Babe, which topped the charts in the United States and the United Kingdom, and it became their signature song.

That same year, their debut album, Look At Us, reached number two in the US and included other hits like Just You and Baby, Don't Go.

Cher’s Solo Career (6:00)

That same year, Cher launched her solo career with All I Really Want to Do, which peaked at number 16, including the title track, which was a Bob Dylan cover.

And that cover peaked at number 15 and set the tone for her early folk pop sound.

In March 1966, she released her follow-up album, The Sonny Side of Chér, which peaked at number 26. 

And it produced the singles, Where Do You Go, which peaked at number 25, and her hit single, Bang, Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down), which peaked at number two.

Meanwhile, Sonny and Cher continued releasing albums, including the Wondrous World of Sonny and Chér in May 1966, peaking at number 34, and In Case You're in Love in March 1967.

And while the latter peaked at number 45, it did feature the hit The Beat Goes On, which charted at number six.

However, their popularity waned by the late 1960s as musical taste shifted and their commercial success declined.

During this time, Cher released albums steadily, which included Chér in September 1966, peaking at number 59, With Love, Chér in October 1967, peaking at number 47, and Backstage in May 1968, which did not peak.

Notable singles from these albums included Cher's cover of Alfie, which peaked at number 32, and You Better Sit Down Kids, which peaked at number nine.

And Alfie was later covered again in the United States by Dionne Warwick, which became a more popular hit and is now considered the definitive version.

In June 1969, she released 3614 Jackson Highway, which marked a shift to southern soul, but the album had low commercial impact, charting at 160. And both Backstage and 3614 Jackson Highway were largely cover albums.

That same year, she released her first soundtrack album for her first solo film debut, both titled Chastity. Unfortunately, both the album and film were considered commercial failures.

And during the filming, Sonny and Cher conceived their child, Chaz Bono, who was born on March 4, 1969.

The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour (7:50)

In the early 1970s, Sonny and Cher made a major comeback on television with The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, a top-rated variety show blending music, sketch comedy, and playful banter, which would run from 1971 to 1974.

The show reestablished them as pop culture fixtures and introduced them to a new generation of fans. 

And as a result, Cher became a fashion icon with her daring Bob Mackie designs and commanding on-screen presence. And these looks would later inspire drag queens and LGBTQ+ fans for decades.

During this period, the duo also released the live album Sonny & Cher Live in September 1971 and All I Ever Need Is You in September 1972, with the title track from the latter peaking at number seven. 

Cher’s 1970s Commercial Success (8:34)

Meanwhile, in September 1971, Cher released the album Gypsies, Tramps, and Thieves, which peaked at number 16, and its title track of the same name became Cher's first chart-topping solo single.

This album also spawned a single called The Way of Love, which is a cover and peaked at number seven. Now, I love this song, but it also has an element of queerness to it.

It's originally a 1960 French song written by Jacques Duval with English lyrics by Al Stillman, so both the French and English versions are by men, which could explain the lyrics, which I'll get to in a minute.

But it was written for French singer Frederica for Eurovision in 1960, but the song wasn't selected, so Frederica never recorded it.

So, the first evident recording of the song was in 1964 by Colette Dereal. Then, in 1965, an English version of the song was recorded and released by Kathy Kirby, which peaked at number 88 in the United States. 

And then Cher's version came out in 1972, which is the more popular cover. But the interesting thing about this song is the lyrics. So here they are:

"When you meet a boy that you like a lot, and you fall in love, but he loves you not. If a flame should start as you hold him near, better, keep your heart out of danger, dear.

For the way of love is a way of woe, and the day may come when you'll see him go. Then what will you do when he sets you free, just the way that you said goodbye to me?"

So again, The Way of Love was written by men, which could explain the lyrics.

But keep in mind, this song was only commercially performed by women, and in that context, the lyrics read as either a woman whose female lover is leaving her for a man, or a woman whose male lover is leaving her for another man.

So, I love that little element of queerness to it. And Cher's live performance of this in 1999 during the Do You Believe? tour is phenomenal. I mean, who doesn't love a good key change?

In April 1973, she released Bittersweet White Light, which was considered her first commercial failure of the 70s, peaking at number 140.

