Why do we love Cyndi?

Among the most talented and successful female pop artists of the past 30 years, Cyndi Lauper began playing guitar and writing songs at the age of 12 in Queens, New York. Possessed of an astounding four octave vocal range, she began performing with cover bands in the New York City area in her mid-20s. Strenuous and incorrect singing caused Cyndi to severely damage her voice in 1977. It was feared she might never sing again, but through hard work with a vocal coach, Cyndi was able to regain her stellar pipes. She joined the band Blue Angel. Though the band was signed to a record contract, management and label problems broke them up in 1980. Cyndi went to work in a funky New York clothing store called Screaming Mimi's (which she would later buy) and began crafting her unusual look that would help her make such a mark on popular culture. In 1983, Cyndi's solo album She's So Unusual was released. The album produced four Top 5 hits, including the truly iconic "Girls Just Want to Have Fun," won a slew of industry awards, and sold over 4.5 million copies in the United States alone. Cyndi's distinctive voice, exuberant personality, and individual style helped make her one of the biggest stars of the newly minted MTV age.

Though her success since the mid-1980s has never matched those staggering levels commercially, Cyndi expanded her creative domain, gradually moving into writing all her own songs, acting in films and on television (and winning an Emmy in the process), touring and playing concerts to her devoted fans (sometimes with other divas like Tina Turner and Cher), and starting a family, giving birth to her first child at the age of 44. Cyndi produced and distributed her own EP last year and sold it directly over the Internet herself. Through her persistence, evolution, and artistry, Cyndi has never allowed her brilliant true colors to fade.

Biography:

Born - June 22, 1953
Brooklyn, New York

Achievements:

• 1984 - Winner of the Grammy Award for Best New Artist (She's So Unusual wins Best Album Package); Cyndi was also nominated for Album of the Year, Record of the Year ("Girls Just Want to Have Fun"), Song of the Year ("Time After Time"), and Best Pop Vocal Female ("Girls Just Want to Have Fun")
• 1984 - Winner of MTV Video Music Award for Best Female Video for "Time After Time," defeating her own video for "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" along with three others; nominated for seven other VMAs at that ceremony including Video of the Year for "Girls Just Want to Have Fun."
• 1985 - Participates in USA for Africa's recording of "We Are the World" to raise funds for African famine relief.
• 1985 - Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Female for "What a Thrill"
• 1985 - Nominated for three solo MTV VMAs, as well as sharing in the nominations for three more as a part of USA for Africa, which wins for Best Group Video
• 1985 - Named Favorite Female Pop/Rock Artist and Favorite Female Video Artist at the American Music Awards
• 1986 - Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Female for "True Colors," and Best Rock Vocal Female for "911"
• 1987 - Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Video Performance for Cyndi Lauper in Paris
• 1987 - Nominated for two MTV VMAs, including Best Female Video for "True Colors"
• 1989 - Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Rock Vocal Female for "I Drove All Night"
• 1994 - Nominated for Emmy Award as Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her first appearance on Mad About You
• 1995 - Winner of Emmy Award as Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series for her second appearance on Mad About You
• 1998 - Nominated for Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording for "Disco Inferno"
• Was named to several music-industry lists, including MTV and Rolling Stone Magazine's "100 Greatest Pop Songs of All Time" (#66 - "Time After Time"); VH-1's "100 Greatest Women of Rock and Roll" (#58), and MTV's 100 Greatest Videos Ever Made (#39 - "Girls Just Want To Have Fun")
• Has appeared in six films, including The Opportunists (1999)