Madonna vs. Cyndi Lauper in 2021

They had a huge rivalry in the early 80’s as they were both at the top of the pop charts. Who do you think ultimately won? Cyndi looks less bizarre. Madonna has wayyyyy more money and a much better and longer music career. Cyndi is less embarrassing. Cyndi is a better and more respected actress.

Cyndi has an Emmy, Tony, and a Grammy.

Cyndi writes smash-hit Broadway musicals. Madonna can't even write a shopping list.

Cyndi also seems to have a happy and stable life.

Lauper had fewer hits but they seemed to be better remembered than Madge's these days: "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" has 936 million views on youtube and "Time After Time" has 416 million of them.

Meanwhile Madonna's best viewed videos are "La Isla Bonita" (456 million views) and, kinda randomly, "Bitch I'm Madonna" (336 millions). It was probably Nicki Minaj who helped the latter get so many clicks.

Madonna took herself ohhhhh so seriously. Cyndi was for fun and she knew it.

Cyndi is universally respected

Madonna is not respected, especially by Rocco and whatever black babies she’s bought.

Cyndi made it through all the decades without becoming an embarrassment because she matured well and kept her pipes sounding great.

She unfortunately did become the butt of a lot of mockery during a recent New Year's Eve performance, and people were unforgiving about it.

But overall she has represented herself with grace, particularly by comparison to Madonna.

That said, Madonna has always been motivated by 'relevance'—maintaining pop culture currency—and she did it a lot longer than Lauper did. Cyndi is by far a more talented vocalist but she only has a few recognizable songs.

Love her or hate her or don't think you know who she is, you know and like Madonna music. Videos on YouTube of people in their 30s, 20s, teens and younger listening to Madonna 'for the first time' almost always show people who think they've heard her name but not her music being familiar with and liking her music a lot.

And despite Cyndi having a greater unique talent, she is not nearly as creative as Madonna is. Cyndi's a great vocalist, but her big hit songs are more comforting than they are interesting, and she's gone on to perform a lot less original materials and more standards to show off her real talent, which is belting and a dynamic range. (Not to mention that some of her 'original songs' like Girls Just Want to Have Fun are actually covers of other artists' music.) Madonna's songs (like her voice) have a fairly limited range of subject matter, but her means of expressing them is as dynamic as Cyndi's vocals are dynamic. Madonna is the queen of versatility because she not only dabbled in different genres but mastered them. If anyone can be fairly accused of appropriating other cultures it's Madonna, and while she does steal, she steals and often has improved upon the source inspiration, and in art that is allowed. ("A good artist borrows; a great artist steals" has been attributed to great artists from Hemingway to Picasso, as evidence of its truth. Without creative theft/appropriation, there'd have been no Shakespeare and no Milton.)

One of Cyndi's few original songs is really a cover version of someone else's song.

Stupid question and thread

Thanks for taking the time and energy to respond R10!

Cyndi made very poor business decisions during the early part of her career that hindered her longevity. Madonna made poor artistic decision in the later part of her career that made it easy to dismiss her. Madonna is a business woman & that's worked as much in her favor as having great records has. Cyndi not being a business woman really at all has left her at the mercy of inept business people acting on their own behalf rather than hers. Also, after reading her autobiography, I'd say that Cyndi let's her emotions get in the way of too many working relationships. I wouldn't say Madonna has that problem.

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