But it did produce some moderately successful singles, Living in a House Divided, which peaked at number 22, and Don't Hide Your Love, which peaked at number 46.

But despite what critics consider to be this failure, she released the follow-up album, Half-Breed, that same year, which peaked at number 28, and its lead single of the same name went number one.

Also, this album has a cover of The Beatles' song, The Long and Winding Road, which I love, and I think it might be better than the original. Sorry, I said it.

Also in 1973, Sonny and Cher released their final studio album, Mama Was a Rock and Roll Singer, Papa Used to Write All Her Songs, and this marked the end of their musical partnership.

In May 1974, she released the album Dark Lady, which peaked at number 69, and its lead single of the same name, topped the charts.

And Half-Breed and Dark Lady both going number one as back-to-back singles solidified her chart dominance.

The album Dark Lady also produced the singles Train of Thought, and I Saw a Man and He Danced With His Wife, which peaked at number 27 and 42, respectively.

Cher’s Career and Personal Struggles (11:32)

Despite this, she released three back-to-back albums, Stars, I'd Rather Believe in You, and Cherished, which were largely unsuccessful.

In fact, only Stars charted, peaking at number 153. And her only charting song from this batch of albums was the 1977 single Pirate, from her album Cherished, and it peaked at 93.

And during this time, there were some career and personal woes.

The Sonny & Cher show ended on May 1974, around the same time Dark Lady was released, and the show somewhat imploded because their marriage was falling apart.

Apparently, they had ended their relationship in late 1972 but legally stayed together to protect their careers.

Still, Cher won a Golden Globe Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Musical or Comedy for the Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour that same year.

And in September 1974, Sonny began his own series, The Sonny Comedy Revue, that only ran through December of that year.

Meanwhile, in early 1975, Cher also returned to network television with her solo variety show called Cher. And that same year, Sonny and Cher's divorce was finalized.

And four days after finalizing her divorce from sunny Cher, married rock musician Greg Allman, co-founder of the Allman Brothers Band, whom she had been dating since January.

And she gave birth to their son, Elijah, on July 10, 1976. Cher's show was renewed for a second season run from 1975 to 1976, but she decided to end the show.

The bitterness of Sonny and Cher's divorce seemed to be behind them, and they chose to reunite in February 1976 for The Sonny & Cher Show.

But it only ran for a year because it failed to recapture earlier success. And after the series ended in winter 1977, Sonny and Cher parted ways for good.

However, they seemingly remained close and even had two reunion performances in the spring of 1979 and November 1987.

But back to 1977. Cher and Allman recorded a duet album and toured through Europe with mixed reception.

And Cher had to cancel the tour because the combination of Cher fans and Allman Brothers fans in attendance often broke out in fights.

And shortly after the tour's cancellation, the two ended their relationship, and their divorce was finalized in 1979.

Cher as a Gay Icon (13:45)

That same year, Cher legally adopted her mononym and also decided to steer her singing career to greater commercial success due to financial pressures.

And I haven't found anything definitively, but it seems like it was around this time she was more widely becoming a gay icon.

I mean, I'm sure she had gay fans since the beginning of her career, but around this time, a few things occurred that really aligned with the gay emotional appeal we talked about in our pop icons episode.

For starters, Cher's fashion in the 70s was fierce.

Like we talked about, she donned a lot of Bob Mackie gowns, and she always had very theatrical entrances on The Sonny & Cher Show that showcased the designs.

Next, gay fans could empathize with her public divorces from Sonny and Greg, similar to how gay men connected with Judy Garland's personal struggles.

And despite some career and personal struggles, Cher always had bold reinventions.

And she was about to do it again with a disco comeback. And you know, the gays love disco, and it has some very queer origins.

Cher’s Disco Comeback and Transition to Rock (14:41)

So, in 1979, she was facing financial pressures and wanted to launch a comeback as a rock singer. 

However, Casablanca Records said she wasn't very good at that genre and advised her to delve into disco music. And keep in mind, this was at the height of disco.

And despite her reluctance, in January 1979, she released her disco album, Take Me Home, which peaked at 25.

And its lead single of the same name charted at number eight, which was her highest charting single since 1974's Dark Lady.

