Did you know that Cyndi Lauper’s iconic “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” isn’t the original version of the song? It was actually written and recorded by Robert Hazard, and it had a very different meaning—focusing on women in the bedroom.
Cyndi almost didn’t record her version because the song was, as she put it, “written by a man for a man,” lacking an empowering female perspective. She felt the original lyrics didn’t reflect the anthem she envisioned for women.
In Cyndi’s words: “I was trying really hard to make an anthem that would inspire women and open the doors to all women. Not just one group of women, but every little girl could see herself and realize that she too could have a joyful experience in life.”
To achieve this, Cyndi had to change a few lyrics to make the song her own. Instead of “Oh daddy dear, we are the fortunate ones,” she transformed it to “Oh mama dear, we are not the fortunate ones,” giving the song a powerful and inclusive message that resonated with women everywhere.
Cyndi Lauper’s version of “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” became an empowering anthem, inspiring generations of women to embrace joy and freedom in their lives.
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Editorial credit: J.A. Dunbar