Why Cher Didn’t Release a Christmas Album Until 2023
Some classic rock stars take a while to do the obvious. Cher released her first Christmas album in 2023 during an inappropriate time of the year. The “If I Can Turn Back Time” singer discussed what it was like to make a record at this stage in her life.
Cher gave us country songs before she gave us Christmas songs
Cher has released albums of every flavor. She’s done folk, disco, hair metal, EDM, and country music. She covered tunes by ABBA, Bob Dylan, and Miley Cyrus. However, never put out a Yuletide record until 2023, when her album Christmas showed up on store shelves.
During a 2023 interview with The New York Times, the Goddess of Pop was asked why she never released a holiday record before. “I just didn’t want to,” she said. “I didn’t know how I would fit into it. I didn’t know how Christmas music and Cher could come together and be harmonious.”
How Cher approached her 1st album in years
Christmas is Cher’s first album since 2018’s Dancing Queen. She explained what it was like getting back in the ring. “I haven’t sung in years,” she said. “So I call my unbelievable teacher, Adrienne Angel, who I love like the sun and the moon. She’s 96; she’s been my teacher since my 40s — when I was making movies, I didn’t sing.
“[Broadway star] Bernadette Peters told me that she had saved her when she was doing Sunday in the Park with George, she recalled. “Bernadette said, ‘If you want to get your voice back, go to her’. I just wanted it to sound like my voice. I didn’t want to have to lower any keys. That’s always the dead giveaway. My doctor said I have the vocal cords of a 25-year-old girl.”
Cher was proud of her vocals. “I mean, look, you don’t usually have a very great voice at 77, right?” she said. “But it seems like a lot of us are having some sort of resurgence.” She pointed to Barbra Streisand as one of her contemporaries who is doing well. Cher felt their success was the “revenge of the old people.”
How ‘Christmas’ and ‘DJ Play a Christmas Song’ performed on the pop charts
Christmas came out on October 20, 2023. That might not have been the best season for the album, but Cher’s big fans bought the record anyway. So far, Christmas has peaked at No. 32 on the Billboard 200, staying on the chart for six weeks.
Christmas has produced one single: “DJ Play a Christmas Song.” If you ever wanted to know what Cher’s dancefloor filler “Believe” would sound like if Kris Kringle wrote it, “DJ Play a Christmas Song” is the tune for you.
“DJ Play a Christmas Song” has not impacted the Billboard Hot 100 so far. However, sometimes it takes Christmas songs years or even decades to catch on. Maybe it’ll become the club equivalent of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”
Cher didn’t give us a Christmas album for decades, but the end result is so, so satisfying.