In October 1979, she released her follow-up album, Prisoner, which was a blend of rock and disco. However, its lead single, Hell on Wheels peaked at number 59, and the album didn't chart at all. 

Following this, she began leaning more into rock, and in 1981, she dueted with Meatloaf on Dead Ringer for Love, which didn't chart in the US.

In May 1982, she released the album I Paralyze, which was also considered a commercial failure. And neither the album or its lead and only single of the same name charted.

Now I will say the first three singles of this album, Rudy, Games, and I Paralyze, are all favorites of mine, so don't discount this album.

Cher’s Acting Career (15:49)

But given the decline in her musical career, she shifted her focus to acting.

Now her earlier attempts in film, including Good Times and Chastity, had been poorly received, which led to Hollywood dismissing her as a serious actress.

And in response to a lack of acting opportunities, she performed in Las Vegas, which she later described as an elephant's graveyard for fading stars, and claimed it was unfulfilling despite the financial success.

In 1982, Cher moved to New York, intending to study with Lee Strasberg but instead landed a role in Robert Altman’s Broadway play Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean.

Her performance on stage earned positive critical attention, leading Altman to cast her in the film adaptation released later that year.

Director Mike Nichols saw her in Jimmy Dean and in 1983 cast her in Silkwood, where she played Dolly Pelliker opposite Meryl Streep.

And although audiences initially doubted her acting abilities, Cher earned both a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award nomination for her role in Silkwood.

In 1985, she starred in Mask as Rusty Dennis, a drug addicted bike mother, which became her first major success as a lead actress.

She won the Best Actress award at the Cannes Film Festival for Mask, although she was notably excluded from the Oscar nominations, likely due to her public dispute with director Peter Bogdanovich. 

Bogdanovich was upset that Universal Pictures made edits to the film that he did not approve of, particularly the removal of scenes set to music by Bruce Springsteen, which he had carefully selected.

I protest, Bogdanovich called for a boycott of the film's promotion, believing the studio had compromised his artistic vision.

Cher refused to participate in the boycott and continued to promote the movie, putting her in direct conflict with Bogdanovich.

And she publicly criticized him during the press tour, saying: "From working with Peter, it's no surprise to me that he would serve his own interests before those of the film."

At the 1986 Academy Awards, Cher made headlines by wearing a flamboyant outfit, often dubbed as her Oscar revenge dress.

It was a dramatic black midriff-bearing Bob Mackie ensemble with a feathered headdress, and served as a bold response to the Academy's failure to nominate her for Mask despite her acclaimed performance. 

Designed to make a statement, the look challenged conventional ideas of how a quote-unquote serious actress should dress at the Oscars.

And while presenting the award for Best Supporting Actor, Cher quipped: "As you can see, I did receive my academy booklet on how to dress like a serious actress."

That same year, her fiery appearance on Late Night with David Letterman attracted widespread media attention when she called him an asshole.

Despite that, in November 1987, she returned to Late Night and reunited with Sonny Bono for an impromptu performance of I Got You Babe. And this would mark their final public appearance together. 

And 1987 also marked a new peak in Cher's acting career, when she starred in three major films, Suspect, The Witches of Eastwick, and Moonstruck.

And her role in Moonstruck earned her widespread acclaim and an Academy Award win for Best Actress, which solidified her place as a Hollywood leading actress.

Cher’s Rock Resurgence (18:45)

And in November 1987, Cher began her musical comeback with the rock album Cher, which peaked at number 32.

It also spawned two hit singles, I Found Someone and We All Sleep Alone, which peaked at number 10 and number 14, respectively.

There was also the follow-up single, Skin Deep, which peaked at number 79, and Main Man, which was released as a promotional CD, but the record label ultimately opted not to release it as a single, which is a sin, because I love that song.

Anyway, her rock era continued into 1989 when she released the album Heart of Stone in July of that year, which peaked at number 10 and spawned four commercially successful singles.

The first was, After All, with Peter Cetera, which is the love theme from the film Chances Are. It peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the US Adult Contemporary chart.

The next, I'm sure you know it, If I Could Turn Back Time, which peaked at number three and number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively.

