If you had to choose only one, who would you say is your favorite pop star of all time?
If you came of age in the 80s, Madonna might come to mind—she made plenty of hits, created an entirely new aesthetic and became one of the most iconic women in pop culture history. If you like more recent stars, maybe you were thinking of Beyonce or Rihanna, incredible singers and artists in their own right.
To go even further back, we have to talk about the Goddess of Pop: Cher!
While Cher’s career began as far back as the 1960s, she remains a relevant voice even to this day.
While people originally found out about her through hits like “I Got You Babe” with her folk rock group Sonny & Cher (with her then-husband), she broke off to have a very successful solo career as well. Aside from massive hits like “If I Could Turn Back Time” and “Do You Believe,” she also won an Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in Moonstruck in 1987.
Because of these honors (and others), she was given a prestigious award at the 41st Kennedy Center Honors.
The Kennedy Center Honors is a ceremony held to celebrate professionals in the performing arts.
The most recent event was thrown in Washington, D.C. back in December. When it came time for Cher to get her award, actress Whoopi Goldberg got onstage to pay tribute to Cher’s long career. To honor her, major artists like Little Big Town and Adam Lambert performed covers of some of her greatest hits.
Still, everything stopped when they brought out Cher’s close friend Cyndi Lauper for a cover of “If I Could Turn Back Time.”
If you were a fan of 80s pop at all, it’s hard not to be a fan of Cyndi Lauper.
For anyone who doesn’t know, Lauper is the musical mastermind behind “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” and “Time After Time.” Although she had many of her biggest hits in the 80s, she remains musically active to this day and just released a new album this year. Perhaps more notably, she also composed music for the hit musical Kinky Boots!
Regardless, Cher was delighted to see her friend take the stage in her honor.
While the original song was epic and grandiose, Lauper takes it and makes it all her own.
From the balcony, Cher yells: “You told me you were going to be in Los Angeles!” Lauper smiles and responds: “I lied.” With that, she sets into a stomping, rock-inspired rendition of the song. Her energy gets the entire crowd on their feet—by the end of it, Cher is smiling and clapping along as well!
Though all the performances that night were great, Cyndi Lauper’s was something truly special!
Although Lauper is much older now than she was when she was at her peak, her voice hasn’t lost anything with age.
The entire performance is marked by its high energy and excitement—though it must be an added bonus to have one of your best friends honor you for a lifetime’s worth of achievement. Even if you haven’t given them a listen lately, this video is a great way to remind yourself about two great talents that are still just as good as they’ve ever been.
But if this clip wasn’t enough for you, we’ve got a few more goodies here as well.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsKbwR7WXN4
For a blast from the past, why not give this classic Cher video another watch?
Although the song itself is great, the nautical setting of the video and Cher’s iconic black leather outfit make this one a classic. To top everything off, we’ve also included Cyndi Lauper’s “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” as well—a song with nearly 700 million views on YouTube! If you ever missed the old-school narrative music video style, this video is sure to scratch that itch.
Above all, congratulations to Cher on her award! Check out the performance below:
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