Influence On Madonna Cher

“Music makes the people come together.” says Madonna in the title track of her 2000 album Music. The lyric originates from what seems like just a campy, dance floor anthem. However, it speaks a universal truth; music unites us as an enormous vessel of human expression. From the actual compositions to the personas of the people behind them, it constantly adds to our cultural landscape. Popular music forms the world around us, fueled by the women who act as its idols.

Turning back time into the 1970s, male artists largely dominated popular music. One singer, previously a member of a duo, came to light anyways. Cher infiltrated multiple forms of media. In television, she starred in the variety show “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour”, with her then

However, what Cher is most known for is her music, both during Sonny and Cher’s run and as a solo artist. With a rich, contralto range, Cher became distinctive among her peers. That distinction naturally brings imitation. Her stage presence has been an influence for many artists through the years, including Cyndi Lauper, Madonna, and Lady Gaga (Miers, “Tracing Cher’s Influence among Pop Divas - The Buffalo News."). Cher set the blueprint for many of the artists discussed here.

In midst of the Reagan era, many mallrat appealing singers emerged. From The Bangles tangled in their “manic mondays”, to the aforementioned Lauper just wanting to have fun, to the one-hit wonder Toni Basil wielding both pom-poms and her undying love for Mickey, these synth assisted singers infected airwaves. The birth of new wave and dance-pop, rising like a phoenix from the fiery death of disco, started to overshadow the more traditional, rock influenced pop the 70s had latched onto. However, among all of these passing pretty faces that dominated this era, one still remains a colossal figure. Lauded by many as the “Queen of Pop”, and known only by one

Now, another phenomena came along. This time, it was a fivesome from beyond the pond. The Spice Girls burst onto the scene with “Wannabe”, which is still a favorite among slumber parties, that topped the Billboard charts. As the name suggests, this was a very spicy group, but perhaps not as “spicy” as Madonna. With the Spice Girls, there was no crosses on fire, no explicit sexuality beyond a few cheeky nods and winks directed towards any parents presumably forced to listen to their work, and nothing as particularly challenging as what Madonna had presented to the public before (Lemish, Popular Music and Society 26.1). Instead, the group, fueled by a heavily controlled team, promoted ideology that was safe. “Girl Power”, their battle cry, is feminism that is easy enough for a little girl to understand. This, combined with images that allowed five women with diverse and complicated personalities to be simplified to one word each, allowed the Spice Girls to highly appeal to young girls. Elaborating on those personalities, a large sector of the aura surrounding the Spice Girls was dedicated to wish fulfillment. A child could easily project themselves onto whoever in the five they related to the most. Tomboys could see themselves in Mel “Sporty Spice” C, more feminine types in Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham, “wild cards” in