Just Like Jesse James, peaking at number eight and number nine on the Billboard Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively.

And in 1990, Heart of Stone, which peaked at number 20 and number 30 on the Billboard Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively.

In 1990, she also released a fifth single, You Wouldn't Know Love, which didn't chart.

But between her acting career and her albums, Cher and Heart of Stone, the late 80s were a major comeback for Cher.

And If I Could Turn Back Time became one of her signature songs. And I also love the backstory of it.

So, while, After All was included in Heart of Stone, If I Could Turn Back Time is considered the lead single of the album.

It was written by Diane Warren, who wrote some major songs like Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now by Starship, Unbreak My Heart by Toni Braxton, and There You’ll Be by Faith Hill, among many others.

And she wrote, If I Could Turn Back Time, specifically with Cher in mind. But upon hearing the demo, she initially disliked the song and refused to record it.

And according to Diane Warren, she was determined to convince Cher, and got on her knees and pleaded.

She told Cher she wouldn't leave the room until she agreed to record the song, and physically held Cher's leg during a session, insisting that she had to record it.

And allegedly, Cher yelled: "Fuck you, bitch. You're hurting my leg. Okay, I'll try it." in an effort to get Warren to leave her alone.

And then, after recording the track, Cher looked at Warren and admitted with a look, you were right, and thank God she did.

And the music video for the song is also iconic. It was filmed aboard the battleship USS Missouri while docked at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard in Los Angeles.

And the video features Cher performing a concert on the ship's four decks under its main guns with her band and a crowd of enthusiastic Navy sailors in dress uniforms.

And the Navy had approved this shoot as a potential recruitment tool, given its lack of television ad budget in 1989.

So, Cher wore a Bob Mackie-designed outfit, a black one-piece bathing suit, over a sheer fishnet body stocking, revealing much of her ass and a butterfly tattoo.

And it shocked Navy officials who had expected her to wear a jumpsuit, as shown in the original storyboards.

And the video's sexual imagery led to controversy and backlash, with MTV initially banning the video, but then later airing it only after 9 pm.

So as a result, a second, less risqué version of the video was later produced for broader TV play.

Cher’s Career Decline in the 1990s (21:57)

Anyway, in 1990 Cher starred in the commercially successful movie Mermaids, alongside Winona Ryder and Christina Ricci.

And she released two songs for the movie soundtrack, Baby I'm Yours, and The Shoop Shoop Song, which is a cover of the 1960 song.

The latter was a moderate hit, peaking at number 33 on the Hot 100 and number seven on the US Adult Contemporary charts.

In June 1991, she released another rock album, Love Hurts, which was less successful compared to previous rock ventures and peaked at number 48. It did, however, spawn two top 40 singles.

The first was Love and Understanding, which peaked at number 17 and number three on the Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively.

And the second was Save Up All Your Tears, which peaked at number 37 and number 16 on the Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively.

And the latter is actually a cover of a Bonnie Tyler song, although I think Cher's version is much more powerful and has an amazing key change at the end.

One of my favorites, I've definitely ruptured my vocal cords belting this one out post-breakup in the car. 

Anyway, this album had three follow-up singles: Love Hurts, Could've Been You, and When Lovers Become Strangers.

And of those three, the latter was the only single to chart, peaking at number 15 on the US Adult Contemporary chart.

Around this time, Cher contracted the Epstein-Barr Virus and developed chronic fatigue syndrome, leaving her too exhausted for music or film projects.

In fact, she actually turned down lead roles in Thelma & Louise and The War of the Roses.

And so, she appeared in infomercials for health, beauty, and diet products to generate income, which critics viewed as a sellout and referred to her as an infomercial queen.

And this was parodied in Clueless when Alicia Silverstone's Cher Horowitz says: "Dionne and I were both named after famous singers of the past who now do infomercials."

Anyway, in 1992 Cher released a greatest hits album, followed by It's a Man's World in November 1995, which peaked at number 64.

Despite its commercial performance and unconventional Deep South Sound, the album received generally favorable reviews.

However, the majority of the singles, including its lead single, Walking in Memphis, failed to chart at all. However, it did become a fan favorite and has been performed on a number of her tours.

