I’ve been a fan of Cyndi Lauper since I was a teenager. Her different voice, her eternally unexpected look, her unmistakable vocal range and her striking pop songs like Time After Time already make her a pop legend. I had the privilege of seeing her live more than once, each time unforgettable. I was going to jump at the chance at Rock In Rio, but the announcement of his retirement from the stage made me reconsider foregoing this “last” meeting. At 70 years old, Cyndi hasn’t lost her voice, she hasn’t lost energy and she continues to be the ‘sincere’ type. She just knows that she doesn’t need to prove any more of her talent and that it’s time to take her foot off the gas.
The news took the world by surprise as it is very rare for a musician to “stop”. But Cyndi has always been as she announced on her first album: unusual. When she announced that the tour, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Farewell Tour, would be her last, she triggered a wave of nostalgia among her fans. Accompanied by the documentary Let the Canary Sing, about her life and career, on Paramount +, it’s an unmissable chance to enjoy her.
Having been without a major tour for more than ten years, the singer-songwriter-activist wants to stop at her peak. According to what she spoke to the New York Times, in a few years she might no longer have the same delivery that made her legendary. After all, before becoming a star, the singer damaged her vocal cords and stopped singing for a year, with doctors stating that she would never sing again. That was in 1977, but not only did she regain her voice (with the help of vocal coach Katie Agresta), but she exploded as one of the most profitable and representative singers of the 1980s, with her 1983 solo album – She’s so Unusual – winning awards and selling millions.
This kind of transparency has always reinforced Cyndi Lauper‘s authenticity. If on stage she was almost histrionic, in her personal life she always excelled at discretion and few, long-lasting relationships. In her biography, from 2012, she insists on acknowledging that she regrets that fans confuse her music with her person, warning us that she is not always friendly. The warning itself suggests the opposite, but she effectively always warned. I love her even more for that.
If it took her so many years to sign a book, it took her even longer to accept her life story on film. According to her, documentaries made from life are strange and she didn’t feel particularly misunderstood: she always communicated exactly what she wanted to say. However, she accepted the challenge.
Even if you haven’t lived in New York, you will recognize that Cyndi has a strong accent and is from Queens, another characteristic that she has embraced without any problems. At home, she experienced problems with her parents separating, abuse from her stepfathers and the persecution that her sister, Ellen, suffered for being gay. She left home at 17 and survived as a painter, shoe saleswoman, waitress, and singer in a cover band. She only became successful at the age of 32, her ability to not give up is an inspiration.
The world kind of stopped when it first heard the high-pitched voice of that American woman in gypsy clothes and a different hair color every week singing Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. Originally written for a man to sing about the girls he wanted to have fun with, Cyndi changed the lyrics and demanded liberation from the workplace, the home, and the patriarchy. And we had fun singing with her. Her activism didn’t make her more popular, but she created an unbreakable bond with her fans.
The rivalry with Madonna, which exploded at around the same time as her, put Cyndi in several painful situations (such as having her rival referred to as the “pretty” one and her being the “talented one”, a euphemism for not praising her physically) and Not even Madonna liked to be considered less artistically, that is, they displeased everyone. And effectively the two never kissed or collaborated, an invaluable loss for the two biggest stars of a generation who had so much in common.
In total. Over 4 decades, Cyndi Lauper recorded 11 more albums, an award-winning musical on Broadway, among many hits. It’s nostalgic to think that her performances will be reduced, so I’m considering my schedule in 2024. As she turns 71 on June 22, 2024 (in just a few weeks!), she once again confirms to us that she is her own person. How not to love her?
miscelana.com 