Cyndi Lauper

USA, 1977–now

American singer-songwriter with an unmistakable multi-octave voice and vivid new-wave image. Her 1983 debut She's So Unusual — 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun', 'Time After Time', 'True Colors' — made her one of the defining pop stars of the 1980s.

MusicRoots documents 6 artists who influenced Cyndi Lauper and 0 artists Cyndi Lauper influenced in turn. Every connection cites a published source.

Who influenced Cyndi Lauper?

• Judy Garland — Judy Garland was among the singers Lauper grew up on, feeding the theatrical, emotionally exposed side of her voice.
• Patsy Cline — Cyndi Lauper counts Patsy Cline among her influences and recorded a country album steeped in Cline's torch-ballad tradition.
• The Beatles — The Beatles were a foundational influence on Lauper's melodic pop songwriting and adventurous, genre-spanning approach.
• Ella Fitzgerald — Lauper grew up on jazz singers like Ella Fitzgerald, whose phrasing fed her supple, wide-ranging vocal style.
• Billie Holiday — Billie Holiday's emotive, behind-the-beat jazz singing was a key model for Lauper's expressive, blues-tinged phrasing.
• The Ronettes — The Ronettes' Ronnie Spector was a direct inspiration — Lauper drew on that girl-group sound when she rearranged 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun'.