Its follow-up single, One By One, only charted at number 52 on the Hot 100 and number nine on the US Adult Contemporary charts, but was very well received by critics.

And in the past couple years, I've really vibed with this song, especially this past Pride Month.

Like on the surface level, One By One is about a relationship, but to me, it feels like there's a deeper socio-political and even spiritual message to it.

And it was also remixed by Junior Vasquez, and that version peaked at number seven on the US Dance charts, which would mark Cher's first appearance there.

And the fifth and final single, Paradise Is Here, was also remixed and peaked at number 11 on the US Dance charts.

And during the 90s, Cher's public support for LGBTQ+ rights became more vocal.

She consistently spoke out against homophobia and discrimination in interviews, emphasizing the importance of acceptance and equality for LGBTQ+ people.

She was close friends with gay icon Elton John and was involved in charitable efforts related to HIV and AIDS awareness and fundraising.

And in April 1995, her son Chaz Bono, then Chastity Bono, publicly came out as a lesbian in an interview with The Advocate, and in Bono's 1998 book, they reported that Cher was initially uncomfortable with the news at first and went ballistic before coming to terms with it.

Here's a quote:

"By August 1996, one year after I came out publicly, my mother had progressed so far that she agreed to 'come out' herself on the cover of The Advocate as the proud mother of a lesbian daughter."

However, during this time, Bono's relationship with his father, Sonny Bono, became strained, since Sonny was elected as a Republican congressman for California and their political views separated them.

And in January 1998, Sonny Bono died in a skiing accident, and Chaz had not spoken to him for more than a year prior to his death.

And just a quick note, since coming out, Chaz Bono has been involved in a lot of LGBTQ+ advocacy work. 

And in 2008, he began transitioning from female to male and publicly came out in 2009 as Chaz Bono. But back to 1998.

In May of that year, Sonny and Cher received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for their work in television.

And later that year, Cher published The First Time, a collection of autobiographical essays of first-time events in her life.

Cher’s Dance-Pop Reinvention with Believe (26:18)

But as the year came to a close and we were moving closer to a new millennium, Cher reinvented her sound once again.

And in October of 1998, she blessed us with the single. Believe this song marked a major shift from Cher's rock roots to a more dance-focused, Euro pop sound.

So, after the lukewarm reception of It's a Man's World in 1995, Cher was encouraged by Warner Music, UK Head Rob Dickins, to pursue a dance album that would better appeal to her loyal gay fan base. 

However, she was initially hesitant and expressed that she no longer enjoyed dance music, criticizing it for lacking quote unquote real songs.

Despite her reluctance, interest in Cher as a dance artist had grown after the 1996 club remix of her song One By One.

So, with this in mind, Warner began developing a dance-oriented project, and Dickins met songwriter Brian Higgins at Warner's London office to solicit potential tracks.

Within days, Higgins sent a demo tape containing 16 songs, and Dickens was struck by the ninth track, Believe.

Specifically, he felt that the course had strong emotional potential and paired well with Cher's private life in recent years.

However, when Higgins completed the initial version of the song, the group thought the rest of the single needed extensive reworking.

And this original Believe demo circulated at Warner Bros for months with no success.

While everyone loved the chorus, the verses were seen as flat and uninspired, and Dickins enlisted producers Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling of Dreamhouse to reshape the track, along with songwriters Steve Torch and Paul Barry to help rewrite the verses and complete the song to Dickens' and Cher's satisfaction.

And Cher also rewrote the lyrics in the second verse because she felt the lyrics were too whiny. And this part is so Cher to me. I love it.

She wanted to toughen it up a bit and make the song's character more assertive, saying: "A girl can be sad in one verse, but she can't be sad in two verses."

However, she did not get a songwriting credit for this, and in 2023, she said she regretted not asking for it.

Now, once the lyrics were down, Believe was recorded in mid-1998 at Dreamhouse Studios in Kingston upon Thames using Cubase VST software on a Power Macintosh G3, and synthesizers such as the Clavia Nord Rack and Oberheim Matrix 1000.

Cher's vocals were captured using a Neumann U67 tube microphone and three TASCAM DA-88 digital audio recorders.

