Cyndi Lauper

Featuring: Chuck D

Songwriter: Marvin Gaye Renaldo Benson Al Cleveland

Producer: Lennie Petze Cyndi Lauper

[Intro]
Mother, mother
There's too many of you crying
And brother, brother, brother
There's far too many of you dying
You know you've got to find a way
To bring back love here today

[Verse 1]
Father, father
There's no need to escalate
You see, war is not the answer
For only love can conquer hate
You know we've got to find a way
To bring back lovin' here today

[Pre-Chorus]
Picket lines (Brother)
And picket signs (Brother)
Don't punish me (Brother)
With brutality (Brother)
Just talk to me (Brother)
So you can see

[Chorus]
Ah, what's going on
What's going on
What's going on, yeah
What's going on

[Post-Chorus]
[Non-lyrical Vocals]

[Verse 2]
Mother, mother
Everybody thinks we're wrong
Who are they to judge us
Just because our hair is long?
You know we've got to find a way
To bring back understanding today

[Bridge]
Ah-ah, ah-ah
Ah-ha
Ah-ah, ah-ah
You know we've got to find a way
To bring back some lovin' here today

[Pre-Chorus]
Picket lines (Sister)
And picket signs (Sister)
Don't punish me (Sister)
With brutality (Sister)
Now just talk to me (Sister)
So you can see

[Chorus]
What's going on
What's going on
Oh, what's going on
Tell me, what's going on?

[Post-Chorus]
[Non-Lyrical Vocals]

[Outro]
What's going on
What's going on
What's going on
Yeah, yeah
What's going on, yeah
You tell me, I'll tell you
You tell me, I'll tell you
What's going on, ah
Mother, mother
Father, father, yeah
What's going on
What's going on
I'll tell you what's going on
You tell me what's going on, ah
Father, father
There's too many of you dying...

An 80’s pop starlet that skyrocketed her way to the top of the mainstream game, Cyndi Lauper has made her mark as an artist both socially and musically.

Beginning her solo career in the 1983 with hit debut album She’s So Unusual, Lauper came to be a household name with the four top-five hits that came with the record, including breakthrough single “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and the visceral, chart-topping “Time After Time”. Her camp attitude, electrifying vocals, and unrelenting earworms made an impression on the general public, and she would take home Best New Artist and Best Album Package at the Grammy’s for She’s So Unusual, amidst 4 other nominations. Lauper would never reach the same sort of stardom again musically following She’s So Unusual, but her legacy was far from over.

She’s So Unusual set the ground for her next True Colors. Released in 1986, the album most notably contained title-track “True Colors”, which would grow to become a primary anthem of the gay rights movement. Lauper would later serve as a key advocate of the LGBT community, and she has fairly consistently addressed homophobia throughout her career.

more tracks from the album

True Colors

From the albums

True Colors (1986)
The Great Cyndi Lauper (2003)

Cyndi Lauper popular songs

What’s Going OnCyndi Lauper

Cyndi Lauper

True Colors