She was told her voice was too strange, her look too wild, her attitude too loud. So Cher did what few dared: she turned all of it into power—and built a one-woman empire.
Born Cherilyn Sarkisian to a struggling single mother and an Armenian-American truck driver who disappeared early on, Cher’s beginnings were anything but glamorous. She battled dyslexia, dropped out of high school, and moved to Los Angeles at 16 with little more than ambition. She slept on floors. She waited tables. Then she met Sonny Bono—and everything changed.
On paper, they didn’t make sense. Sonny was older, controlling. Cher was shy, awkward. But when they sang “I Got You Babe”, their chemistry was undeniable, and the world took notice. Still, in those early days, Sonny ran the show. Cher was the accessory—the smile, the fringe, the arm candy. Until she wasn’t.
By the 1970s, Cher had rewritten the script. She transformed sequins into armor and became a TV icon with her own variety show. Her outfits were censored. Her jokes cut sharper than prime-time was ready for. When her marriage to Sonny ended, many assumed her career would, too.
They were wrong.
Her solo career stumbled. Albums flopped. Acting roles disappeared. Critics called her finished. But Cher doesn’t do “finished.” She does comebacks.
She returned with searing performances in Silkwood and Moonstruck, claiming an Oscar and commanding Hollywood’s respect. Then came Believe, a song that redefined pop and pioneered the use of auto-tune. When the world shifted online, Cher logged on and took Twitter by storm—firing off fiery, all-caps truth bombs well into her seventies.
Again and again, she was underestimated. Again and again, she came back.
Cher is more than a pop star. She’s a fashion icon. A digital-age meme queen. A survivor. A legend. Not because she played by the rules—but because she broke them, dressed them in glitter, and made them her own.
In an industry that worships youth and silence in women, Cher proved that longevity isn’t about changing who you are. It’s about daring the world to catch up.