Cher perfected Spanish to record a new version of ABBA classic Chiquitita in support of UNICEF’s coronavirus relief efforts.
Following her acclaimed stint in Mama Mia: Here We Go Again, and her ABBA covers album Dancing Queen, the star re-recorded Chiquitita with stunning results.
Mimicking ABBA’s 1979 recording of the track, which was also released in Spanish to benefit UNICEF, Cher tackled the foreign tongue to pull off a masterful performance.
“It was difficult to sing something in Spanish that you have sung in English because I’m a perfectionist,” she told Billboard.
“Singing in another language, trying to make it emotional and getting the words right… they have letters that make a completely different sound than I’m used to or than is done in English. We don’t roll any of our R’s.”
Of the recording process, Cher explained: “We recorded it four times while my engineer and the woman who taught me the song were both in England over Skype.
“I kept going back over certain lines. I don’t speak Spanish, but 40 years ago I knew a teeny bit of it. Still, my pronunciation is pretty good.”
Listen to the full track below.
Cher’s new video for the track will debut as part of UNICEF’s virtual special on Saturday. See what the All or Nothing star said about the visual here.
