US superstar singer and actress Cher says she feels you have to “play by the rules” of beauty standards.
The 78-year-old Goddess of Pop, who poke at the Women’s March rally against Donald Trump during his first presidency in 2018 and released the song Woman’s World, has long been seen as an female icon.
When asked if she accepted the unrealistic beauty standards that are part of the deal for women in the public eye, Cher told BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs: “It’s a bitch, but I’m in it, so I play by the rules.
“I play by my own rules, but still, there’s a standard to keep up and if you can do it, you do it for as long as you can, because it’s more fun.”
Cher agreed that it is not expected of men in the same way, adding: “But what is?
“They just come in, in their jeans, shaved or not, but men in Hollywood are vain,” she added.
“But it’s hard for women, because men can get scraggly. They can get old.
“I see some women doing it, Helen (Mirren) does it really well. And Judi (Dench).”
Cher starred in Tea With Mussolini with Dame Helen, Dame Judi and Dame Maggie Smith in 1999.
“I kind of just wanted to listen to those girls, because there are all kinds of stories that they’re telling about being there,” Cher said.
“I had a scene with Maggie, and I was sweating it. I was really like having the vapours, and Maggie said: ‘Don’t be ridiculous.'”
Cher also spoke about the challenges of parenting following the Oscar and Grammy-winning singer and actress filing a petition for control of the finances of her son Elijah Blue Allman, citing his struggles with addiction and mental health.
“You can do your best, and you can be supportive, and you can keep trying,” Cher said.
“Elijah is so intelligent, and the truth is he’s so bright and so smart, but it hasn’t served him well, because he’s in that kind of, above all of us.
“He’s thinking beyond what we’re thinking – but it hasn’t helped him, really.
“I loved Gregory (Allman, father of Elijah Blue), so I thought, I will stick with him because he’s going to change.
“There are a lot of people who do and he tried hard. I remember once I was so exasperated, and I said: ‘I’m so sick of you going to rehab’, and he said: ‘So am I, but I keep going for you.’
“But they get demons, and it is what it is.
“With my son, I’m not going to give up on him, but it’s difficult.”
Speaking about her son Chaz, who is a transgender man, Cher said: “It was hard for me. It was really hard. I was so frightened.
“Chaz is great, a great person, we’ve gone in and out a couple of times. But we’re very close. I’m close to both of them.”
In January, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Jessica A Uzcategui ruled that a conservatorship was urgently needed for Allman, and declined to grant her the petition.
Since releasing her new Christmas album earlier this year, Cher has discussed that the next record will be her final one.
She said the new record “will probably be my last, because you’re not really supposed to be singing at my age,” as “your voice runs out, you can’t hit the high notes or whatever”.
“I’ve got great songs, so I really want to try my best, to do my best,” she added.
Cher, who has sold more than 100 million records around the world, has enjoyed a hugely successful film career, winning the best actress Oscar for 1987’s Moonstruck.
Her other film roles include 2018’s Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, and 1980s horror The Witches Of Eastwick, 1990s family comedy Mermaids, and her Academy Award-nominated performance in the thriller Silkwood.
This episode of Desert Island Discs, recorded on November 25, is released on Sunday.
