Cyndi Lauper is one of the most influential artists in the music industry. Having sold over 50 million records worldwide and become one of the most vocal advocates of the LGBTQ community, Cyndi Lauper has shaped pop culture. Currently, Cyndi is embarking on the final leg of her farewell tour, which marks the end of her touring career. Cyndi and I sat down for part one of our interview to celebrate her music career.
The icon! It is such an honor to speak with you. How are you?
Cyndi Lauper: I’m good. Just on a tour high right now.
The Girls Just Want To Have Fun Farewell Tour kicked off in October 2024. More dates were added this year, and now it is set to conclude on Aug. 30. Is this truly the end?
CL: Of touring like this? Yeah. Unfortunately for me, it took me this long to have an arena tour of this caliber. The fact I got to do it was my gift to all the people who have followed my music through the decades. I just want my fanbase to know who I really am. I wanted it to be joyful, a celebration, and a community where everyone is welcome. It is a fun time. We sell colored wigs to benefit the Girls Just Want To Have Fundamental Rights organization, but moreover, it is to encourage a good time. I am wearing colored wigs, I get all dressed up, so I want my fans to be able to get all decked out. It is a true party!
I love going to concerts and doing something to honor the artist.
CL: But it is also about honoring yourself for me. It is pure fun. You see color everywhere at my shows and people are free to be who they are.
You are going out with a bang! You have several shows in the tri-state area. What can fans expect from these shows as well as all your American shows? Do these final summer shows differ from how the tour originally kicked off?
CL: It must. The show is different. I can’t have the b-stage in the middle anymore. I got together with my creative director, drew out new ideas, and it is still performance art with a colorful story. There are some things I won’t be able to do outside, such as the fan showcase, because the fans won’t work outside in the same caliber as inside. Christian Siriano told me the gays love glamour, and people wrote on Instagram to me, “Cyndi the gays love glamour, but they also love to dance, so would you mind putting something from Bring Ya to the Brink on the show?” [Laughs]. So that is what I did. I will include more elements in these final shows.
That is too funny! Some love glamour, some love to dance, I love both. Do you tend to switch up the playlist?
CL: The visuals are tied to the songs, so I don’t change it significantly. Sometimes I adjust it when certain songs are not so tied to the visuals. I try to never say the same thing the same way. Since everything is based on call and response, if somebody asks something, I will try to answer and sing back. It is a live show at the end of the day, so it is never the same.
I understand since you have a story to tell. Plus, this is a very personal show for the fans. I am looking forward to seeing how you will adjust these remaining summer shows for the outdoor venues.
CL: My band is killer, the visuals are wonderful, and I have extremely talented artists and musicians on tour with me. DJ Tracy Young will be on the tour with us. She is awesome and gets everyone revved up. She was playing with us in Europe and had the crowd singing along to the opening tracks.
I posted on my social media I was going to be interviewing you and received tons of questions. A popular one was if you were going to have any surprise guests?
CL: Well, we did last time. Usually that is a surprise for me too [laughs]. I think that element of it is fun. Usually if a fellow musician is around and available, they will hop on. I always thought rock and roll could save the world, and I still think it can unite us.
I have always been impressed with your philanthropic work. You have always displayed unwavering support for the LGBTQ community and every year you do something important during Pride. You previously were a part of True Colors United (previously True Colors Fund) and recently established the Girls Just Want To Have Fundamental Rights fund at the Tides Foundation. Can you elaborate on this latest charity partnership?
CL: We are raising money by selling Girls Just Want To Have Fundamental Rights t-shirts and merch at the concerts during the tour. You can also purchase them online. We raise money through the Tides Foundation to give to organizations which aid women all throughout the world. I am very thankful to the artists and celebrities who have actually wore the t-shirt to help raise awareness and funds for the organization. They are helping a lot of women. I am grateful for that.
As far as the work I did with the True Color Fund, I did that because I am a friend and family member of the LGBTQ community. I do not believe in standing by while my loved ones are in danger of losing their civil rights. I believe you must stand up when you think something is wrong. When you reflect on the history of the world, recall why our grandfathers and our fathers fought against bigotry. I suggest your readers read “First They Came” by Pastor Martin Niemöller. It is very relevant today. It is about how many people don’t speak out when groups are attacked which they do not identify with. Soon enough it will be you who is attacked, all because you never spoke out on someone else’s behalf to begin with. That is how Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini all rose to power.
Out of all the artists in the industry, you are one of the ones who are far more vocal when it comes to civil rights, human rights, and equality. You obviously have a large gay fanbase, yet many artists who have large gay fanbases still don’t go to the same extent you have.
CL: Even if it is not a large fanbase or even if you only have one minority in your family, you have to speak up. It is not okay to remain silent. I believe we are a community and we need to stand together as a community. We must remember we write our own chapters. This is my end of this chapter, but that does not mean I am not making music anymore, because I have a lot more in store after this tour. I am going to be doing more in the music and entertainment industry, I am just not going to be touring. You don’t stop your work, you simply adjust it to the journey you are going on next.
See Cyndi Lauper this Friday July 25 at Bethel Woods Center for the Arts and visit CyndiLauper.com to see all of her American tour dates now through all of August.
Catch part two of this interview in the upcoming October/November print issue of Out in Jersey magazine.
