Debt Success Stories: Cyndi Lauper

Photo by Travis Wise

You always think of your favourite successful rockstar as always having been successful. I mean, we all know that most of them had to struggle to get where they are, but you don’t really think about that. You just see them in the glamorous light they’re in now. You enjoy the music and the show, you appreciate the talent, but rarely do we think about what life may have been like for them as they struggled to get to where they are now.

Cyndi Lauper was huge in the 80s. Her hit record She’s So Unusual had four hits in the Billboard charts and has ultimately sold over 22 million copies worldwide. She won Grammy awards, did soundtracks for movies, and worked her way into the pages of world history permanently, breaking all kinds of records and stealing all sorts of hearts.

Things weren’t always this peachy for the successful rocker, though. Before she landed her lucrative contract as a solo artist in 1981, she performed with the band Blue Angel. They recorded one record together, which flopped, and the band quickly broke up. Lauper found herself performing in bars and restaurants for next to nothing. Before she could even think about her singing career any further, Lauper was forced to declare bankruptcy.

Luckily, for all of us, that wasn’t the end of the steam this punk rock goddess had in her. With perseverance and hard work, the singer was noticed and got her solo contract. In 1983, she gave us the timeless hits that trigger nostalgia in many of us, Girls Just Want To Have Fun and Time After Time. With that, she was an international sensation.

While her music career has simmered down today, Lauper is still worth an estimated $30 million. Girls, it appears, don’t just want to have fun. Girls also wanna save for retirement, be money smart and make a mint.

What’s your favourite Cyndi Lauper song? Let us know in the comments!