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Cher Biography: The Goddess of Pop’s Seven-Decade Career

Daniel Reed
Cher headshot

Cher biography: Cher is an American singer and actress known as the Goddess of Pop, the only solo artist with Billboard No. 1 singles in seven consecutive decades, from the 1960s to the 2020s. Born Cheryl Sarkisian on May 20, 1946, in El Centro, California, she first topped the charts with Sonny Bono on “I Got You Babe” in 1965, reinvented herself with the Auto-Tune landmark “Believe” in 1998, and won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Moonstruck (1987). She turned 80 in May 2026, and the second volume of her memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part Two, is published on November 17, 2026.

Quick facts

  • Full name: Cher (born Cheryl Sarkisian; legally adopted the mononym “Cher” in 1979)
  • Born: May 20, 1946, El Centro, California, U.S.
  • Nationality: American
  • Occupation: Singer, actress
  • Known for: “I Got You Babe”, “Believe”, Moonstruck, seven decades of No. 1 singles, 100M+ records sold
  • Partner: Music executive Alexander “AE” Edwards (since 2022)
  • Children: Chaz Bono (born 1969), Elijah Blue Allman (born 1976)

Early life

Cher was born Cheryl Sarkisian on May 20, 1946, in El Centro, California — her birth certificate reads Cheryl, not “Cherilyn”, as many biographies long reported. Her mother was singer and actress Georgia Holt, who died in December 2022; her father was Armenian-American truck driver John Sarkisian. She was raised partly in El Centro and Los Angeles, dropped out of school at 16, and moved to Los Angeles. In November 1962, aged 16, she met Sonny Bono while he was working for record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, and began singing backing vocals on Spector sessions.

Sonny & Cher

Cher and Sonny Bono held an unofficial wedding ceremony in a Tijuana hotel room on October 27, 1964; their son Chaz Bono was born on March 4, 1969, and they were legally married after his birth. Their 1965 single “I Got You Babe” reached No. 1, and the duo went on to sell around 40 million records together. The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour ran on CBS from 1971 to 1974, drawing more than 30 million weekly viewers, and Cher followed it with her own solo variety show in 1975. The marriage ended in divorce on June 26, 1975. Sonny Bono died in a skiing accident on January 5, 1998. Their stage costumes — including many of Cher’s most famous looks — were designed by Bob Mackie, whose flamboyant creations became inseparable from her image.

Solo music career: from “Gypsys” to “Believe”

Cher’s solo career produced three U.S. No. 1 singles in the early 1970s: “Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves” (1971), “Half-Breed” (1973) and “Dark Lady” (1974). A disco comeback followed with Take Me Home (1979), and rock-era albums Cher (1987), Heart of Stone (1989) and Love Hurts (1991) kept her on the charts. Her defining comeback came in 1998 with “Believe”, whose title track pioneered Auto-Tune as a vocal effect — the so-called “Cher effect”. It was the best-selling single of 1999, sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, and made the 52-year-old Cher the oldest female solo artist to top the Billboard Hot 100 at the time. The song won the Grammy for Best Dance Recording in 2000. Across her career she has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and her span between first and most recent No. 1 singles — 1965 to 1999 — is 33 years, the longest hit-making span in Hot 100 history.

Film career and the Oscar

Cher made her Broadway debut in Come Back to the 5 & Dime, Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean in 1982 and repeated the role on film. She earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Silkwood (1983), winning the Golden Globe in the same category, and won Best Actress at Cannes for Mask (1985). Her greatest film success was Moonstruck (1987), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Actress at the 1988 ceremony, along with the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy. Later film roles included Burlesque (2010) and Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018). Her awards tally stands at one Academy Award from two nominations, two Grammy Awards from eight nominations — including the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 Grammys — one Primetime Emmy, three Golden Globes, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2018. In 2024 she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, making her the only performer to have won an Academy Award for acting and been inducted into the Rock Hall.

