Cher - Believe (1998)

Believe is the twenty-second studio album by American singer and actress Cher, released on October 22, 1998 by WEA and Warner Bros. Records. Following the commercial disappointment of his previous studio album, It's a Man's World (1995), his record label encouraged him to record a dance-oriented album in order to move towards a more mainstream sound. Cher began working on the album in the spring of 1998 with British producers Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling at Dreamhouse Studios in London. The album was dedicated to her ex-husband Sonny Bono, who died that year.
Believe is a complete musical departure from his previous works, which consist of Eurodisco-oriented styles, while his lyrical themes include freedom, individualism, and relationships. The album features some new technology at the time, such as the use of Auto-Tune, which eventually became known as the "Cher effect". Upon its release, the album received mixed reviews from music critics, who praised Cher's vocal performance, while others criticized the high amount of Auto-Tune and the overall production. In 2000, Believe was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album.

Commercially, Believe proved highly successful, peaking at number four on the Billboard 200 and being certified quadruple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for four million copies in the US. The album topped the charts in Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, New Zealand, Portugal and Quebec, as well as in the top ten in France, Spain, the United Kingdom and several other international territories.

Four singles were released from the album. The first single, "Believe", became one of the best-selling singles of all time, topping the charts in a total of 21 countries and selling over 10 million copies worldwide. "Strong Enough" was released as the album's second single; it peaked at #57 in the US and #5 in the UK. "All or Nothing" and "Dov'è l'amore" were released as the third and fourth singles respectively, both becoming moderately successful. In support of Believe, Cher embarked on her fourth concert tour, Do You Believe?, which became one of the highest-grossing tours for a female artist at the time. A deluxe edition was released on November 3, 2023 to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the album.