Cher – Believe (feat. Matthew Harden AKA Slaydy Diana)

Aural Fixation

Mom, she is a rich man – and one of the fiercest icons in the queer canon at that. Cherilyn Sarkisian's inimitable force has carried her from 1965 to the present day. There really is no one like Cher.
A towering goddess of this stature couldn't be tackled by Drew and Andy alone, so we roped in long-time listener and huge friend of the pod, Matthew Harden – aka @slaydydiana. Slaydy dialled in from Melbourne to offer up a deeper understanding of Cher's place in the pop pantheon through the lens of her Believe album, possibly the most commercially successful comeback in music herstory.
Does the album (Cher's 22nd!) stand the test of time? Are the sporadic jumps from dance to disco to Latin to world music a result of Cher's legendary mind, or simply too many cooks in the kitchen? And what is it about the album's title track, specifically created for and marketed towards gay men, that resonated with our three hosts as queer pre-teens in 1998?
She's Cher, bitch. Snap into it.
We’re still recording remotely, so do forgive any discrepancies in recording quality. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to Aural Fixation wherever you find your podcasts. Follow us on Facebook, like us on Instagram, and email us on email.
This episode's companion playlist was curated by Slaydy herself! Check it out!