Cher dedicated her 2024 Rock Hall induction to “Women Everywhere.”

With her induction into the annals of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame on Saturday night (October 19), Cher made sure to set expectations early: “This speech is going to be such a bitch – I wrote it the other day, and then I did it Rewritten tonight and I’m dyslexic,” she explained.

It wasn’t a bummer – during her presentation at the annual ceremony, Cher stunned the audience at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse with performances of “If I Could Turn Back Time” and “Believe” – ​​the latter featuring special guest Dua Lipa – before delivering the song stage to Zendaya, who introduced her idol with poise. “Where do I even begin?” said the actress, dressed in an outfit inspired by one of Cher’s many Bob Mackie looks. “There is not a person in this room, in this country and virtually in the entire world who does not know the name of the artist I would like to honor tonight. She’s so iconic, she just needs a name.”

In a video tribute, stars including Cyndi Lauper, Shania Twain and P!nk appeared to pay tribute to Cher, with the latter making it clear that the eponymous singer was a “fucking rock star.”

But right from the start of her speech, Cher made it clear that her induction was never guaranteed: “It was easier to divorce two men than to get inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame,” she said . “I want to thank my guardian David Geffen because he wrote a letter and sent it to the directors and now, ha ha, here I am!”

While the singer made sure to occasionally poke fun at herself (“I am one Good Singer, none Great singer,” she joked), she hasn’t been shy about acknowledging her influence throughout her decades-long career. In one particular highlight, the star looked back on how her biggest songs almost didn’t come to fruition.

“[With] “Believe” I changed the sound of music forever, and it was an accident. My producer and I had an argument and my producer said, ‘Cher, do better,'” she recalls. “I said, ‘Dude, if you want it better, get another singer.’ He called me later and said, “Cher, I’ve been playing around with the pitch machine, and I think I’ve got something.” I went back and listened to it, and when it was over, we both jumped up and gave each other a high-five. And then the head of my record company said, ‘We can’t do that because no one knows it was you.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, that’s the deal!’ That’s the great thing!'”

Cher also recalled the advice her mother gave her at a young age that led her career to where she is today. “She said to me, ‘You may not be the prettiest, you may not be the smartest, you may not be the most talented, but you are special,'” she said. “She always instilled in me, ‘When you’re down and you’re out, you get back up.'”

Cher smiled at the crowd, making sure the women in the audience heard her. “The one thing I’ve never done is I never give up. And I’ll talk to the women, okay – you’re on your own,” she offered with a grin. “We were down and we were exhausted, but we keep striving, we keep going and we are someone. We are special, as my mother would say.”

Cher was just one of the icons honored at Saturday night’s event – other inductees included Mary J. Blige, Ozzy Osbourne, Kool & the Gang, A Tribe Called Quest, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner and Peter Frampton.