“Believe” was the lead single and title track from Cher’s 1998 album. The song’s electronic dance beat and heavy use of Auto-Tune on the vocals made it a departure from the Goddess of Pop’s previous work. It also became the best-selling single of her career. Recently, she revealed that she has one major regret about the song. She didn’t get a writing credit on it.
Videos by American Songwriter
Recently, Cher appeared on BBC Radio’s Tracks of My Years to talk about her new Christmas album. While she was there, she also talked about her 1998 hit “Believe” and her regret surrounding the song.
[RELATED: Cher Recalls Concerns About Working With Boyfriend Alexander Edwards on Christmas Album]
The song’s writing credit currently goes to Timothy Powell, Brian Higgins, Matthey Gray, Steven Torch, Paul Barry, and Stuart McLennen. However, they weren’t the only ones who forged the lyrics to the massive hit. Cher revealed that she also had a hand in creating the song. More specifically, she wrote the line I’ve had time to think it through and maybe I’m too good for you. Unfortunately, she didn’t get formal credit for that addition.
[RELATED: Cher and Aging Are Not Friends: “It Pisses the F— out of Me”]
“It sold 11 million copies. I could have got a lot of money,” she said. She also talked about how she felt about the song. “The verse was so bad, I couldn’t make it good,” she recalled. “We—the songwriters and I—got into a big fight over it. I walked out after they said I had to sing it better.”
[RELATED: Who is Performing at ‘Christmas in Rockefeller Center’? Kelly Clarkson, Cher, and More]
Cher also revealed that it was her idea to use AutoTune on the track. At first, the songwriters and producers pushed back against the idea. In the end, though, her idea won. “My favorite thing was that you didn’t know it was my voice at the beginning,” she said of the song.
Cher on Working with Boyfriend Alexander Edwards
Recently, Cher appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show. While she was there, she talked to Clarkson about her boyfriend Alexander Edwards, and why she was reluctant to work with him on her Christmas album.
After dating Edwards for a year, she was still unsure about working with him. “I kept thinking ‘Oh, do I really want to do this? Do I really want to put my relationship in jeopardy?’ Because I don’t care how you try to patch it, if somebody does something for you and you don’t like it, it’s bound to do some sort of, little bit of damage.”
Luckily for all involved, Cher was happy with his work on the record.
