Cyndi Lauper

b. Cynthia Anne Stephanie Lauper, 22 June 1953, Queens, New York, USA. Starting her career as a singer in Manhattan's clubs, Lauper began writing her own material when she met pianist John Turi in 1977. They formed Blue Angel and released a self-titled album in 1980 which included raucous versions of rock classics as well as their own numbers. She split with Turi and in 1983 began working on what was to become her million-selling solo debut, SHE'S SO UNUSUAL. It made number 4 in the USA and provided four hit singles—the exuberant Girls Just Want To Have Fun which became a cult anthem for independent young women; Time After Time (a US number 1 and later covered by Miles Davis on YOU'RE UNDER ARREST), She Bop (which broached the unusual subject of female masturbation) and All Through The Night (written by Jules Shear). The album also contained Prince's When You Were Mine. At the end of 1984 Billboard magazine placed her first in the Top Female Album Artists and she was awarded a Grammy as Best New Artist.
Her image was one that adapted, for the American market, something of a colourful ‘punk’ image that would not offend parents too much but at the same time still retain a sense of humour and rebelliousness that would appeal to the youth. Pundits in the UK claimed to have seen through this straight away, yet they acknowledged Lauper's talent nonetheless. TRUE COLORS did not have the same commercial edge as its predecessor, yet the title track still provided her with an US number 1 and a Top 20 hit in the UK. In 1987, she took a role as a beautician in the poorly-received film, Vibes. She made a brief return to the charts in 1990 with the single I Drove All Night from A NIGHT TO REMEMBER. Another lacklustre film appearance in Off And Running was not seen in the UK until two years later. Seen in some quarters as little more than a visual and vocal oddity, Lauper has nevertheless written several magnificent pop tunes and, in 1985, boosted her credibility as a singer when she performed a stirring duet with Patti LaBelle at LaBelle's show at the Greek Theater in Los Angeles. Lauper was joined by her former writing partners Ron Hyman and Eric Brazilian for HAT FULL OF STARS, a successful mix of soul/pop/hip-hop with a smattering of ethnic/folk.