She recalled that the chorus sang itself, but the verses were lifeless, and after multiple takes, Taylor kept asking her to sing it better, to which Cher eventually snapped: "You want someone to sing it better? Get another singer."

She ended up walking out of the session, but the next day, Taylor called her with a potential solution.

He had just received a pitch correction tool called Auto-Tune, then referred to as a pitch machine, and wanted to try something new with her vocals.

Inspired by a vocoder-like vocal sound she had heard from British singer Andrew Roachford, Cher suggested they try a similar effect to revive the flat verses.

So, Taylor applied the most extreme Auto-Tune setting, “zero retune speed,” to Cher's vocals, which completely eliminated the natural pitch slides and created a robotic vocal texture.

And you can really hear this in the chorus in the eee part when she sings, "Do you believe?"

However, Taylor was initially afraid of Cher's reaction, so he and the team didn't play her the altered vocals until after they had a couple of beers together.

And fortunately, Cher immediately loved it, and this pioneering technique would later become widely imitated and is now famously known as the Cher effect.

However, Dickins disliked it, feeling it was too extreme and wanted it removed. However, Cher fought him on that and told him: "You can change that part of it over my dead body."

She also warned Taylor: "Don't let anyone touch this track, or I'm going to rip your throat out."

And fortunately, they didn't remove the Cher effect. And the version of Believe we know and love was released in October 1998.

In the US, Believe debuted at number 99 on the Billboard Hot 100 on December 19, 1998, before eventually reaching number one on March 13, 1999.

It also went number one on the US Dance charts and number three on the US Adult Contemporary charts.

And when it topped the Billboard Hot 100, Cher, at age 52, became the oldest female artist ever to achieve a number one hit on that chart, surpassing Tina Turner's record.

The song also gave Cher the record for the longest gap between number-one singles on the Hot 100, with 33 years and seven months between I Got You Babe and Believe.

It was also ranked by Billboard as the number one song of 1999 on both the Hot 100 and the Hot Dance Club Play charts, and it became the biggest single of Cher's career to date.

Believe also went number one in 21 countries worldwide, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. And in 2000, Believe won the Grammy for Best Dance Recording.

In November of 1998, Believe's accompanying album of the same name was released in the United States and peaked at number three on the Hot 100 and number one on the US Dance charts.

And its follow-up single, Strong Enough, peaked at number 57 on the Hot 100 and number 29 on the US Adult Contemporary charts. However, it too topped the US Dance charts.

The next two singles, All or Nothing and Dov'è l'amore, were less successful, but peaked at number one and number five on the US Dance charts, respectively.

And in June 1999, she embarked on her Do You Believe? tour, which was initially supposed to run until December of that year, but was so successful, it was extended to March 2000.

And this era is credited with introducing Cher to a younger generation of new fans.

Cher’s Early 2000s Career and Farewell Tour (31:33)

In November 2000, she released an album called Not Commercial, which was exclusively released through cher.com.

Now this album seems kind of mysterious, and I don't really know much about it. It's an album Cher apparently wrote in 1994, and was called very un-Cher like and it was dark, and it seems like there weren't any singles released from that.

But also, in November 2000, she had a cameo on Will & Grace, that's a lot of fun.

So, if you know the show, you know that Jack is obsessed with Cher, and he meets her at a restaurant, but mistakes her for a drag queen version of Cher.

So, he tries to correct her on the vibrato of Cher's performance for If I Could Turn Back Time, and don't worry, I'm not gonna try to imitate that for you.

And finally, in a reference to Moonstruck, she slaps him in the face and says: "Snap out of it!"

So, moving right along to November 2001, Cher released a dance-focused follow-up to Believe called Living Proof.

And it didn't have the same success as Believe, peaking at number nine and number 19 on the Hot 100 and US Dance charts, respectively, but it is still a great album.

And Cher released The Music's No Good Without You as the lead single in the UK, which peaked at number 19 on the US Dance charts.

However, the album, Living Proof, wasn't released in the United States until February 2002, and in March 2002, she released the US lead single Song for the Lonely.