Reinvention after 60

Cher’s later career has been a series of comebacks. The Farewell Tour (2002–2005) ran 325 shows and grossed around $250 million, then one of the highest-grossing tours ever by a female artist. She headlined long Las Vegas residencies at Caesars Palace (2008–2011) and the Park Theater (2017–2018). Her ABBA covers album Dancing Queen (2018) debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, tying her highest-charting solo album, and her first Christmas album, Christmas (2023), produced the No. 1 Billboard Adult Contemporary hit “DJ Play a Christmas Song”. On December 20, 2025, she returned to Saturday Night Live as musical guest for the first time since 1987 — a 38-year gap — performing in the Christmas episode hosted by Ariana Grande, which drew 5.4 million viewers, the show’s most-watched episode in over a year.

Memoir and the royalties case

Cher: The Memoir, Part One was published by HarperCollins in November 2024 and became a New York Times bestseller, covering her childhood through the Sonny years. Cher: The Memoir, Part Two, 480 pages, is published on November 17, 2026. She has described the writing as emotionally draining: “This book has exhausted me. It took a lot out of me. Too much life. Lived too long.”

In a separate long-running dispute, Cher sued Sonny Bono’s widow Mary Bono in October 2021 over Sonny & Cher royalties. On November 26, 2025, a federal judge ruled that the estate’s 2016 copyright termination notice did not end Cher’s 50% share of the duo’s composition and record royalties under the 1978 divorce settlement — 50% in perpetuity, worldwide — and awarded her more than $187,000 in withheld publishing royalties plus interest. Mary Bono appealed to the Ninth Circuit on December 22, 2025, so the case is not finally closed.

Personal life

Cher married Gregg Allman in 1975; they divorced in 1979, and he died on May 27, 2017. Her children are Chaz Bono, born March 4, 1969, and Elijah Blue Allman, born July 10, 1976. Since 2022 her partner has been music executive Alexander “AE” Edwards, whom she met at Paris Fashion Week in September 2022; they are still together in 2026. Reports of an engagement or wedding have been denied by her representative, and no engagement is confirmed.

Her career has had genuine low points. By the mid-1970s split from Sonny she was broke — “We had no money, we had no job and we owed the government $278,000,” she later said — and she took the then-unfashionable Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace in 1979–1982, at a reported $300,000 a week, to provide for her sons. Each reinvention since has followed the same pattern: a career declared finished, then rebuilt on her own terms.

Net worth snapshot

As of November 2026, Cher’s net worth is estimated at $360 million, based on Celebrity Net Worth’s November 6, 2026 snapshot, corroborated by Parade and Realtor.com. No Forbes, Bloomberg or Hurun net-worth figure exists for her. The fortune rests on six decades of touring and residencies, a catalog sale to Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group in 2022, and a Malibu beach house valued at around $85 million.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Cher?

Cher is an American singer and actress known as the Goddess of Pop, born Cheryl Sarkisian on May 20, 1946, in El Centro, California. She first topped the charts with Sonny Bono on “I Got You Babe” in 1965, won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Moonstruck, and is the only solo artist with Billboard No. 1 singles in seven consecutive decades. She turned 80 in May 2026.

How old is Cher?

Cher was born on May 20, 1946, so she is 80 years old. She celebrated her 80th birthday on May 20, 2026, and received the Recording Academy’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 Grammys.

What is Cher’s real name?

Her birth name is Cheryl Sarkisian — her birth certificate lists Cheryl, not “Cherilyn” as many biographies long reported. In 1979 she legally adopted the mononym “Cher”, with no surname.

Why is Cher trending in November 2026?

Cher is trending on the back of “Believe” and Auto-Tune retrospectives — “cher” ranked in the top 20 of US Google Trends searches on November 14, 2026 — and because the second volume of her memoir, Cher: The Memoir, Part Two, is published on November 17, 2026.

Is Cher married?

No. Cher has been married twice: to Sonny Bono (divorced 1975) and Gregg Allman (divorced 1979). Since 2022 her partner has been music executive Alexander “AE” Edwards. Reports of an engagement or wedding have been denied by her representative.

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