Cher is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female autonomy in a male-dominated industry. She is known for her distinctive contralto singing voice, for having worked in numerous areas of entertainment and for adopting a variety of styles and appearances. Cher rose to fame in 1965 as one half of the folk rock husband-wife duo Sonny & Cher before releasing her first solo top-ten singles "Bang Bang " and "You Better Sit Down Kids". Throughout the 1970s, she scored the US Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles "Gypsys, Tramps & Thieves", "Half-Breed", and "Dark Lady", becoming the female solo artist with the most number-one singles in US history at the time.
Cher in 2021
Advertisement for Cher's second single, "All I Really Want to Do", featured in Cashbox, June 26, 1965
1960s publicity photo of Sonny & Cher
Cher on the set of the television series The Man from U.N.C.L.E., 1967
Honorific nicknames in popular music
When describing popular music artists, honorific nicknames are used, most often in the media or by fans, to indicate the significance of an artist, and are often religious, familial, or most frequently royal and aristocratic titles, used metaphorically. Honorific nicknames were used in classical music in Europe even in the early 19th century, with figures such as Mozart being called "The father of modern music" and Bach "The father of modern piano music". They were also particularly prominent in African-American culture in the post-Civil War era, perhaps as a means of conferring status that had been negated by slavery, and as a result entered early jazz and blues music, including figures such as Duke Ellington and Count Basie.
American singer Aaliyah is known as the "Princess of R&B".
American singer Christina Aguilera is known as the "Voice of a Generation".
American musician James Brown was known as the "Godfather of Soul".
American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey is known as the "Songbird Supreme" and "the Queen of Christmas".