And after the 9/11 attacks, the song took on a new meaning for Cher, and she dedicated it to the courageous people of New York, especially the firefighters, the police, Mayor Giuliani, Governor Pataki, and her friend Liz.

And it peaked at number 85 and number 11 on the Hot 100 and US Adult Contemporary charts, respectively, and it topped the US Dance charts.

Meanwhile, the follow-up single, Alive Again, didn't do much, but Living Proof's remaining singles, A Different Kind of Love Song and When the Money's Gone/Love One Another, both topped the US Dance charts.

Also, not a single, but I really love the song Real Love from this album. And Cher promoted this album, in an episode of Will & Grace where Jack has a dream he goes to heaven, and Cher is there.

He asks her if she's God, and she responds: "It depends on which bathhouse you pray at."

And in June 2002, she embarked on her farewell tour that ran until April 2005.

So that's the end. Thanks for listening. Just kidding. We still have like 20 more years of Cher's career to go through.

Cher’s Vegas Residencies and Return to Film (33:40)

After three years of retirement, Cher signed a $60 million deal for a 200-show residency at the Coliseum at Caesars Palace in Vegas that ran from 2008 to 2011.

In November 2010, she starred alongside Christina Aguilera in the movie musical Burlesque…

*Wagon Wheel Watusi*

…which earned mixed reviews, but is still fun enough to watch.

And Cher sang two songs on its accompanying soundtrack, Welcome to Burlesque and You Haven't Seen the Last of Me. And the latter won a Golden Globe for Best Original Song.

You Haven't Seen the Last of Me was also remixed and released as a single that went number one on the US Dance charts.

In September 2013, Cher released the album Closer to the Truth, which peaked at number three on the Hot 100 and number 11 on the US Dance charts.

Its lead single was Woman's World, and unlike Katy Perry's song, this single was actually good and topped the US Dance charts.

Her follow-up single was I Hope You Find It, which is actually a cover of the Miley Cyrus song from the movie The Last Song, and it is amazing, but it only charted on the US Adult Contemporary charts at number 17.

And her last two singles from the album, Take It Like a Man and I Walk Alone, both peaked at number two on the US Dance charts.

And in March 2014, she embarked on the Dressed to Kill tour, and when she announced it, she crossed her fingers and jokingly said it would be her last farewell tour.

In February 2017, she began a three-year residency at the. Park Theater in Vegas and The Theater at MGM National Harbor in Washington, DC.

Here We Go Again (35:04)

And in July 2018, she appeared in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again as Sophie's grandmother.

In September of that year, she released the album Dancing Queen, which is a cover of ABBA songs with some Cher flair added to them.

It peaked at number three on the Hot 100, number two on the US Adult Contemporary charts, and number four on the US Dance charts.

It also spawned the singles Fernando, Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight), and SOS. And Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!, peaked at number four on the US Dance charts.

Also, to coincide with the album, Cher embarked on the Here We Go Again tour, which ran until March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In May of that year, she released a cover of ABBA's Chiquitita, the Spanish version, with proceeds donated to UNICEF.

And in November 2020, she contributed her vocals to an Oasis cover, Stop Crying Your Heart Out with various artists as part of the annual BBC Children in Need appeal. And moving on out of the pandemic.

Cher’s Holiday Album and Memoir (35:57)

In October 2023, Cher released her first holiday album, which is simply titled Christmas, which peaked at number 32 on the Hot 100 and topped the Holiday Albums Chart.

Its lead single, DJ Play a Christmas Song, peaked at number 90 on the Hot 100, which was her first appearance on the chart since 2002's Song for the Lonely.

It also topped the US Adult Contemporary chart, which was her first single to do so since 1989's Turn Back Time.

And with this feat, Cher became the only artist to date to have had a number one song on at least one Billboard chart in each of the past seven decades.

In November 2024, she published Cher: The Memoir Part One, with part two expected to come out in May of 2026.

And she's currently working on her 28th studio album, which she says will probably be her last.

Cher’s Legacy (36:43)

So, to recap, Cher has had four number-one hits as a solo act, along with five number ones from her Sonny & Cher days.

And she alone has sold over 100 million records globally, with 12.5 million albums sold in the US alone. 

