Cyndi Lauper

Singer-songwriter and actress Cyndi Lauper is as well known for her flamboyant appearance and behaviour, and her distinctive high-pitched vocals as for her punk-edged, new wave music from the 80s. Lauper had many hits in the early 80s including "Girls Just Want to Have Fun", "Time After Time", "All Through the Night" and the controversial "She Bop", all from her wildly successful debut album She's So Unusual (1983). She followed her debut album with the equally successful True Colors (1986), which spawned the hits "True Colors", "Change of Heart" and a cover of the Marvin Gaye classic "What's Going On".

Her career suffered a one-two punch after her first film appearance, in the comedy flop Vibes with Jeff Goldblum and Peter Falk. She followed this with her critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful third album A Night to Remember, though it did spawn a single hit, the remake of Roy Orbison's "We Drove All Night". She continued acting with a role in the 1993 Michael J. Fox vehicle Life with Mikey, playing the title character's ditzy secretary. The downturn in her music career continued when she released her album Hat Full of Stars, which, like her previous albums, enjoyed much critical success but little commercial success, possibly as a result of the album having minimal promotion and a change in sound from pop-rock to R&B.

Lauper continued to act, record and tour throughout the 90s and up to the present day, even winning an Emmy for her role in Mad About You as character Ira's ex-wife Marianne. Lauper is also known for her strong social conscience and has raised money for numerous charities including the Human Rights Campaign.