She's had three Golden Globe wins, along with winning an Oscar, Emmy, and Grammy. So, she's just short of a Tony to achieve EGOT status.

She also received the 2017 Billboard Icon Award and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in October 2024.

And throughout her entire career, I feel that Cher has been the definition of resilience.

She's gone through hardships, both in her personal life and career, but whenever she's faced challenges, she's adapted, reinvented herself, and has come back stronger than ever.

And she has continuously proved people wrong when they've tried to count her out.

And having gone through Cher's entire career, I think her 2024 iHeartRadio Icon Award acceptance speech is really important. So, I'm gonna read it:

"I have been down and out so many times that you cannot believe it. Dropped from record companies and couldn't get a job.

And at that time, I went to Las Vegas, which they called the Elephant's Graveyard, and I had a huge show. Lots of people, bungees, all that. And they just said, 'Oh God, she's so over.’

But I never gave up my dream. And standing on this stage… I love standing on the stage. And this is kind of my dream.

And I stand there, and the music plays, and all of a sudden, out of my body comes this voice. And people seem to like it.

So, what I want to tell from my experience is, have a dream and then don't give it up, no matter what happens.

Because I know from my own experience that if you have a dream, and you stick with it, you will have a wonderful life, and it probably will come true."

Cher’s Iconic Quotes (38:18)

And as we're wrapping this episode up, I thought it would be fun to close out on some iconic Cher quotes. And I think you all know this one:

“I love men. I think men are the coolest, but you don’t really need them to live. My mom said to me, ‘You know, sweetheart, one day you should settle down and marry a rich man.’ I said, ‘Mom, I am a rich man.’”

This next one is about when people were questioning her plastic surgery:

“If I want to put my tits on my back, it’s nobody’s business but my own.”

And then this last one:

"I never hated her. I just thought she was a bitch."

And she was referring to Madonna.

Episode Closing (38:48)

And so there you have it, Cher's 60+ year career in about a 50-minute episode. And connecting it back to the tarot, the Knight of Wands in reverse.

Again, this card is full of creativity and passion, but it might be telling us that we're feeling self-doubt or that we're hesitating on taking action. You know, we feel that fire lit inside of us. We feel the energy building up, but we're not sure what to do with it.

So, we really need to learn to rely on our intuition so that way we can channel that energy and act in intentional ways that lead us toward achieving our passions.

And talking through Cher's career, I think you can really easily see that. You know, she's had comeback after comeback with reinventions all along the way.

She was bold, she was daring. She followed her gut and her passion. And maybe sometimes it didn't result in the mass success.

But then there were other times where those reinventions and those risks really paid off in major ways. 

And throughout all that, the criticism, the critiques, she stayed true to herself and did not let others control her.

There were so many expectations over what she should be as a singer, as an actress, even as a woman of a certain age when Believe came out, and she's continuously defied those expectations and built a successful path forward for herself that hasn't only created an amazing legacy, but I'm sure is also so fulfilling to herself.

And that's why, pretty frequently, when I'm having a rough day, I say, Cher, give me strength.

Because honestly, like her career and her persona is so inspiring that even when people are counting you as being down and out, you can turn it around and prove them wrong and be the best version of yourself.

Connect with A Jaded Gay (40:14)

So, thank you all for listening. I hope you enjoyed that episode. Definitely go check out some of Cher's records, especially some of the older folk ones that you may not be as familiar with. I really love them. 

And I mean, within Cher's entire 60+ year discography, there's something for everyone there. Gay, straight, otherwise, I feel like everyone loves Cher. She's iconic. So, respect her, goddammit.

Anyway, thank you all for listening. I hope you liked this episode. You know the drill. If you have any questions or comments, you can reach out to me rob@ajadedgay.com.

Please remember to rate, review, and subscribe. Five stars only. I greatly appreciate it.

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And remember: every day is all we have, so you gotta make your own happiness.

Mmm-bye.

That was the Cher vibrato. Bye.

Outtake (42:02)

So, he tries to correct her on the vibrato of Cher's performance for If I Could Turn Back Time, and don't worry, I'm not going to try to imitate that for you.

Just kidding, I will. If I could turn back time. Time. Time.

Excuse me. Jesus Christ. Anyway...